The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) will have a new bat rule for the 2001 high school baseball season.

At a meeting Jan. 7 in San Francisco, the NFHS Board of Directors approved a rule calling for narrower, heavier and more wood-like bats. The maximum diameter of bats will be reduced from 2¾ inches to 2 5/8 inches, and the unit differential, namely the difference between bat length measured in inches and bat weight measured in ounces, will be reduced from five units to three units.

The board commended the work of the NFHS Baseball Rules Committee, but chose to defer action on two other bat-related committee proposals. One deferred proposal would have imposed a more restrictive maximum exit ball speed than the one recently adopted by the NCAA. The other would have imposed a wood-like moment-of-inertia requirement. The Board expressed interest in both proposals, but decided to return them to the rules committee for further assessment.

In addition to the new size and weight limitations, the NFHS Board of Directors anticipates that bats used in play after January 1, 2001, will comply with the new NCAA exit ball speed rule. In fact, the presence of a mark denoting compliance with the NCAA bat rule will be one assurance that a bat is compliant with the size and weight components of the new NFHS rule. Although bats meeting the new NFHS rule will not be required for another year, they are legal immediately.

Student-athletes, parents and coaches wishing to utilize such bats this year are free to do so.

"The game of high school baseball is in good shape," said NFHS President Dick Durost. "Even so, we need to stay vigilant to ways in which technology is having an impact. The new rule will make the physical dimensions of non-wood bats more closely mirror those of wood bats. Further changes relating to bat weight distribution and exit ball speed may soon be in the offing."

The NFHS is the national service and administrative organization for high school athletics and fine arts programs in speech, music, drama and debate. Its membership consists of the state high school athletic and activity associations in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia. As a member state association, the Indiana High School Athletic Association adopts and follows National Federation game and equipment rules.

The NFHS promulgates voluntary playing rules in 17 sports for girls and boys competition. When considering a rules change, the NFHS looks at risk minimization, the balance between offense and defense, and the sound tradition of the sport in question.