We should remind the reader we were originally high on the 2015 Mizuno Generations. For a single piece alloy, it has a considerable sweet spot and a really nice balance to the swing. After considerable use throughout the country, players who used the Generations bat still rave of its prowess---as we did in our original review of the 2015 model.
Models Overview
If you were a fan of the 2015 version then we see no reason you won't think the 2016 version is fantastic due to its increased barrel size from added variable wall thickness in the barrel of the bat. As well, the addition of the drop 5 and drop 8 to the 2 5/8 Senior League bats round out this single piece aluminum bat as a full offering to the performance player.
Construction & Technology
The 2016 Mizuno Generations is a single-piece aluminum alloy design which, in theory, gives it maximum power transfer when hit on the sweet spot of the bat. As well, its aluminum design makes it highly durable when compared to two-piece and composite designed bat.
More uniquely, the 2016 Mizuno Generation baseball bat boasts a tapered alloy wall. This means that outside the center of the barrel the bat walls are thinner. The 2016 version, when compared to the 2015 version, has an even more pronounced taper and, hence, a larger barrel. This design feature allows the bat to perform at peak performance throughout the length of the barrel while still maintaining BBCOR standards and keeping a light swing weight.
As evidence that this idea has some steam, the tapered aluminum wall has been adopted in several bats within the market since Mizuno's 2015 groundbreak.
Comparable Bats
The 2015 and 2016 Mizuno Generations are a unique blend in its single-piece aluminum with a tapered wall with a $200 price point. Other performance bats in the single-piece space, to name a few, would be the RIP-IT Air, the DeMarini Insane, the Slugger 516, and the Easton S3z. However, none of those bats have a tapered aluminum barrel like the Generations.
The bats with a tapered wall, which readily come to mind, are the Rawlings VELO, 2016 Axe Hyperwhip, and the 2016 Mizuno NightHawk. However, the VELO is a multipiece hybrid bat and the Hyperwhip has some unique design features like the tapered end knob and Axe handle. The Nighthawk, made by the same company as the Generations, is a hybrid bat.
