The Best Wood Bats for 2023 (with reviews)

For ballplayers looking for a classic or professional baseball experience, nothing beats the sound and feel of using the best wood baseball bats on the market. There are a lot of wood bats to choose from, so we've put together an informative guide to help you choose from some of the best wood bats for your baseball experience.

To see more options, check out our full selection of wood baseball bats.

 

In this article, we’ll cover:

  • List of the Best Wood Bats
  • How to Size Your Baseball or Softball Bat
  • Best Wood Bats by Category
  • What Materials are Used to Make Wood Bats?

The Best Wooden Baseball Bats Reviewed by BaseballMonkey


1. Old Hickory MT27 Mike Trout Pro Custom - Steel Pressed Maple - Baseball Bat

Overview:

Swing the same bat that 3x-MVP Mike Trout does, the Old Hickory MT27 Steel Pressed Maple Wood Bat! Old Hickory is known for their hand-selected maple wood, straight from Canada. The MT27 Steel Pressed features a long barrel, a huge sweet spot, and a balanced swing weight. Steel pressing the wood compresses and compacts the wood, providing better durability and higher exit velocities with each swing.

Key Features:

  • Steel pressing compresses the wood providing better durability and density
  • Hand-selected maple wood from Canada
  • Long barrel and massive sweet spot, paired with a balanced swing weight
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2. Old Hickory MT27 Mike Trout Pro Custom Baseball Bat

Overview:

The same bat that 3x-MVP Mike Trout swings, the Old Hickory MT27, is a premium quality wood bat great for any player. This wood bat features a long barrel, a huge sweet spot, and is very balanced. This allows for higher swing speeds that produce higher exit velocities upon contact. Old Hickory hand selects their maple wood directly from Canada, ensuring every bat is of the highest quality. The same bat that 3x-MVP Mike Trout swings, the Old Hickory MT27, is a premium quality wood bat great for any player. This wood bat features a long barrel, a huge sweet spot, and is very balanced. This allows for higher swing speeds that produce higher exit velocities upon contact. Old Hickory hand selects their maple wood directly from Canada, ensuring every bat is of the highest quality. 

Key Features:

  • Hand-selected maple wood from Canada
  • Balanced swing weight helps provide faster swing speeds
  • Long barrel and a massive sweet spot
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3. Victus Gloss V-Cut Wood Bat - Black/Gray

Overview:

The Victus V-Cut series is a pro-grade maple wood bat that was made for a professional ball player, but a “non-structural imperfection” got them cut from the pro line. These bats are bone rubbed to create a dense wood bat, providing higher exit velocities and distance. A pro gloss finish on the Victus V-Cut gives these bats a professional look to coincide with professional quality.

Key Features:

  • Big league ink dot certified
  • Bone rubbed for ultimate wood density
  • Pro-grade wood bat that was cut from production due to non-structural imperfections
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4. Victus V-Cut Wood Baseball Bat - 2022 Model

Overview:

The Victus V-Cut with Axe Handle features the handle a lot of ball players love with a pro-quality wood bat. The V-Cut series is a pro-grade maple wood bat that was made for a professional baseball player, but a “non-structural imperfection” got them cut from the pro-line. The Axe Handle gives a whip feel through the zone, allowing for fast swing speeds and a great feel with every swing.

Key Features:

  • Axe Handle
  • Big league ink dot certified
  • End-loaded swing weight is perfect for a power hitter
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5. Old Hickory RA13 Pro Maple Wood Baseball Bat

Overview:

Swing the same bat as baseball superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. with the Old Hickory RA13 Pro Maple Wood Bat! The RA13 features a long barrel and massive sweet spot, providing the hitter with a large hitting surface. With a balanced swing weight, flared knob, and large hitting surface, this bat is ready to make an impact on the field!

Key Features:

  • Big league ink dot certified
  • Pro cupped end cap to create a perfect balanced bat
  • Medium handle and flared knob provide comfort and reduced friction
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6. Marucci AP5 Pro Model Youth Maple Wood Bat - Natural/Black

Overview:

The Marucci AP5 Pro Model Youth Maple Wood Bat is future hall of fame baseball player Albert Pujols’ model. The AP5 youth model features an end-loaded swing weight and a large barrel that is perfect for a young power hitter. Marucci’s renowned wood bats feature premium-quality maple wood that is trusted by hundreds of professional baseball players.

Key Features:

  • Bone rubbed for more dense wood and increased durability
  • Traditional handle and a tapered knob
  • End-loaded feel is scaled down for youth ball players on the AP5 youth model
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7. Marucci Josh Donaldson Bringer of Rain Youth Pro Model Wood Bat - 2022 Model

Overview:

The Marucci Bringer of Rain Youth Pro Model Wood Baseball Bat is former MVP Josh Donaldson’s model. This bat features a thin handle that flows into a tapered knob and a large barrel, to create a great bat whip that power hitters love. Bringer of Rain has an end-loaded swing weight and is perfect for a young ball player who has experience hitting with a wood bat.

