Now that you have the wood bat, you need to take care of it.

Here are a few tips to keep your bat in great shape:

Keep your baseball bat clean. This is especially important if you use pine tar on your bat.

The best way to clean a bat is to wipe it down with rubbing alcohol after use.

Take a soft cloth or a wad of paper towels and wet liberally with rubbing alcohol. Wipe down the bat from the top of the barrel down to the handle, paying particular attention to the handle, where pine tar, sweat and grime quickly accumulate.

To take care of dings, scrapes and scratches on the bat, try rubbing it with a piece of bone, Dog Chewy,  or another wood bat.  The idea is to smooth out the rough spots caused by play and to keep the bat’s surface smooth and unblemished.

When it’s not in use, store your bat in a cool, dry place. Store the bat vertically, with the handle end up.

If you take care of your bat, it will get you on base when you step to the plate.