On Tuesday, November 27, TRECA Digital Academy students went on a field trip to Phoenix Bats in Plain City, OH, and learned all about the baseball bat-making process!
Over 15 students and their families attended the tour of Phoenix Bats. The founder, Charley “Lefty” Trudeau, started in 1996 as a carpenter making bats by hand. It took him 15 minutes to carve a bat. He then decided to buy a Locatelli, or lathe machine, from Italy so that he could make bats in just two minutes! Students learned all about the history of the baseball bat, design changes of the barrel and handle over the years, and the importance of the wood grain. On the tour, students were able to see the bat-making process from start to finish. Heavy cylinder blocks of ash, maple, or birch wood are loaded onto the lathe machine and cut into the bat shape. After they are cut, bats are dipped into paint, engraved, and then polished. During the busy season, Phoenix Bats can make 200 bats a day! The Phoenix Bat Company is one of 38 bat manufacturers around the world approved to make bats for the pros!
Thank you to Phoenix Bats for an out-of-the-park field trip!
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