The Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA) was established in 1933 to serve as the governing body of softball in the United States. The ASA has made it one of the association’s primary goals to preserve and protect the integrity of the sport by establishing, maintaining and refining a set of rules and specifications to govern various items of softball equipment. While there are many pieces of softball paraphernalia that are regulated for ASA play, most likely the item that tops your list when it comes to interest is your softball bat. In order to make sure that you are playing with an ASA approved bat that will meet your specific needs and give you and your team a competitive edge, you need to get very clear about what types of factors are currently governing your softball bat selection and how those factors mesh with the ASA guidelines.

ASA Standards

If you are familiar with ASA regulations, then you probably feel that your favorite slow pitch softball bats and top performers are consistently being stripped out of your batting arsenal. Generally speaking, the ASA does tend to regulate downward rather than upward, so rules like the recent downgrade from the 100 MPH standard to the 98 MPH standard mean that classic favorites like the 100 MPH Miken Freak are now obsolete when it comes to ASA play. However, even though ASA does refine and alter their regulations each year – frequently outlawing favorites on the field – last year’s VIP softball bats will often be grandfathered in for at least a year.

As a result, once you have reviewed the newest ASA standards, you then need to consider whether or not you need a new bat yet since your old favorite may be good for one more year (and out-perform all the new bats on the field anyway). Furthermore, you may be able to get a great deal on a bat that will only be good for one season, then use that bat to catapult your performance to the next level. Of course, you must go in with the understanding that your bat has a pretty limited legal shelf life.

The ASA 2004 softball bat standards have not changed much over the last few years. What has changed is how they will test to verify that a bat is compliant with the guidelines outlined on 2004. This change will primarily affect composite slow pitch bats more so than any other. This is because the ASA is realizing what many have known for a long time. Composite softball bats get better with time.

With this fact in mind, the ASA have decided that it will simulate up to 1000 swings with a bat before determining if it complies with the 2004 standards. Although all softball bats made from all materials will be tested in this manner the only bats that will be truly affected are composite bats as aluminum, wood and steel bats degrade in performance over time, unlike composite bats that increase in performance.

How Do ASA Standards Affect You?

In many respects the ASA standards don’t affect you that much. Every bat manufacturer will produce bats up to the line of ASA performance standards. But, as some bats will be found to not be compliant due to the new break in requirements before testing, some softball bats that were once certified may lose their certification. The bottom line is that this could mean that older bats that are ASA certified and retain their certification will possibly go up in price. After manufacturers stop producing a particular model year softball bat that bat is no longer a “product” but a commodity. These softball bats become commodities for two reasons.

First they are no longer being made, so there aree fewer and fewer on the market. Second, ASA certifications and the way ASA the testing is conducted have given these bats greater value as there become fewer and fewer on the market. So, in short, over time as there are fewer and fewer of these bats on the market you may see a pretty steep increase in the price for these bats. There have been rumors of larger organizations, colleges, leagues, teams. Making large purchases of these bats, hording, in expectation that these bats will either rapidly disappear from the market or will increase in price significantly.

If you are particularly interested in a specific ASA certified slow pitch softball bat made in a specific year, we have put together a listing of 2008 ASA Certified Bats for sale , 2009 ASA Certified Bats for sale and will be creating a listing for 2010 ASA certified bats. We will try to keep these listing up to date with deals available on these bats. As these bats disappear from the market they will be removed from the list.