Introducing the 2013 Rawlings 5150 and Velo BBCOR Baseball Bats

The 2013 lineup of Rawlings BBCOR baseball bats hasn’t hit the shelves just yet, but we’re now able to accept pre-orders on Rawlings’ 2013 Velo and 2013 5150 BBCOR baseball bats.

The 5150 has an expected ship date of 9/15, and the Velo has a ship date of 10/4.

What’s the scoop on both bats?

The 2013 Velo is evenly balanced, featuring Rawlings’ pOp Barrel technology for a smooth, powerful swing. It’s got a 5150 alloy barrel joined to a new Comp-Lite endcap, which reduces drag and vibration.

Get it for $299.99.

The 2013 5150 is built with Rawlings’ trusty 5150 alloy frame. This year’s edition features some tweaks on its balance and weight distribution, meant to reduce its swing weight and boost bat speed.

Get it for $199.99.

Related: Shop our entire selection of Rawlings baseball bats.

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Who’s swinging what in the 2012 College World Series

All eyes will be on Omaha this weekend as the 2012 College World Series gets underway.

The field is set, and some of the usual suspects are back again. The SEC leads the way with three teams, including South Carolina, gunning for its third consecutive national championship.

Now that we know who’s in, what are they swinging? Here’s a look at the baseball bats that all eight teams will be using.

UCLA, Arkansas, Florida — Easton

These three teams use the Easton Power Brigade Series.

Easton designed the Power Brigade with the idea that not all batters bat alike — some are power hitters, some are contact hitters, some fall somewhere in the middle. The Power Brigade is a series of eight bats, each balanced and weighted to compliment a certain hitting style, just like wood bats in the pros.

Florida State, Arizona — Louisville Slugger

The Wildcats and ‘Noles use Louisville Slugger’s 2012 lineup, which includes the Exogrid, Omaha and Z-1000.

The Exogrid is famous for it’s ultra-stiff composite handle, designed in a shock-absorbing grid pattern with an stiffness-enhancing internal sleeve. The Z-1000 is tuned for maximum barrel flex, and the Omaha is a familiar name around the CWS as it’s the latest in a long line of wildly successful Omaha bats for Lousiville Slugger.

South Carolina, Kent State — Rawlings

The Golden Flashes and the two-time defending champ Gamecocks swing Rawlings, specifically Rawlings’ 5150 BBCOR Baseball Bat.

The 5150 has spent a year in the game, and it’s a crowd favorite. It has a 4.3/5 rating at Baseball Express, one of our top baseball bats. The Velo features a longer barrel and a stiff handle.

Stony Brook — DeMarini

Stony Brook is the lone College World Series team using DeMarini, whose 2012-2013 lineup of baseball bats includes some familiar names.

The Voodoo is designed with some pretty awesome barrel graphics and a TR3 composite handle for faster bat speed. The CF5 pulls that technology into the barrel, creating a fully two-piece TR3 composite bat. Vexxum utilizes DeMarini’s X10 alloy for maximum power with minimal bat weight.

How do they stack up?

Let’s have a little fun and compare some of the season statistics in home runs…

Florida’s insane home run total for the season puts Easton in front.

1. EASTON (UF 75 HR in 65 games; UCLA 23 in 61; UA 38 in 64) — 0.71 HR per game
2. RAWLINGS (USC 41 in 62; KSU 43 in 64) — 0.66 HR per game
3. DEMARINI (SB 37 in 65) — 0.56 HR per game
4. LOUISVILLE SLUGGER (FSU 43 in 63; UA 20 in 60) — 0.51 HR per game

Related: Shop our entire selection of BBCOR certified baseball bats.

Nike’s Aero M1 and Aero Fuse BBCOR baseball bats now available in red and metallic purple

Good news for ballplayers who like to swing the Swoosh.

Nike recently released a pair of new baseball bats, the 2012 Aero Fuse -3 BBCOR Baseball Bat and 2012 Aero M1 -3 BBCOR Baseball Bat.

The 2012 Aero M1 features a fresh, limited edition metallic purple redesign of the highly-rated 2012 Aero M1.

The all-metal Aero M1 features one-piece, Zr91 alloy construction from barrel to handle. It’s fully-metal, so it’s primed to create full-speed explosions right out of the box.

Get it for $199.99 at Baseball Express.

The red 2012 Aero Fuse is the same bat used exclusively by several collegiate programs this past year. It’s now available to the public, featuring a two-piece hybrid design.

The composite handle is tuned for maximum flex and minimum vibration, upping efficiency and giving you the most possible power on every swing. The high-performance Zr91 metal alloy barrel is durable and responsive.

Get the 2012 Aero Fuse for $299.99 at Baseball Express.

Related: Shop our entire selection of BBCOR baseball bats.

Thru March 31: Order a DeMarini BBCOR Baseball Bat, and your gear ships for free!

Starting this week, all DeMarini BBCOR Certified Baseball Bats ship for free at Baseball Express.

DeMarini’s 2012 lineup of BBCOR certified baseball bats includes baseball bats like the Voodoo, CF5 and Vexxum. Those are the same bats used by top teams like Arizona State, Cal State Fullerton, Vanderbilt, UC San Diego, UC Irvine and the University of Tampa.

And when you order a DeMarini BBCOR baseball bat thru March 31 at Baseball Express, yours will ship for free.

Related: Shop our entire selection of DeMarini baseball equipment.