LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Hulking Jim Thome. Rugged
Manny Ramirez. Brawny Adam Dunn. "The thought of these big macho men,
swinging pink bats to help women with breast cancer ... what a novel
idea," Louisville Slugger president John Hillerich said Tuesday.
Major League Baseball granted special permission for players to use the
colorful bats - baby pink, at that - for Mother's Day. They're part of
a weeklong program to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer
Foundation
Baseball
granted special permission for players to use the colorful bats for
Mother's Day as part of a weeklong program to raise money for the Susan
G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
(Brian Bohannon / Associated Press)
Derek Jeter, David Eckstein and Marcus Giles are among dozens of
players who intend to try them Sunday. This is the first time pink has
been approved for bats - dyed at the Louisville Slugger factory,
they're usually black, brown, reddish or white.
Kevin Mench was
among several Texas players who wanted their mother's names burned on
the bats. The Rangers slugger, who homered in seven straight games
earlier this season, also planned to have a bat for his grandmother,
who died from breast cancer.
"My mom is the glue of our family,
and I just want to do something to thank her for all that she has
done," Mench said before Tuesday night's game against Minnesota. "At
the same time, we are raising money for a great cause."
Howard
Smith, senior vice president for licensing for MLB, said the idea for
the pink bats struck a chord with commissioner Bud Selig and other
executives. The question was how many players would use the sticks.
"It takes a big man to swing a pink bat in a major league game," Smith said.
More
than 400 bats were being made for 50-plus players. David Ortiz, Jim
Edmonds, Mark Teixeira, Michael Young and Hank Blalock were also on the
list.
The Louisville Slugger factory started making the bats last
week. Players were still placing orders as of Tuesday, and bats will
probably be made and shipped overnight until Thursday or Friday.
"The response has been phenomenal," Hillerich said.
The
bats posed something of a logistical problem for Louisville Slugger.
Each player uses a different model and size, so coloring, branding and
shipping them for Sunday's game has been a challenge, company spokesman
Dan Burgess said.
Along with the pink bats, players and all
on-field personnel will wear pink wristbands and a pink ribbon for
breast cancer awareness on their uniforms. The pink ribbon logo will
appear on the bases and on commemorative home plates, and the lineups
will be written on pink cards.
The bats, along with the home
plates and lineup cards, will be autographed by the teams and will be
auctioned off later with the proceeds going to the Breast Cancer
Foundation.
As promotions go, this was (forgive the pun) a home run, not only
because of the impactful use of color, but also for the unusual
placement in the macho world of pro sports. Louisville Slugger is now selling the "Going to Bat for Breast Cancer" bats on its site, and the company and Major League Baseball are donating $15 to the cause for each bat sold.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Hulking Jim Thome. Rugged
Manny Ramirez. Brawny Adam Dunn. 
