Was Pete Rose's bat corked?

[joeybee12]

Big League Stew Tue Jun 08, 2010 1:20 pm EDT

Does it really matter at this point if Pete Rose's bat was corked?
By 'Duk

So Barry Petchesky of Deadspin has blessed the Internet with a very well-done post Tuesday morning on this X-rayed bat that is displayed here to the right and is being reported as once having been owned by Pete Rose.

The image comes courtesy of the current owner of the Mizuno PR4192 bat — a collector named Bill Schubert — and it's possible to connect all the dots to become reasonably sure that Rose used it during his chase of Ty Cobb's all-time hits record in 1985. The dark rectangular area in the middle is believed to be cork.

Petchesky lines up all the evidence that links the bat to Rose in his post, citing its unbroken line of ownership, specific markings on its handle and barrel, and photographs of Rose that show him wielding it during the pursuit of Cobb.


http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Does-it-really-matter-at-this-point-if-Pete-Rose;_ylt=Ap.uXYJ37OU6EgTZk872ut0RvLYF?urn=mlb,246560

[El Supremo]

1. Pete Rose's brain is corked.

[TZ]

2. Wouldn't surprise me

I lost all respect for him years ago and I grew up a Reds fan..

[madinmaryland]

3. WTF, Condem. You hijacked joeybee's account???

:wtf:

The "Big League Stew" as a source??

:wtf:

:D

[JonLP24]

4. I didn't watch this episode

but I read about a Mythbusters episode that stated using corked bats actually hurt your ability to hit a ball further. Here it is.

This myth operates under the assumption that cork-filled bats can be swung faster because of their lighter weight, and that the springiness of the cork could propel the ball farther. To eliminate the human factor of the myth, Adam and Jamie constructed a special batting rig and used a pressurized air cannon to launch the baseball at it. Tests showed that the cannon could launch the ball 80 miles per hour, which is the average speed of most MLB pitches. Regulation bats could propel the ball away at 80 mph (130 km/h) while corked bats could only propel the ball 40 mph (64 km/h), half the speed of regulation bats. The reason was that cork bats have less mass to transfer force into the ball, and the cork actually absorbs some of the ball's impact. The MythBusters concluded that using a cork filled bat will not improve performance (it will in fact hurt it), and the major league batters who were caught using cork-filled bats risked their careers for absolutely nothing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBusters_%282007_season%29#Corked_Bat

[joeybee12]

5. The counter to that is that it's not supposed to make you hit harder,

but you can swing more quickly, and as you age, that's important.

[JonLP24]

6. I'm not sure a lot of people know that

I believe anyone using a corked bat believe the ball will travel further when (according to Mythbusters) the cork absorbs the contact. I think causing the ball to travel half the speed would lead to more outs as players are able to catch up to the ball--plus it's not traveling as far.

[TZ]

7. Yeah but even if it doesn't really work

corking your bat IS cheating and if its true I think its going to be the nail on the coffin on his HOF hopes

[JonLP24]

8. No argument there

Regulation bats should be used at all times even if your custom bat reduces your batting average to .000.

At this point it doesn't look like he has much of a change even if it turns out that he didn't cork the bat.

[Captain Hilts]

9. Especially in light of all the cheap hits off astroturf. I still think he belongs in the HOF. nt

[ProfessorGAC]

10. I Agree With Nearly Everything Here, Except That Last Bit

I don't think he belongs. If Cobb had played 162 game seasons, Rose still wouldn't have caught him. And, his average is not on par with the true greats.

So, since he's a cheater, the numbers aren't overwhelming enough.
GAC

[wilt the stilt]

11. Professor-C'mon

Rose not among the greats. What game were you watching in the sixties and seventies. He was an absolutely a great player and played baseball the way it was and is supposssd to be played. He played all out all the time.

One of Rose's great lines was People told me I couldn't run or field, no one has ever said I couldn't hit.

Secondly, You can't compare stats of different eras you can only dominance during the ea they played in and rose was a dominant player.

The same argument can be made on Hank Aaron and Willie Mays. Who was the more dominant player. Anyone who watched knows it was Mays.

[joeybee12]

13. Betting on your own team is an immediate disqualification...

he's got about 10 immediate disqualifcations.

[joeybee12]

14. As TZ said, it's still cheating...corked bats are banned...he was trying

to get an advantage, whether it was pointless or not.

[MrCoffee]

12. I'll bet it was.

[brendan120678]

15. My question re. corked bats:

How exactly does one get a corked bat?

Would you go to Hillerich & Bradsby (Louisville Slugger) and say, "I want my customized bat to have cork in the center, so...please do that. But don't tell anyone. K'thanx!"

Obviously you'd have to modify a bat on your own, I guess. I know it's not hard to do, but there would be tons of evidence of it being done - such as an obvious whole that's been plugged/repaired at the top end of the bat.

[KamaAina]

16. Too bad his mouth wasn't

:eyes: