Q&A: Marucci USA Certified CAT Bat

Marucci has just released their very first USA certified bat, the Marucci Cat. This will be a drop-10 model to be used in all forms of USA-sanctioned baseball.

To provide the highest levels of insight, we actually did a Q/A session with our friends over at Marucci. They were kind enough to answer all of our questions and provide some great insight for everyone thinking about getting on. Also, if you have any questions of your own please leave those in the comment section below!

Q: What is different about this version compared to the other CATS?

Answer: This version was designed specifically to pass the USA Bat Standard for play in Little League, Babe Ruth, Cap Ripken, Dixie Youth, Pony, and AABC, whereas the other CATs were all designed and built to pass either the BBCOR Bat Standard for High School and Collegiate play or the 1.15 BPF Bat standard used for USSSA play.

Q: Was it difficult to create a bat within the USA Bat parameters?

Answer: It is always a challenge to build a performance-driven product regardless of the market, especially when the performance standard is new to the market, but nothing good ever comes easily. It took some time, but we were confident that would get to design that we could feel proud to put into the market.

Q: Why did Marucci wait this long to release a USA model?

Answer: We wanted to make sure we designed and produced the best possible bat to meet the new USA Bat standard. We did not want to rush a product to market just to have a bat to sell. We took the time to fully engineer, test, and now produce the best USA certified bat..

Q: Will the size of the sweet spot as well as the sound on contact be similar to past models?

Answer: Since this is our first bat built to the new USA Bat standard it is hard to compare directly to bats built to other performance standards, however, we are confident that the sweet spot and the sound on contact will be distinct and fit in nicely into the Marucci bat arsenal.

Q: Does Marucci plan to release a composite USA model in the future?

Answer: As Marucci grows its USA Bat offering composite models are not out of the question.

Q: Will there be an option with a 2 5/8"? If not, what was the reasoning for keeping the barrel diameter at 2 1/2"?

Answer: The SL -10 CAT was made specifically in a 2 ½ barrel diameter because through our testing and development the 2 ½” barrel diameter allowed us to make a better overall performing bat with a wider sweet spot. The 2 ½” diameter allowed us to utilize our ring-free, multi-variable wall design to its highest potential and create a high-performing bat built to the USA Bat standard.

We are anxiously awaiting customer feedback on these bats as they so if you get a chance to try one, let us know what you think! Keep in mind that these bats will still perform lower than the previous USSSA-approved Cat models. However, they will incorporate the same AZ105 Alloy for the construction so the feel, durability, and sound. Also, the AV2 Antivibration-Knob (same as the Cat 8 bats) will be utilized to maximize the comfort of this one-piece alloy bat.

The Marucci Cat -10 USA could shake-up the entire landscape of USABats going into the future. This will only serve to benefit the consumers out there, and that makes us really excited! Leave a comment if you have tried one out.

JustBats.com thanks Adam for taking the time to answer questions about Marucci. If you have any questions about Marucci baseball bats or softball bats,  give our Bat Experts a call at (866) 321-2287, shoot them an email at experts@justbats.com, or click here to live chat! Remember, we're here for you from click to hit!