Metal Bats in Major League BaseballSince the inception of the first Major League Baseball (MLB) game, played on May 4, 1871, wooden bats have been baseball's tradition. The creation of metal bats occurred in the 1920s, but did not actually see in-game use until 1970, when they were introduced to Little League youth baseball. Even though all levels of players, from children to professionals, seemed to prefer the new metal bats, MLB banned their use. Safety, player skill level, cost, level of entertainment offered and tradition are all arguments used in the controversy over whether Major League Baseball should allow metal bats or continue to use wooden bats . Player safety is everyone's biggest concern. baseball levels. The belief that metal bats cause more injuries than wooden ones contributes to why MLB does not allow their use. One contribution to this belief is the difference in ball exit speeds from different clubs. Aluminum bats were found to produce an average exit speed of 92.5 miles per hour, compared to wooden bats having an average exit speed of 88.6 miles per hour (“Baseball: Wooden Bats vs. Bats metal"). That's a difference of 3.85 miles per hour, which is significant considering how long it takes players to react to a hit ball ("Baseball: wooden bats versus metal bats"). One study shows that it takes 0.4 seconds for a ball hit at 93 miles per hour to travel 54 feet, and since the pitcher's mound is 60 feet, 6 inches from home plate, the pitcher has less than 0.03 seconds to react to a line. the reader hit them (McDermott). Whereas compared to the time it takes to blink, 0.095 seconds, pitchers don't stand a chance against a line drive (McDermott). The use of met...... middle of paper ...... educing Broken Bats. " Major League Baseball. MLB Advanced Media, August 3, 2012. Web. March 17, 2014. .Russel, Daniel A. "Why Aluminum Bats May Work Better Than Wooden Bats." Why Aluminum Bats Work Better Than Wooden Bats wooden bats. Pennsylvania State University Graduate Program in Acoustics, October 18, 2006. Web, April 21, 2014. “Baseball Science: Aluminum Vs. Wooden Bats | Exploratorium." Science of Baseball: Aluminum Bats vs. Wood Bats. Np, nd Web. March 12, 2014. St. John, Allen. "Should Metal Baseball Bats Be Banned?" Popular Mechanics. Hearst Communication, Inc, May 18, 2010. Web. March 7, 2014. White, Stu. "MLB: Fewer Broken Bats." FanSided MLB Fewer Broken Bats Thanks to Comments from the US Forest Service, July 13, 2013. Web... 2014.