The village of Cooperstown will soon be filled with thousands of visitors for Induction Weekend at the Baseball Hall of Fame.
In addition to visiting the Hall of Fame to see the additions of Fred McGriff and Scott Rolen, many fans will look to purchase souvenirs like collectible baseball bats while they’re in town.
“I’m a big baseball fan. I’m a woodworker. So, to tie it all in. It’s a dream job,” said Cooperstown Bat Company Owner and President Tim Haney.
It’s peak season for Haney and his 22-person staff.
“We turn about 40,000 bats a year. And so obviously 20,000 of those go towards the playing side and 20,000 collectibles," Haney said.
Made at the company’s Hartwick mill and sent to its Main Street store in Cooperstown, about 500 wooden bats are made each day and then sell fast.
Fresh logs from hard maple and northern white ash trees are brought to the mill daily, cut down to splits and then into billets. The wood is put through a lathe, shaped to size and weighed. From small collectibles to the bats used by college ballers and pros, there isn’t a bat they can’t make.
“There are some orders that we get that are 5,000 bats, and we turn them in less than a week,” Haney said.
Before the bats are shipped out, they get a paint job so they’re ready to be sold to fans around the world.
“These are all baby bats. Future Hall of Famer, rookie of the year,” said Cooperstown Bat Company Co-Owner Connie Haney.
This time of year, you can find Connie at the busy Main Street store. It’s no surprise many want a bat for a keepsake while visiting this historic baseball town. Many will even call ahead so they can get a bat with their name, number, or a personalized design engraved.
“We do these huge custom engravings for them about their trip to Cooperstown. It’s the number one personalized moment that they could have for their trip to Cooperstown," said Connie Haney.
And while business is booming in upstate New York, this is a product that is selling far beyond Cooperstown.
“This bat is designed for play. This is going to Puerto Rico,” said Tim Haney.
One of the most notable players using Cooperstown Bat Company lumber in the bigs is Tampa Bay Rays All-Star shortstop Wander Franco.
"Wander is probably our number one guy. Literally Wander started using us when he was 15. He hadn’t signed a pro contract yet, but everybody knew what Wander was going to become. We talk to Wander all the time. The kid is a great kid, one of the most loyal kids I know," said Tim.
Haney said it brings him joy to see dozens of big leaguers like Franco using his company’s bats every year. And after dedicating more than 30 years to this craft, hard work has led this product to gain worldwide exposure.
“It’s kind of like the neatest thing ever,” said Haney.