Has time and weather killed my bat?
Hi all! I started playing ball again after many years away (played about 6 years of baseball as a kid, long hiatus, now back playing in adult mens and mixed slowpitch - on year 4 or so of slowpitch) and I think I may have finally killed my first bat. I'd like your thoughts.
I bought a Easton FireFlex 3, endloaded, 27oz (2 piece, composite) from Sportchek at least 5 years ago. It was on clearance for very cheap, so likely not around the time the bat was officially released, but the math does align, so unsure (released in 2019, according to google). I only used it during mid-late summer for maybe 2 years, often hanging around my car in Canada or my closet between baseball seasons. Could the weather have worn it down, even though it really isn't that well used? It was a team/community bat when I was showing up for rec softball in the previous 2 years, so maybe it has died on me from that?
I had hit homeruns with it before on a smaller field before on multiple occasions, but the pop is gone, it seems. At best, I now hit to middle/shallow outfield on a larger field now, but that's all. I wonder if I am just not dialled in with the sweet spot right now? I see no cracks, etc on the bat, and it can't really tell if the sound test confirms it's dead or not. Also, our slowpitch season is only a few weeks - double-headers once per week, 10 weeks, and then 2 weeks of single elimination play-offs.
What do I do? Is it time for a new one? Did the weather and heat changes/time elapsed kill the bat? If so, what would you suggest for a 23 year old male contact hitter who often goes up the middle or opposite field? My job/gameplan is usually to get a double in the lead-off spot, get home within 2 batters.