Equipment
Updated Wednesday March 27, 2013 by Kanata Little League.Equipment
All KLLBA players must have their own batting helmets. Royal Blue one size helmets will be available through Play It Again and at the Sort Outs in April. These "one size" helmets fit most younger players up through Minor and into Major age groups. Larger sizes will only be carried by Play It Again.
All players must wear suitable "Jock" or "Jill" equipment.
Each team will have a supply of approved bats of varying sizes, supplied by the league. For parents wishing to purchase bats for their child, please be careful that bats are on the approved list of Little League International. There is much concern about bats that are too "elastic", and many bats, especially many models of "composite" bats do not meet Little League standards, and for safety concerns have been banned from play.
Little League bat rules can be found here: http://www.littleleague.org/learn/equipment/baseballbatinfo.htm. These are updated regularly, and bats are not necessarily "grandfathered" ie if LLI finds models out of conformance, they may place them on the "not approved" list at any time. Composite bats of any kind are "banned" unless specifically listed on the "approved" list on the above Little League website for divisions Major and below.
We are often asked to recommend sizes and weights of bats. The following guidelines are recommendations for the average player of average size in the age group cited. In general, coaches want players to generate quicker bat speed in their swings, so erring towards lighter, shorter bats is better.
Only Baseball bats may be used (no softball bats).
T-Ball - 24"/12-13 oz; 2 1/4" bats; BPF 1.15 or below
Rookie - 24-26"/13-14 oz; 2 1/4" bats; BPF 1.15 or below
Minor - 27-29"/15-17oz; 2 1/4" bats; BPF 1.15 or below
Major - 28-31"/17-20oz; 2 1/4" bats; BPF 1.15 or below
Intermediate - 2 5/8 " bats, -3 to -8 drop
Junior - 2 5/8" bats, -3 to -6 drop; BBCOR Certified
Senior and Big League - 2 5/8" bats, -3 drop; BBCOR Certified
Articles on sizing bats and gloves:
http://www.beabetterhitter.com/text/fundamentals/chooseingabat/batsize.htm
http://www.essortment.com/choosing-right-baseball-bats-youth-little-league-team-58671.html
http://www.ollb.org/ollb/docs/Everything_You_Need_To_Know_About_Buying_a_Baseball_Glove.pdf