So... what type of bat should an 11 YO get?

I prefer to take the long-term approach. In 2 years your son will move up to a -7 S.L. bat, or even a -5 bat (weight vs length) if he plays middle school ball.

The first step is to make sure his hitting mechanics are sound. Check out a high school coach or even college asst to see if they offer a couple of lessons. That is money well spent.

Second is to choose a bat length. A 30 or 31" would do fine. The newer bats, however, may be a -11 or even -12. Yes, he will hit farther, now, but in two years you may be talking about adding "half-a-pound" to his bat. For these reasons, I would look at a -8 or -9. Louisville Slugger makes a "TPX Mega-barrel" in a -9 (purple-C405+) that I would recommend.

Finally, if your son is talented enough to play on a travel team, many tourneys have no barrel restrictions (full 2 3/4" allowed) and you may want to see if the team has a -7 or -8 bat to use. We found a 29/21 TPX and I know that there are 30/22-23 out there, too. The most important thing to remember though, a great bat won't make a great hitter, hard work on proper mechanics is the key.

Jeff