The San Jose Mercury News ran a couple of articles discussing D1 coaches and their preference for metal bats. No surprise as to why they favor them, they profit, big time. Why do they profit big time? If you have to ask, this might be hard for you to understand... but here goes... because by cutting the coach of a major D1 program a check for $100K-$200K (more?) to use their products, the bat companies can sell more of their bats to the high school and younger aged kids. The money they spend on lining the pockets of the coaches to be spokesmen for their product is what you call a 'loss leader' which is basically the fundamental method of all marketing and advertising ideas.
If the same coaches were paid that much to pitch whiffle ball bats, they would, and they would tell us all the reasons whiffle bats are better for their game. Yep, their statements are as transparent as a pane of glass.
Here is the Mercury News article in which coaches from Notre Dame, Texas, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Rice, North Carolina, Arkansas, Fullerton, Tulane, Oklahoma State, and Wichita State (you know, some smallish D1 programs just trying to get by) profess their love for the metal bat. They are executing terms of their contracts VERY WELL with their statements, serving as spokesmen, pitchmen if you will, for the bat companies that allow them to live so comfortably.
Here is the other article where you can get an idea of exactly how much $ some of these coaches are getting to use and say they favor metal bats. Anyone that can't see it or understand what is going on here, well, as they say, if you don't get it, you won't get it.
A snippet of that second article... and remember, these coaches are given their jobs by universities, given the opportunity to earn this extra little bit of change, yet, the universities don't see a dime of it, it goes to the coaches personal bank accounts.
"Manufacturers such as Louisville Slugger and Easton provide free bats and other gear to elite programs and pay coaches—sometimes six figures—for agreeing to use their products.
Paul Mainieri, coach of 2009 national champion LSU, has a clause in his contract that calls for him to receive $150,000 a year from the school's athletic booster club and equipment deals. His contract does not break down how much of that money comes from Easton, the Tigers' bat supplier.
Asked about the bat issue, Mainieri said only that he prefers aluminum.
"He is concerned about saying anything that might affect his relationship with his bat company," LSU baseball spokesman Bill Franques wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
Besides the coaches' paychecks, many programs save thousands of dollars a year in equipment costs because bat manufacturers supply bats for free.
"I think there's some traditionalist in all of us," said South Carolina's Ray Tanner, whose contract calls for him to receive $120,000 a year from Easton."
Oklahoma's Sunny Golloway, who prefers wood, said economics won't allow Division I to go away from metal bats, which set the college game apart from pro ball.
"If we all of a sudden are swinging a wooden bat, there's a good chance we are not the showcase anymore," he said. "I'm realistic enough to know you're not going to ask coach A or coach X to not accept his 100K check this year so they can try this wooden bat."
