SPLIT GRIP TRAINING BAT

Abstract

A split grip baseball bat for use in training batters to hit breaking or off-speed pitches with proper form comprises a barrel shaft with optional foam attachment on a distal end forking into two handles on the proximate end, the two handles each comprising a longitudinal axis not concentric to the longitudinal axis of the barrel shaft. The two handles may be welded onto a non-standard barrel shaft, or alternatively, clamped onto the barrel shaft of an existing bat, and may comprise a U-shaped, L-shaped, or horseshoe-shaped curvature.

Description

FIELD

Embodiments usable within the scope of the present disclosure relate, generally, to a baseball bat having a forked handle and multiple grips to separate the hands for the purpose of instructing and training students how to position their hands/wrists, elbows, and upper body load to maximize the power and ball contact through proper technique and positioning. The invention makes it quicker and easier to learn the proper position for the entire upper body from the load to starting the swing, through the extension of the bat, and automatically grooving a proper swing.

BACKGROUND

In baseball, coaches place great emphasis on teaching novices proper form when swinging the bat. Common problems that novices face include a natural tendency to straighten their front elbow or casting their hands away from the back shoulder when applying the swinging force, or a natural tendency to keep the wrists stiff These and other tendencies reduce students' ability to make good contact on fastballs and often cause them to miss off-speed or breaking pitches entirely.

Although proper hitting technique can be taught with a regulation baseball bat, non-standard bats are often used in order to increase the emphasis on proper biomechanics. These may include bats made of alternate materials to reduce training fatigue (commonly known as “whiffle hats”), bats with multiple or moveable grips, or bats with non-standard shapes. Examples of such non-standard training bats can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 8,187,124 to Ciesar (a training bat having customizable weights and grip lengths) and US 2010/0130313 to Bastian (a training bat having a barrel and handle connected by a flexible rope).

These training bats are commonly utilized in a batting cage or other setting for hitting balls from a pitcher or pitching machine. In addition, they feature moving parts and/or multiple detachable parts, resulting in weak points in the construction which raises costs and limits utility. A need exists for a training bat which can provide a solid, unitary structure which can be used anywhere, even when hitting, e.g., a foam pad instead of a baseball.

Embodiments of the invention described herein meet this and other needs.

SUMMARY

The invention comprises a training bat having a single rigid barrel extending towards the distal end and two rigid handles each having a grip extending towards the proximate end. In an embodiment, the single barrel and the two handles define three independent and parallel longitudinal axes (i.e., neither handle is in-line with the barrel). In an embodiment, the two handles fork or split off the barrel in a symmetrical fork or wishbone shape. In another embodiment, the barrel of the bat and the handles both comprise simple aluminum shafts having a single diameter (i.e., the barrel may or may not be wider than the handle), and in another embodiment, the barrel may comprise padding on the distal end.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the detailed description of the embodiments, presented below, reference is made to the accompanying drawings:

FIGS. 1A-1B depict an embodiment of the training bat according to the present disclosure.

FIGS. 2 and 3 depict alternate constructions and embodiments of the training bat.

FIG. 4 is a series of images depicting the motion of a student using the training bat according to the present disclosure.

One or more embodiments are described below with reference to the listed Figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Before describing selected embodiments of the present disclosure in detail, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein. The disclosure and description herein is illustrative and explanatory of one or more presently preferred embodiments and variations thereof, and it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes in the design, organization, order of operation, means of operation, equipment structures and location, methodology, and use of mechanical equivalents may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

As well, it should be understood the drawings are intended to illustrate and plainly disclose presently preferred embodiments to one of skill in the art, but are not intended to be manufacturing level drawings or renditions of final products and may include simplified conceptual views as desired for easier and quicker understanding or explanation. As well, the relative size and arrangement of the components may differ from that shown and still operate within the spirit of the invention.

Moreover, it will be understood that various directions such as “upper,” “lower,” “bottom,” “top,” “left,” “right,” and so forth are made only with respect to explanation in conjunction with the drawings, and that the components may be oriented differently, for instance, during transportation and manufacturing as well as operation. Because many varying and different embodiments may be made within the scope of the concept(s) herein taught, and because many modifications may be made in the embodiments described herein, it is to be understood that the details herein are to be interpreted as illustrative and non-limiting.

Turning first to FIG. 1A, a training bat 10 is shown having a distal end 12 and a proximate end 14. From the distal end 12, the bat 10 comprises a barrel shaft 20 which extends towards a fork 24. At fork 24, the shaft splits into handle shafts 30a and 30b, which extend towards the proximate end 14. The handle shafts run roughly parallel to each other and the barrel 20, each along a longitudinal axis offset from the longitudinal axis of the barrel 20. Each handle shaft 30a, 30b comprises a grip 32a, 32b (respectively). As depicted, the barrel shaft 20 also comprises a pad 22 enclosing the portion of shaft 20 near the distal end 12.

