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Best Bat For 12 Year Old

Updated August 4, 2022

By Bat Digest

We have hit a lot of bats with 12-year-olds. Their body type ranges dramatically, so it’s hard to narrow down a specific bat. That said, if we had to choose, we like Marucci’s Cat Composite in a drop 8 for USSSA, Easton’s ADV 360 in a drop 8 for USA, and Slugger’s LXT in either a drop 10 or 11 for fastpitch.

Updated August 4, 2022

We hit with every bat in the USSSA and USA and fastpitch market and then updated this list. If and when more bats are released, we will update this best bat for the 12-year-old list.

3. 2022 Louisville Slugger LXT

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Specs

Certification: Fastpitch

Sizes: 30, 31, 32, 33, 34

Barrel Size: 2 1/4

Drop: 10

Swing Weight: Light+

Serial Number: WBL2543010

Original Price: $400

Release Month: October 2021

3. Best Fastpitch Bat For 12 Year Old

2022 Louisville Slugger LXT Fastpitch Drop 10
Fastpitch
2022 Louisville Slugger LXT

$400

Original Price

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

If you are in the market for a high-end fastpitch bat and your daughter is 12 years old, you can’t go wrong with the 2022 LXT from Slugger. Since 2015, the LXT has been ranking fastpitch bats on top of most lists. It has a huge sweet spot, feels excellent on hits and mishits, and can hit the ball hard. We love the LXT for that younger player who is just getting serious about fastpitch and think it will be the bat that will carry them to their first high school tryout in a year or two.

2. 2022 Easton ADV 360

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Certification: USA

Sizes: 30, 31, 32

Barrel Size: 2 5/8

Drop: 8

Swing Weight: Mid

Serial Number: YBB22ADV8

Original Price: $350

Release Month: October 2021

2. The Best USA Bat for a 12 Year Old

2022 Easton ADV 360 USA Drop 8
USA
2022 Easton ADV 360

$350

Original Price

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

Easton doesn’t dominate like they once did in the Little League space, but we still think the best bat for a 12-year-old in Little League is a two-piece composite bat with a huge barrel and a great feel on hits and mishits. If that’s the kind of bat you are looking for, then Easton’s ADV in a drop 8 USA version is a great bat. Our hitters love the feel and performance. It hits the ball as hard as, if not harder than, any other USA bat on the market in its class. We wish it were cheaper, but we think it is the ‘best’ bat for a 12-year-old for USA league players.

1. 2021 Marucci CAT 9 Composite

Player Feedback
Performance
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Demand
Tech Specs
Specs

Certification: USSSA

Sizes: 28, 29, 30, 31, 32

Barrel Size: 2 3/4

Drop: 8

Swing Weight: Light+

Serial Number: MSBCCP98

Original Price: $350

Release Month: October 2020

1. Best Baseball Bat for 12 Year Olds

2021 Marucci CAT 9 Composite USSSA Drop 8
USSSA
2021 Marucci CAT 9 Composite

$350

Original Price

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

If you are in a USSSA league, then the best bats for 12-year-olds are drop 8 two-piece composite bats with big barrels and a balanced swing. If that’s the fit you’re trying to make, then the 2022 Marucci CAT 9 Composite ticks every box. It’s a huge barrel, has an excellent feel, has crazy great user reviews, and can hit the ball as hard as anything. We are big fans, and the bat is one of our few 9.8+ rankings on the site.

Recommended Video

Best Bat For 12 Year Old

3

2022 Louisville Slugger LXT

3. Best Fastpitch Bat For 12 Year Old
LXT Ratings
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter

Why We Love the 2022 LXT

If you are in the market for a high-end fastpitch bat and your daughter is 12 years old, you can’t go wrong with the 2022 LXT from Slugger. Since 2015, the LXT has been ranking fastpitch bats on top of most lists. It has a huge sweet spot, feels excellent on hits and mishits, and can hit the ball hard. We love the LXT for that younger player who is just getting serious about fastpitch and think it will be the bat that will carry them to their first high school tryout in a year or two.

