Take it to the max with Verdero’s new 2012 718MAX -3 Adult Baseball Bat

From the same folks behind some of the best baseball gloves and cleats on the market today, Verdero’s new 2012 718MAX -3 Adult Baseball Bat is the company’s newest BBCOR baseball bat.

The baseball bat combines a thin .88 handle with one of the largest sweet spots on the market.

Vedero’s 718MAX is built for performance and built to last. It follows the same quality standards that Verdero offers in all of its professional equipment.

Get it for $199.99 at Baseball Express.

Related: Shop our entire selection of Verdero baseball equipment.

Information for NCAA baseball players who own the 2011 Rip-It Prototype BBCOR Baseball Bat

Players who already own the 2011 Rip-It Prototype BBCOR Baseball Bat (Model No. PROB) will need to take action if they plan to use the bat in the 2011-2012 NCAA baseball season.

In order to use the bat next season, the bat must be refitted to remain compliant with NCAA regulations. That means players must return their bats to Rip-It using the company’s standard return procedure. You can find contact information here.

After receiving the bat, Rip-It will modify the bat, stamp it with a new NCAA mark and return it to the player. Players will not be issued new bats; their bats will be returned to them.

We — Baseball Express and Team Express — cannot handle returns on Rip-It’s behalf, so all arrangements must be made directly with Rip-It.

NOTE: This applies only to NCAA baseball players who already own the 2011 Rip-It Prototype BBCOR Baseball Bat. It does not apply at the high school level. High school players are not required to have the bat modified.

Going forward, all Rip-It Prototype bats sold by Baseball Express and Team Express will carry the modification and the new NCAA stamp.

Related: Here’s a quick look at the NCAA’s performance regulations.

Thru July 31: Save $10 on select baseball gloves

Now through July 31, you can take $10 off the total price on select baseball gloves.

Simply add the glove to your cart, and the discount will be applied at checkout. You can view see the entire list of discounted baseball gloves here.

Here are some of our favorites:

Related: Shop our entire selection of baseball gloves.

A word on the South Carolina Gamecocks and the College World Series

We’re a little late to the party on sending our congratulations to the University of South Carolina. So, we’d like to do it now.

It’s an incredible accomplishment to win a single national championship in any collegiate sport.

It takes an immense amount of work to reach such an elite level. There’s practice. There’s individual training: Skillwork, strength and conditioning. There’s team training: Fielding, communication and offensive plays.

Lastly, there’s mental preparation. Athletes have to reach a certain level of mental maturity to perform on college baseball’s biggest stage.

That’s a lot, but it’s still not all.

There needs to be a perfect storm of conditions to create a championship season. The team needs to remain injury-free. Favorable scheduling helps. They need good equipment and consistent, fair umpires.

It’s not easy to win a national championship, and it’s a testament to the program at South Carolina that they’ve done it for two straight years.

Congratulations, Gamecocks, on your 2011 College World Series championship.

As a baseball equipment company, we also like to congratulate Rawlings, which is USC’s equipment supplier.

The Gamecocks swung the Rawlings 5150 this past season, which helped them produce 46 home runs this season, even with the new BBCOR regulations.

Related: Shop our selection of Rawlings baseball equipment.