2016 Rawlings 5150 Review

In addition to the offerings we've come to expect from the Rawlings 5150, the 2016 iteration will also contain a hybrid bat in the senior league big barrel market.

Before last year, the 5150 was considered an end-loaded bat. In 2015 (and 2016) Rawlings added a composite end cap--the same one found on the VELO. This lowered the swing weight of the 5150 dramatically. As a result, many vendors' websites and YouTube videos claim the 5150 is now balanced. But that information isn't particularly helpful considering the Rawlings VELO---which vendors also claim is balanced---has a noticeably lighter swing weight than the 5150. To make it clear, we like to refer to the VELO as having a hand-load while the 5150 is balanced. Hopefully, one day, the nomenclature will catch on.

Other than that unique senior league big barrel hybrid, the other 2016 Rawlings 5150 will continue to be a single piece of alloy from the handle through the barrel. Like last year's model, it also has an extended composite end cap covering about two inches of the end of the barrel. While this makes the traditional 5150 a multi-piece bat, it is often referred to as a single piece alloy simply because there is no transition between the handle and barrel to a different material.