You're gonna need a new bat

Little League (and pretty much all youth baseball organizations) agreed to a new bat standard for the 2018 season. What this means for your baseball player is that all the bats they've used in the past are illegal for the 2018 season. This only affects baseball, nothing has changed for softball and we can make any tee-ball bat legal with a sticker.

Little League has posted a FAQ that should answer most of your questions about the new standard.

The title of this article is not to be taken literally, the Board does not expect every baseball player to go out and buy a new bat. We will ensure that every baseball player has a bat that they can use for games. We just want every player to be aware that Wonderboy will have to be retired to the hall closet for this season, and that they will have to make do with the Savoy Special for 2018.

We anticipate having a 20% off day at Dick's in February and are hopeful that Dick's will chose to promo price a few of these bats for that event.

Additionally, youth wood bats generally can be found for under $20, although the slim handle tends to make them very easy to break. Wood bats are still legal and work great for the kids that are strong enough and have sound enough fundamentals to swing them.