Baseball players understand how chaotic the game can become. When the game becomes chaotic, so does the equipment. Yes, your sports attire may be washed, but a baseball bat requires a different form of cleaning. If you do not properly disinfect and care for a bat, its lifespan will be reduced.
But don’t worry. This article is here to help. In this article, we will show you how to clean several varieties. So, once you disinfect them, they will be in their greatest shape, and you will be able to play the game with confidence that your bat will be in its best form and last longer. This article will discuss disinfection in three distinct types: aluminum, composite, and wooden.
How to Clean an Aluminum Baseball Bat?
We have some excellent news for you if you use an aluminum one. When an aluminum one gets dirty, it is simple to disinfect. All you need is water and soap. Yes, you read it correctly: all you need to do to clean an aluminum one is wash it with water and soap. Choose a soap with conditioner characteristics if you want to clean it completely.
You can get a washcloth in addition to the soap and water and start. But you should also be careful not to use too much water in the gripping tape that makes you grip it easier. The stains should be easy to remove with water and soap, but if some stains are harder to remove. For those stains, you can use a toothbrush. When you use a toothbrush, you can remove those stains easier. After you scrub it thoroughly, you can put it underwater, and you will see that the stains will come right off.
How to Clean a Composite Baseball Bat?
Composite ones, like aluminum ones, are also incredibly easy to disinfect. These ones are often lighter and more durable than aluminum ones. However, even if it’s more durable, you should still ensure it is cleaned completely.
To disinfect this type, you do not need to do complex things. Even just a moist cloth should be enough for you to wash off the easy dirt. If there is still some dirt that does not come off with an only moist cloth, you can use soap and water additionally. With a scrub or a cloth, you should scrub the bat powerfully so the whole bat is cleaned from the bottom to the top.
But there is one more thing that you should be aware of: when you use soap and water, if there are chemicals inside the soap, the color of it might wash off. To avoid this, you should ensure that your soap does not contain bleach or similar substances.
After you disinfect the whole baseball bat and remove all the dirt from it, you should ensure it is rinsed properly. You should make sure that there is no soap left on it. All the soap on it should be rinsed. After you rinse it properly, you should use a rag or a towel and dry off the whole bat. It should not stay moist.
How to Clean a Wooden Baseball Bat?
Now cleaning a wooden baseball bat might be the hardest one among all of them. It is a little tricky because wood tends to absorb water. Because of this, it also tends to leave damage to the material. You need to know how to care for a wooden baseball properly. And in this part of the article, in this title, we will provide you with information about exactly that.
You should have a soft towel or a soft cloth for cleaning a wooden baseball. But instead of using water like in the other baseballs made with different materials, you should use alcohol when cleaning a wooden baseball.
It may not seem so, but alcohol is a good option to use for cleaning. It is a very effective choice for thoroughly cleaning the dirt such as sweat and tar. With the towel, you should gently wipe the baseball from the top down until the handle. While washing your baseball bat off, do not forget to care for the handle more than other parts because of the sweat. Because you hold the handle throughout the whole game, the handle is one place that gathers the most dirt.
After you dry it, there is one extra process that you can do. As you know, when you use a wooden one, it bounds to get scratched or scraped. You can smoothen these scratches and scrapes using another bat or a rolling pin made from wood. You can rub these scratches and scrapes, and you will clearly see the difference between before and after. This way, you will also smoothen the rough spots after you hit a ball in the game.
After you finish the process and smooth the rough spots, scratches, and scrapes on the wood, you should let the baseball dry by itself. You can leave it in a dry place and leave it be. But there is one thing you should be careful of, and it is making sure that the handle of it faces up. This is a precaution for it not to have to deal with the additional weight the barrel has.
So, to sum up how to clean a bat:
The first method you can use is the most basic one, and it is soap and water. But again, as we mentioned above, the process differs according to the material used. Again, if you use this method and soap and water, ensure that the soap does not contain bleach or similar substances. Be sure to disinfect it with gentle moves. Do not forget to use a toothbrush if dirt is not coming off easily. With a strong scrub, you should be able to get rid of all the dirt and stain that the baseball bat has on it.
Some other chemicals might also help you with cleaning. You might use products that are made especially for cleaning a baseball bat. You can use a paper towel with these products. Remember to scrub it gently, so it does not take unnecessary damage. Its durability will not become less with this. Also, for wooden ones, you can use polish to make them shine after the cleaning is finished. With the usage of polish, the wooden one will shine beautifully.
Some people also use natural substances such as olive oil, lemon juice, or vinegar. They might not seem like the best option compared with others, but on the contrary, some natural substances sometimes work better than any other chemical substance.
Do not forget to care for your baseball bat. As we mentioned, it is crucially important to dry your baseball bat thoroughly. You can also ensure that you are not just using one side of the baseball bat while playing the baseball game. So, you can be sure that you are not just wearing out one part of the baseball bat. To do this, you can turn your baseball bat a few centimeters after hitting a ball, so the side you use while you hit a ball is changed.
Final Verdict
This article provided information about how to clean a baseball bat and the cleaning routine for different ones made with different materials. People who like to play baseball should know that if the baseball bat you are using is in poor condition and has low durability, your performance in the game will be strongly affected, too. Knowing how to care, take care, and clean your baseball bat is good for the baseball bat and for improving your play.
Whether you have aluminum, a composite, or wooden, it is important to know how to clean your baseball bat. In this article, we tried to provide you with this exact information. After you finish reading this article, we hope that you will have all the necessary information about the cleaning process of a baseball bat and know the different cleaning processes for every one of them.
If you have information about how to clean different ones, you should be able to determine the best way to clean them. We hope you can clean your baseball bat properly using the correct material and substances and ensure that it is more durable and stronger than ever. We hope all the questions you might have had in your mind are answered, and you feel confident about your information on this specific topic. We hope that your game performance will improve after you read this article and properly disinfect your bats.
