2016 Louisville Slugger 516 Omaha Review

Updated August 10, 2023

We spent three hours in the cage using the 516 in comparison to other single piece alloy bats and other bats in the 2016 Slugger line up

Price Check

2016 Omaha 516 Video

2016 Omaha 516 Models

We also spent a good two hours reading early reviews online from real players. Overall we can confirm the bat has plenty of feedback on player hands during mishits---but the quick out the wrapper power expected in a one piece alloy bat---as well as it's large barrel for this type of bat---makes it a remarkable stick for the 2016 class. Time will tell but it may be our favorite single piece alloy bat of the year.

General Recommendations

The 516 Omaha is a classic bat that hasn't changed much before or since. It's a single piece bat with fantastic durability that performs up to the BBCOR standard at least some length of the barrel. Big hitters can hit it well and small hitters can usually make due. It stands as one of the better buys in the last 10 years of BBCOR bats.

Reviews By Model

Previous Bats

As an improvement to last years 515 Omaha, the 2016 version is made with a new lightweight alloy Slugger refers to the 7U1. This alloy blend has allowed for two significant changes in the bat's 2016 design:

The new alloy gave engineers a chance to create a larger sweet spot. The barrel size on the drop 10 senior league models is measured at 40% larger (or about 2 inches bigger) when compared to the 515 from 2015. The little league youth barrels (2 1/4) are about 25% longer from 2015 to 2016. Of serious note, the barrel on the senior league 516 is actually LARGER than the barrel on the 716 hybrid bat from Slugger. In fact, it is nearly the same size as the 916 two piece composite bat from Slugger.
The swing weight on the Louisville Slugger 516, compared to 2015 515, dropped about 8%.

As well, it should be noted, the 2016 Louisville Slugger 516 comes with a standard lizard skin grip where the 515 did not.

Construction

Additionally the over-sized barrel for a single piece aluminum and the lighter swing from the new alloy puts the 516 in the top of the class of one piece alloy bats.