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By Bat Digest
Updated August 1, 2023
Nine years old is a tough time to find the perfect bat. On one hand your player is growing and won't need a bat for too long, on another many 9 year olds are starting to take baseball pretty seriously and the right bat can make all the difference for that travel ball or all star team. Yet, still, spending a small fortune on a top end bat that will last much longer than he will is a tough call. We suggest, if you're very serious about baseball and fastpitch at 9, you go for the best on this list. Then, look to sell your bat in the secondary market come next season (or whenever they grow out of it). If you're playing rec and just figureing things out we suggest you stick with the less expensive options as it won't matter that much. If your child just needs a bat for this year and you want to give them a legitimate option then go for the less expensive ones.
The average 9U should be swinging an 18 ounce bat. There are two measurements in a baseball bat: the DROP and the LENGTH. The recommended drop is stated in the chart above. The length is dependent upon your child’s height and strength. Generally speaking, there are few 9 year olds who should be swinging anything more than a 29 inch bat. Some can swing a 30 inch. The only real way to tell is to try it out. But on the whole, we’d suggest the average 9 year old get a 29 inch bat. If he’s much bigger than average then go 30.
See our full bat size chart here.
Here's the full chart of 9 year old bat size responses.
Most 2020 bats are released and we've hit with them. We don't expect any big surprises to occur in the bat space in the short run. Of course, as always, expect big manufacturers to come up with some limited edition or colorways as the holidays get closer for 2019. But, aside from that, there shouldn't be considerable changes in the best bat for 9U through the 2020 season. Expect most changes to occur during the late summer of 2020.