They come from nowhere, are often based on little more than wishes and suddenly become fact. In less than a decade, multi-wall bats have ascended into softball lore.
Marketing is indeed the key for bat companies.
The bpf bat tests are done using balls with a standard 350 pound compression rating, which was the industry standard when the test was developed in the early 1990s. During this decade, however, ball manufacturers have been steadily increasing the compression rating of their balls, which makes them harder, while keeping the COR ratings, which determines liveliness, within limits set by the softball governing bodies. The governing bodies are just beginning to realize the potential danger of high-compression balls. Senior Softball-USA is establishing a rating of 525 for Official Tournament play this year and making 350 pound balls available to leagues or park districts. It increases the bpf beyond the 1.20 standard and if it hits someone, it will hurt them more.