The Bataround, a device invented by Galt's Larry Kost and Valley Springs' Rick Chambers, is said to improve the hand-eye coordination of baseball and softball players. (Courtesy photo)

Local inventors hope 'Bataround' is a big hit

Whether it's going to the batting cages or hitting off the tee, baseball and softball players are always searching for ways to add those few extra points to their batting average.

But what about a portable device that can simulate pitch speeds upwards of 90 miles per hour?

After numerous prototypes and years of tinkering, Rick Chambers, of Valley Springs, and Galt's Larry Kost believe they've invented the perfect apparatus to accomplish just that: The Bataround.

It doesn't sound like much: an elongated stainless steel frame, connected to an aviation cable with a batting practice ball bolted to the end. But with one person swinging the device in a circular motion, a little wrist action and the resulting centrifugal force can provide a whole lot of practice cuts for a batter in a short period of time. (And no, the swinger will not be in the line of fire.)

"We always thought there was a way to make the ol' ball and rope thing safe for the guy that swings the rope around," said Chambers, who says the bataround can tremendously improve a batter's hand-eye coordination.

In 2001, Chambers took his invention to the Everhart School of Business at the University of the Pacific, where one of the Master's programs conducts feasibility studies on various products. After thoroughly testing the bataround — which included trying it out with the UOP baseball and softball teams — and analyzing its potential marketability, the students deemed it their favorite invention of the semester.

In the summer of 2006, five years and some $70,000 in research and development later, Chambers and Kost, the engineer behind the bataround, finally put their invention on the market. Hand-assembled in Galt, 200 of the batarounds have been built, with about a 2-to-1 ratio in baseball devices to softball ones.

When it comes to results, Chambers says the proof is in the pudding, noting the vast offensive improvement of his son, Ricky.

"His junior year (at Calaveras High School) he hit .290 with no home runs," Chambers said. "He didn't play with confidence or like I thought he was capable of. He worked with bataround all offseason and his senior year he batted .431 with a .706 slugging percentage and cut his strikeouts in half."

The cost of one of these devices is just under $200, roughly the equivalent of a good aluminum bat. For more information, visit http://www.bataround.com.

First published: Saturday, March 3, 2007