Key Features:

  • Bone rubbed for wood density and bat durability
  • Handcrafted from Marucci’s top-quality maple wood
  • Large barrel and thin handle to create a great whip through the zone
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8. Victus Fernando Tatis TATIS23 Pro Reserve Maple Wood Bat - Flame/Charcoal

Overview:

Victus’s TATIS23 is All-Star Fernando Tatis’ signature model bat. The TATIS23 is built for power with an end-loaded swing weight and a large barrel. The flared knob on the TATIS23 makes it easier for the player to whip the large barrel through the zone and create the massive contact everyone envisions.

Key Features:

  • Big league ink dot certified
  • ProPACT finish creates a more dense and durable wood
  • Grit flame handle only available on the TATIS23 model
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9. B45 CarGo5 Pro Select Wood Baseball Bat

Overview:

B45’s Cargo5 is former MLB All-Star Carlos Gonzalez’s signature bat! This bat has a large tapered knob that allows the player’s hand to hold flat against the bat and provides them with better bat control. Cargo5 features a large barrel but has a balanced swing weight, giving hitters a large hitting surface without sacrificing bat speed.

Key Features:

  • Handcrafted from B45’s Pro Select Yellow Birch
  • Large tapered knob and large barrel with a balanced swing weight
  • -2 drop weight ratio
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10. Victus YI13 Youth Pro Reserve Birch Wood Bat

Overview:

Victus’s YI13 Youth Pro Reserve Wood Baseball Bat is built for youth ball players who are looking for a slight end-load and more mass in the barrel. This particular Victus wood bat features birch wood. Birch is a good option for someone looking for more bat flex than maple wood, but stiffer than ash wood. This provides the player an optimal flex while still being stiff enough to maintain durability.

Key Features:

  • Thin handle and slightly flared knob
  • Slightly end-loaded swing weight
  • ProPACT finish for a more dense wood
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How to Size Your Wood Baseball or Softball Bat

When choosing the best wood bat, you'll want to make sure that you choose the appropriate size for your height and swing.

When sizing a wood bat for an adult, an easy way to begin is to measure the distance from the center of your chest to your fingertips. This distance will be the average length of bat that works for your wingspan. 

Youth players between 3' and 3' 4" tall should start with a 26-inch bat and increase by one inch for every four inches of growth.

For more information, check out our complete guide to baseball and softball bat sizing.

Best Wood Bats by Category

Just like with most other aspects of baseball equipment, not every wood baseball bat is perfect for every age and skill level. To help you find the best wood bat for your game, we've selected our top-rated, best wood bat for each of the following categories.

Best High School/College Wood Baseball Bats

Best Youth Wood Bat

Marucci AP5 NB Albert Pujols Pro Model Youth: The Marucci AP5 NB Albert Pujols Pro Model Youth bat is designed with the same balance and power of the adult model. It gives youth players the control they need as they learn how to make solid contact. This bat is made from forest-grown Pennsylvania maple for optimum quality.

Best Wood Bat for Power

Victus Fernando Tatis TATIS23 Pro Reserve Maple Wood Bat: Flame/Charcoal: Fernando Tatis Jr.’s signature bat from Victus is the best wood bat for power. The TATIS23 features an end-loaded swing weight with a large barrel, medium handle, and a flared knob. A flared knob allows the player to whip the end-loaded through the zone quickly, allowing for quick swing speeds and monster power.

Best Fastpitch Softball Wood Bat

What Materials are Used to Make Wood Bats?

Wood baseball bats have been used since the invention of the game. Over the history of baseball bat construction, different materials have been used in bat creation, each having different qualities. When you're searching for the best wood baseball bat, you may notice some of the following materials used in baseball bat craftsmanship.

  • Maple: Maple wood baseball bats are the most common on the market today. Maple is a hard wood and the choice of many pros and elite ballplayers due to its durability and solid nature when making contact.
  • Ash: At one time, ash used to be the most common wood used in baseball bat construction. It’s incredibly lightweight, giving ballplayers much more control at the plate, but with its weight comes a sacrifice in durability.
  • Hickory: Hickory was the wood of choice in the early days of baseball. Hickory bats can be incredibly heavy, so many ballplayers shy away from hickory bats in today's game. If you’re a stronger player who likes a heavy bat, some manufacturers still craft hickory wood baseball bats.

Bamboo: Bamboo bats are some of the lightest and most durable bats available on the market. Bamboo is technically grass (not wood), so these bats are made by gluing several strips of bamboo together. MLB and elite leagues ban the use of bamboo bats due to the fact they’re not constructed out of a single piece of wood.

Find the Best Selection of Wood Bats at BaseballMonkey!

By now, you should now have all the information you need to find the best wooden baseball bat for success, no matter what your skill level currently is. Now that you have all the info you need, feel free to browse our full selection of wooden bats on BaseballMonkey.com!

 

This article was originally published on June 16, 2021, and has been updated with new information.