Rawlings looks to improve upon the durability of their flagship bat with the 2019 Rawlings Quatro Pro. The BBCOR version of the bat was our favorite bbcor bat in 2018.
Models Overview
Our hitters found the feel on the Quatro, especially the BBCOR, to be perfect. The swing weight was lighter than most bats and the barrel size bigger than most bats. The price point compares to other bats of its type (two piece composite). Generally, exit speeds were above average with the BBCOR outshining everything.
Construction & Technology
As we mention above, the Rawlings Quatro is a two piece composite bat. Two piece composite bats are generally built with the idea of a light swing and a big barrel. Of course there are notable exceptions to this.
Unique to Rawlings' two piece design is a synthetic collar that surrounds the connection point. For 2019 this has been upgraded to reduce more sting from mishits.
As well, Rawling's uses a floating inner barrel towards the end of the bat. This extra barrel allows for better trampoline effect at slower impact speeds as well as a sort of governor to keep it from overdoing the restriction limits. In 2019, the inner barrel was moved more towards the knob of the bat to reduce swing weight and, hopefully, improve durability.
Performance Comparison
They changed a few things on the 2019 Quatro. Enough so that buying last year's model will likely yeild a different experience. Here are some of the changes:
- New dimension to the collar to help with better sting dampening.
- Decreasing the swing weight by a couple percentage points.
- Moving the inner barrel towards the middle.
Comparable Bats
There are several high end two piece composite bats. These bats tend to be the flagship bat of major vendors. They include the ones you heard of like the CF Zen from DeMarini, the Easton Ghost X and Louisville Slugger's 919 Prime. In terms of price, performance and feel the four bats are remarkably close.
We do find the 919's swing weight closer to the Rawlings Quatro while the Ghost X and CF Zen swung a bit lighter.
Expert Recommendations
We think the 2019 Rawlings Quatro is a great combination of the 2017/18 version and the newer 2020/21 versions. That is, it has the same kind of feel as the 2017 but has more durability than the 2020/21 version. That might be more perception than reality. But, in fact, the 2019 Rawlings Quatro is our favorite Quatro of the bunch.
The Bottom Line
- Brand: Rawlings
- Sport: Baseball
- Certification: USA, USSSA, BBCOR
- Barrel Diameter: 2 3/4, 2 5/8
- End: Concaved light weight
- Frame: 2-Piece Composite
- Material: Carbon Fiber Composite
- Technology: Focused Flex: Reconstructed collar assembly for a stiffer, focused flex eliminating barrel drag while maintaining vibration reduction qualities.
- Series: Quatro
- Warranty: 1 Year
- Barrel Length: Longitudinal Flex: Re-engineered composite layering for enhanced trampoline across the length of the barrel
- Year Released: 2019