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

Specs

Certification: Fastpitch

Barrel Size: 2 1/4

Sizes: 30, 31, 32, 33, 34

Drop: 10

Serial Number: WBL2543010

Release Month: October 2021

Our Review:

2

2022 Easton ADV 360

2. The Best USA Bat for a 12 Year Old
ADV 360 Ratings
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter

Why We Love the 2022 ADV 360

Easton doesn’t dominate like they once did in the Little League space, but we still think the best bat for a 12-year-old in Little League is a two-piece composite bat with a huge barrel and a great feel on hits and mishits. If that’s the kind of bat you are looking for, then Easton’s ADV in a drop 8 USA version is a great bat. Our hitters love the feel and performance. It hits the ball as hard as, if not harder than, any other USA bat on the market in its class. We wish it were cheaper, but we think it is the ‘best’ bat for a 12-year-old for USA league players.

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

Specs

Certification: USA

Barrel Size: 2 5/8

Sizes: 30, 31, 32

Drop: 8

Serial Number: YBB22ADV8

Release Month: October 2021

1

2021 Marucci CAT 9 Composite

1. Best Baseball Bat for 12 Year Olds
CAT 9 Composite Ratings
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter
swing weight meter

Why We Love the 2021 CAT 9 Composite

If you are in a USSSA league, then the best bats for 12-year-olds are drop 8 two-piece composite bats with big barrels and a balanced swing. If that’s the fit you’re trying to make, then the 2022 Marucci CAT 9 Composite ticks every box. It’s a huge barrel, has an excellent feel, has crazy great user reviews, and can hit the ball as hard as anything. We are big fans, and the bat is one of our few 9.8+ rankings on the site.

Amazon

Buy Used from SidelineSwap

Specs

Certification: USSSA

Barrel Size: 2 3/4

Sizes: 28, 29, 30, 31, 32

Drop: 8

Serial Number: MSBCCP98

Release Month: October 2020

The Research

What size Softball Bat for 12 Year Old

For most 12-year-old fastpitch softball players we like a 31/21 or 31/20. That is to say a 31-inch and either a 21 or 20-ounce bat. You can see more on our bat size chart.

What Size Bat for a 12 year old?

There are plenty of opinions on the right bat drop for a 12-year-old. However, the most common size was a 31/21; we found that those who swung a drop 8 were just as happy with their swing weight. Considering BBCOR bats are right around the corner, we’d suggest most 12-year-olds look for a drop 8 bat as the right drop. In terms of length, most drop 8 bats go as low as a 30 through a 32. We think the ideal bat for the average 12-year-old is a 31-inch drop 8 bat (which would make it 23 ounces).

Wood Bat for 12U

We think every 12U player should have a wood bat in their bat. However, we do not believe every 12U player should use their wood bat when at the plate. Rarely will a wood bat give you the same bat agility, speed, and performance as an aluminum or composite.

But, we do like the idea of strength training and batting practice. The smaller sweet spot on a wood bat forces players to be more selective with their pitches and find the good location of the barrel more often. If you want some ideas, start with our favorite youth wood bats.

Our experience with 12u baseball players is that most prefer a composite barrel. These tend to have a bit more forgiving feel on hits and mishits. The barrel profile of composites also tends to be bigger, and younger players prefer as much plate coverage as possible.

However, do note that aluminum barrels do better in cold weather and cost less. If you go the aluminum barrel route, we suggest you look for a two-piece (often called hybrid) aluminum barreled bat.

How much to Spend on an 12Us Bat

12 years old is when a lot of baseball players start to take it seriously. Our experience shows this is the age a lot of kids are willing to tell their parents they don’t like it enough and start specializing elsewhere. It is also the age at which many other kids start playing baseball.

For those who are serious about baseball, the idea of spending a lot on a bat makes good sense. We like the idea of multiplying your age by the number of games you play and spending NO MORE than that. For example, a 12-year-old playing 40 games this year shouldn’t spend any more than $480 on bats.

$480 could buy you any bat on any list.

The 2 problem with 12 year olds?

First, they grow, and sometimes quick. 95 pounds is the average but the range of weight might be as small as 70 pounds or as big as 125+ pounds. Follow our bat size chart and choose according to weight.

Second, their skill levels often vary dramatically. Maybe more so than any other age. That means those well above average hitters will benefit from adding an ounce or two. More novice hitters will benefit from less weight.

Here is where we would suggest sizing per player size and skill level at 12 years old.

What is the Right Bat Size

We asked hundreds of parents of 12-year-olds right bat drop and size for them. The most common size was a 31/21, followed by a 30/20, 31/23, and 32/24 in that order.

Bat Size Chart

Bat Rumors

Download our data.