Bat maker makes it big

The Globe and Mail (Canadian)

March 31, 1998

Bat maker makes it big – By Dave Chan “Though the bat hadn’t been sanctioned [Joe] Carter took [one of the test sample bats] with him to the plate in a road game at Kansas City. The Kansas City catcher and the umpire behind the plate both remarked on the slim line of the unapproved bat. They also noticed that Mr. Carter put a pitch over the wall for a home run.” “The advent of Mr. Holman’s maple bat, called the Sam Bat, is considered significant enough that baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., has acquired one as a historical artifact.” “…ash bats quickly become dented and chipped and often they break… The maple bat, being denser, can put the same mass into a swing with a thinner profile, allowing the bat to travel faster. Contact is made with a harder surface.” Sam Holman: “Sammy Sosa (who was testing the bats in spring training) hit a broken bat home run. I don’t think that’s ever been done with an ash bat.” “ Last year in batting practice, some guys used them for three months without fraying at all.”