Since the bat is not intended for regulation use, it can be constructed of aluminum or any material having a suitable durability and weight (e.g., composite materials). In addition, since the bat is not intended to hit regulation baseballs but for use with whiffle balls, foam balls, or foam pads, the barrel shaft 20 need not be constructed with a greater diameter than the handle shafts 30a, 30b.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the barrel pad 22 can be removable and positionable along the barrel 20, so as to adjust to the particular stance of the user, or removed entirely to increase the difficulty.

Turning now to FIG. 2, an alternative construction of the training bat 10 is shown, wherein the fork 24 comprises a straight portion 26 extending perpendicular to the barrel before curving into the handle shafts 30a, 30b. In an embodiment, these shafts may be directly welded to the bottom of the barrel, or alternatively, they may be welded to the middle of the barrel and the barrel may extend slightly past the fork.

Additionally, in this embodiment, the shafts 30a, 30b are illustrated with a slight horseshoe curvature in lieu of the straight U-shaped curvature of the embodiment in FIG. 1A. It can be appreciated that the particular curvature is not necessarily dependent on any particular means of attachment or barrel length, e.g., the embodiment in FIG. 1A may be constructed with a horseshoe curve, or the embodiment of FIG. 2 with a U-shaped curve.

Turning now to FIG. 3, a further embodiment is depicted in which the handles 30a, 30b are clamped rather than welded to the bat barrel 20. Fork 24 comprises a straight portion 26 having a clamping socket 28 which fits around the bat barrel 20. Clamping socket 28 is illustrated here as a single-piece enclosure extending around the circumference of the bat barrel 20 but may in the alternative be a two-piece construction (e.g., with a half-circumference socket and half-circumference attachment bracket attaching thereto).

While clamping is contemplated in FIG. 3, it can be appreciated that alternative methods of attachment, such as screws attaching to sockets within the barrel shaft 20, or interlocks abutting protrusions from the barrel shaft 20, are also within the scope of this disclosure.

Additionally, the embodiment in FIG. 3 is illustrated with a standard baseball bat rather than the non-standard training shaft depicted in other embodiments, illustrating how it is possible for the invention to function as an attachment to existing aluminum or wooden baseball bats as well as a standalone tool.

As with the previous embodiments, it can be appreciated that multiple curvatures of the handles 30a, 30b are possible; while they are illustrated with a similar straight portion 26 and horseshoe shape as FIG. 2, it may also be possible to practice the embodiment of FIG. 3 with U-shaped handles, or even two L-shaped handles (i.e., with the straight portion cornering into two handles 30a, 30b instead of curves).

Turning now to FIG. 4, a method of use of the training bat 10 is depicted as a series of still frames. The first frame shows the user gripping and holding the bat in the ready position. Since the split grip encourages the non-dominant hand to be near the back shoulder, the student is better able to “lay off” pitches and choose exactly when to swing, allowing them to commence the swinging motion at the optimum time and increase power with body and hands working together.

The second frame shows the user during near the beginning of the swinging motion. Both elbows remain bent, which gives the user finer control over the position of the swing, enabling them to hit pitches which are high/love or inside/outside. Additionally, the build enables the bat to stay on the track of the ball, training the user to make more solid contact.

The third frame shows the user following through on the swing. Particularly, the split grip encourages the palms to be flatly perpendicular with the palm of the dominant hand facing up and the palm of the non-dominant hand facing down. This prevents the user from “rolling” their hands as they follow through on the swing and gives greater bat speed at the point of contact with the ball.

Although several preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoing specification, it will be understood by those of skill in the art that additional embodiments, modifications and alterations may be constructed from the invention principles disclosed herein, while still falling within the scope of the disclosed invention.

Claims

1. A training baseball bat comprising a distal and a proximate end, a barrel at the distal end, and two handles at the proximate end, wherein the barrel forks into the two handles, wherein the two handles are at least partially parallel to the barrel, and wherein neither of the two parallel handles comprises a longitudinal axis concentric to the barrel.

2. The bat of claim 1, further comprising a foam pad concentric to and wrapped around the barrel.

3. The bat of claim 1, wherein the two handles are welded directly to the barrel at the fork.

4. The bat of claim 3, wherein each of the two handles comprises a straight section extending perpendicular to the barrel of the bat before curving towards the distal end, wherein the straight section is welded directly to the fork.

5. The bat of claim 1, wherein the two handles are joined by means of a straight portion connecting the two handles, the straight section having a socket for receiving the barrel of a bat.

6. The bat of claim 5, wherein the straight portion connecting the two handles comprises a socket for receiving a bat barrel.

7. The bat of claim 6, wherein the socket receives a standard bat, the standard bat thereby comprising a third handle concentric to the barrel.