BaseballAmerica.com: Equipment Guide

ActiveWrap Ice To Keep You In Game

ActiveWrap presents the much-anticipated shoulder heat and ice wrap to baseball players around the world.

Constructed with the finest plush-prene material with two large hot and cold thermal packs, the ActiveWrap shoulder insures superior function and fit, with comfort, flexibility , ease of use and professional quality at a great price. The sleeve design allows the athlete to apply the wrap without assistance or sacrificing mobility. The shoulder wrap also features dual rotator cuff compression straps to drive cold where you need it most. Like every ActiveWrap ice system, the shoulder model includes a unique gel ice component insuring a lightweight and flexible treatment around the entire shoulder joint. ActiveWrap gel will never push away or pool on each side of your injury, leaving you with only a plastic bag on your sore spot.

For more information, visit activewrap.com.

Easton Offers Both Stealth And Synergy

Easton features an innovative line of bats to satisfy players at every level, highlighted by the Stealth Speed and Synergy Speed.

Both bats features Easton's lightest barrel design ever, thanks to a new laser precision manufacturing technique that eliminates material overlap in the barrel, trimming enough excess to reduce mass and provide a faster swing speed. Both the Stealth Speed and Synergy Speed maximize the sweet spot and provide for more flex throughout. The bats counterbalance carbon's stiffness, strength and light weight with glass' toughness and flexibility to better absorb impact and reinforce the strength of the enlarged sweet spot.

The two-piece Stealth Speed features Easton's patented ConneXion Design System (CXN), which creates a true two-piece design by isolating the handle from the barrel to eliminate vibration with an rubber cushion between the two. The Synergy Speed uses a one-piece design and Easton's Single System Technology.

For more information, visit easton.com.

EvoShield: By Players, For Players

EvoShield gear is elite-athlete tested tough. Now available to the public, EvoShield was developed for world class athletes who needed ultra-lightweight body padding that maximizes performance. Designed to withstand extreme impact, these moldable protective products are packed with innovative features.

The EvoShield Spartan wrist guard is the ultimate baseball wristband, combining EvoShield's signature, custom-molding technology with a pro-style, neoprene wrist guard. Utilized on offense and defense, the Spartan provides maximum strength in an ultra-thin, protective guard. Perfect for infielders and catchers, the Spartan is worn on the glove hand and shields the wrist from line drives and bad hops. It's also used for protecting the wrist while batting.

Developed by former University of Georgia baseball players, EvoShield is revolutionizing the baseball world. From their time spent playing and their relationships throughout college and pro baseball, these former players understand the needs of players and have developed a ground-breaking technology that provides unrivaled protection without impacting performance. Thoroughly designed and field-tested under the direct guidance of elite athletes and trainers, EvoShield is the next step in baseball protective gear.

For more information, visit allsportsarmour.com.

Franklin Bat Sleeve Breaks New Ground

Franklin introduces its brand new MLB Adjustable Weighted Bat Sleeve for 2010.

The sleeve is unlike traditional bat weights, with three weights that are movable within the sleeve to simulate different weights, from 16 ounces (weights positioned toward the bat handle) to 24 ounces (weights toward the barrel end). The batter can further tweak the positions to create his own customized swing character.

The weights are fully enclosed in a soft, neoprene sleeve that won't scratch your bat, and since you don't have to remove anything to adjust the swing, there's nothing to lose or misplace. This innovative sleeve is ideal for the serious player looking to warm-up, stretch, and build swing strength.

For more information, visit franklinsports.com.

M^Powered Can Do It All

If there's a baseball product you can think of, chances are that M^Powered Baseball can get it for you.

M^Powered Baseball supplies professional teams and leagues (both affiliated and independent), adult leagues, youth leagues, scout teams and more. They are specialists at large scale projects.

M^Powered manufacturers a wide range of products that includes maple, ash, birch, elm, hickory, bamboo and bamboo-maple baseball bats, as well as fungo bats, training bats, heavy bats and trophy bats. The company also makes fielding and batting gloves in many models, colors and sizes. M^Powered manufactures a wide range of baseballs with different grades of hides and different internal components. M^Powered manufactures protective gear for catchers and umpires, and batting helmets. The company makes a range of baseball souvenirs and promotional items such as mini-bats, mini-gloves, keychains and more.

For more information, visit mpoweredbaseball.com.

PowerSox Pushes Socks To The Max

PowerSox, a Gold Toe Brand, has a new line of specialty performance socks that offer a fit so extraordinary they have their own acronym: APF, or Anatomical Performance Fit.

Engineered to serve as an essential, sophisticated piece of athletic equipment, APF offers cutting edge performance within the shoe. In addition to matching the contour of the left and right foot, the new APF version pushes extreme sock science even further with a hand-linked, seamless toe. APF also utilizes state of the art Sensura yarns that provide superior moisture wicking and odor resistance.

PowerSox has built APF with a contoured pocket Y heel, eliminating painful friction and making the sock exceptionally comfortable. Finally, the arch is braced to maintain a snug fit to reduce fatigue and sock movement.

For more information, visit powersox.com.

Slugger Continues Bat Evolution

Louisville Slugger TPX created stiff-handle, large sweet spot composite/alloy hybrid bats when it introduced the popular Exogrid. It ended up becoming baseball's best-selling bat. Now TPX is back at the plate with another bat for top level hitters. It's the new 2010 TPX H2 Hybrid.

The H2 Hybrid, with its industry-leading ST+20 alloy barrel and 3-X composite handle, seamlessly provides the outstanding performance of a one-piece stiff handle design. The move to a 100 percent graphite composite design in the transition area allows for a handle that's even stiffer than Exogrid's because graphite is lighter and stronger than aluminum. A stiff handle produces more barrel flex, resulting in maximum trampoline effect. And the barrel's ST+20 alloy provides outstanding strength and toughness to produce the performance, feel, and sound that top players demand.

Serious baseball players have learned that stiff bats are better than bats with handles that bend. Stiff handles mean power and performance, the reason most major league players choose stiff-handle maple bats over ash. Louisville Slugger TPX bats create more barrel flex, resulting in maximum trampoline effect and outstanding performance.

Louisville Slugger H2 Hybrid bats are available in a variety of adult and youth lengths and weights.

For more information, visit slugger.com.

DeMarini Is Never Happy

The all-new DeMarini CF4 Black is here. With a longer and stronger double composite barrel, the CF4 Black is our most technologically advanced bat. The redesigned end cap, The Hub, adds power and feel and provides a better sounding bat.

DeMarini is committed to making the best bats for players of all ages and abilities. We design bats with the player in mind to make the perfect bat for each individual, and we use the highest-quality components to make sure the bats perform. All components are matched for optimum distance, durability, and feel. We design it, build it, hit it, tweak it, rebuild it, hit it again . . . we're never happy.

The CF4 features Pitch Black Plus, the tightest and strongest composite combined with Silver Trace bonding agent, to add strength to maximize power transfer to the barrel. The Hub is an internal end cap that pushes the hub of energy to the sweet spot of the bat. There's a black composite grip for maximum comfort, and a stronger composite allows for an 11 percent longer barrel and a bigger sweet spot.

For more information, visit demarini.com.

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