USA Baseball's 2012 bat guidelines
| AGE GROUP | RULE | ASSOCIATED EVENTS |
| 18U 17U 16U |
Any solid (one piece) wood bat | Tournament of Stars 18U National Team 18U National Team Trials NTIS 17U NTIS 16U 17U National Team Development Program 17U Championships Breakthrough Series Labor Day Cup 16U Cup |
| 15U 14U |
Any BBCOR -3 bat |
15U National Team 15U National Team Trials 15U Championships 14U National Team Development Program NTIS 14U |
| Women's | Any non-composite BESR -3 (category A) or approved-composite BESR -3 (category C) OR any BBCOR -3 bat OR any non-composite -5 bat OR aluminum/alloy barrel and composite handle -5 bat |
Women's National Team |
These standards are in accordance with those of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). For a summary of their approved and unapproved bats, please click here. All 2012 USA Baseball events will adhere to the NFHS's stated move to BBCOR-only standards for non-wood bats.
Bat Protest Procedure
Teams wishing to protest the use of an illegal bat must notify the umpire before the next at bat. Once the first pitch to the next batter has been thrown, the protest will be considered invalid.
Result of Successful Protest
A successful protest will result in the automatic ejection of the player committing the infraction and the manager of the infracting team. The protesting team can then choose to accept an automatic out or the result of the play.
Non-Team Related Occurrences
Players participating in USA Baseball camps or individual based identification events that are found to have committed an infraction will have their participation reviewed by the operating staff and may face expulsion from the event.
14U Championships Bat Rules
(-3) BBCOR and (-5) BESR Bats are permitted. Composite bats are permitted only is they are BBCOR certified, BESR composites are not permitted.
