Catcher Martin Maldonado of the Astros had to use a different bat in Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday night because the Albert Pujols model he used in Game 1 was banned from major league play.
According to him, the rule is the rule, and he must abide by it. So, as a result, I refrained from using it today. Maldonado went 0-for-3 as the Mets defeated the Phillies 5-2. This tied the World Series at 2.
Maldonado finished 1 for 3 with an RBI single in the opening game, a 6-5 loss that went the distance. In Game 1, he used a Marucci AP5 designed for Albert Pujols. The diameter of the barrel of a baseball bat was reduced from 2.75 inches to 2.61 inches in 2010 due to a safety mandate enforced by Major League Baseball.
The switch to slimmer bats was implemented to lessen the possibility of the bats shattering into innumerable fragments. Those already playing at the significant league level could keep using their larger bats as part of the change.
Maldonado didn’t have any grandfathered-in bats to choose from because he joined the majors in 2011. It arrived yesterday, he said. Because of my military experience, I use the same model but with several adjustments. First, there’s a policy in place, and I’m a rule follower, so I refrained from employing it.
According to MLB’s analysis, Maldonado did not benefit from utilizing the Pujols approach, and the blunder seemed accidental. Maldonado has a.209 batting average throughout his 12-year professional career.
-->With 703 home runs over his 22-year career, Pujols ranks fourth all-time. Jack Marucci, who makes bats, has indicated that I worked with Albert on the design of the AP5. Marucci told the Associated Press in a text, “He gave me a bat to copy. Maldonado had played with the bat previously, so this wasn’t his first time.
