We can measure the difficulty required to swing a bat. It is a function of the bats balance point, total weight and a physics principle called pendulum period. Those variables determine the swing weight.

Swing weights are the most determining factor in predicting exit speeds. More critical than barrel performance, model, or brand, the swing weight is what allows players to get the most mass to the ball at the right time. If swing weight isn’t right, the player is leaving distance on the table, or too late to make any impact.

The trick to successful bat buying is to find the bat with the right swing weight. The good news is that many bats have, roughly, the same swing weight. You can find the bats in the same grouping of on our swing weight charts.

Q: How Do You Measure Swing Weight?

It’s not very simple, unfortunately.

Ultimately, you take need to find the balance point, pendulum period, and scale weight of a bat. Then, you use a physics formula to calculate the swing weight. We have a tutorial on how to do it here.

Q: Is Swing Weight the Weight of a Bat?

No.

Swing weight is a physics measurement that determines how difficult a bat is to swing around its knob. This depends on the bat’s total scale weight, but more so on the distribution of that weight within the bat. Bat’s with very similar scale weights can have very different swing weights because one might have the weight focused around the knob while the other has it in the end cap.

Q: If I Don’t Know My Ideal Swing Weight, How do I Decide?

If you are not sure of the bat that fits your swing best (therefore making the swing weight charts unhelpful), we suggest you start in the middle. Find a bat in the middle third (we call these balanced). You’ll need to try it out somehow–borrow a friend, buy a cheap one or use some type of testing program. Once you have a feel for the type of bat you like you’ll be much more equipped to dial in the perfect swing weight for you.