Blog: August 31-September 6, 2009

September 1, 2009. Holliday was swinging a natural LS M9 tonight... I failed to note on 8/29 that Jason LaRue was using a black ash LS. He normally uses unfinished ash... I'm selling this 2006 game-used World Series cap on eBay for a friend. Thanks to some massive sweating, I can't tell who wore it. But, I do know that player-worn '06 WS caps are very rare. I've seen two and both were road caps (the other was a Jason Marquis).

September 2, 2009. Troy Glaus made his 2009 debut tonight. Not surprisingly, he was swinging a natural Rawlings bat... Here's maybe the nicest Pujols bat you'll see. According to the certificate signed by Albert, he used this bat throughout the month of August 2009 and hit his fifth grand slam of the season with it. It was auctioned at the Pujols Family Foundation's golf outing on Monday and signed by Pujols after the event. If you have a chance to buy a 2009 Pujols bat and you want to compare usage characteristics, this is the bat you should use as your exemplar.

September 3, 2009. As most bat collectors know by now, Hillerich & Bradsby has been etching bat manufacture dates, lengths and weights into the knobs of their bats this season. Early in the year, when the laser was new, the markings were large, bold and deep. By midseason, the laser seemed less precise, leaving a weaker brand. This shot compares the markings side by side. Now, word from Brian Hillerich is that the laser "died" in mid August and, through 9/1, still had not been repaired. Instead of laser-etching bats, the company has been stamping them the way they did prior to 1976. I haven't seen one of these knobs in person yet, but looking at a tight shot of Matt Holliday's bat today, it's clear the stamping is straight, not circular. Just something to keep in mind if you're collecting 2009 bats... Rick Ankiel added a Gwynn-finished Sam Bat to the lumber he's used this season.

September 4, 2009. I noticed during yesterday's game that Molina again was using a standard batting helmet instead of the Cool Flow helmet he's preferred this season... I've been calling Lugo's bats "Gwynn finished" so far, but after seeing one up close, I believe the barrel is more brown than black. It's especially noticable on a black background. So, I've changed it to a Walker finish on the bat use chart.

September 5, 2009. Boggs used a natural Marucci bat tonight, a switch from his typical black LS ash bat... Troy Glaus got the start at first base, but instead of using a first baseman's mitt, he opted for his regular infielder's glove.

September 6, 2009. I've always thought of Marucci as a maple bat company, but today was the first time I saw a Marucci bat that clearly was ash. Rasmus was swinging it, and the visible grain left no doubt it was ash, not maple... Glaus used a Gwynn-finished Sam Bat.