May 12, 2023 Update Mantra broke just before my HS game yesterday. No damage on the exterior, but it sounds as if the inner barrel came loose when hitting off a tee during warmups. Bat lasted 13 months just out of warranty. My father bought me a new one the same night, and I hit a home run in my first AB today.

February 2022 Update Still using my original Mantra. Competed in an indoor tournament earlier this month and have been using it for live pitching during winter practices. High school ball is about to start and it will be my primary stick for the season (weather permitting!).

April 2021 Update I ran some exit velocity tests; 10 swings per bat. Balls were hit off a tee and speeds measured with a Pocket Radar. This is what I learned:

* For me, the Easton Ghost Advanced peaked at 1mph faster than the Mantra on two of the 10 swings, and remained consistent with the Mantra across the remaining eight.
* The Mantra was extremely consistent across all 10 swings.
* The Ghost LE bat, surprisingly, was right up there with the other two for five of the 10 swings. For the other five, the LE was a mph or two slower.
* Please note that exit velocities will vary depending on how the ball is struck (e.g. off a tee, off a soft toss, or off a quality pitcher in an actual game).

Head to head comparison of the allnew 2021 Rawlings Mantra and both the Easton Ghost Advantage and the Easton Ghost Limited Edition fastpitch softball bats.

Having used Easton bats exclusively for the past seven years (and being a huge fan of them!), I wasn't sure what to expect from the Rawlings Mantra and I had my doubts. But after two of my Ghosts cracked in February '21, and both within a week of each other, my parents had enough of the durability issues and wanted me to make a change. After doing some research, my father thought the Mantra would be the most comparable bat to the Ghost....but is it? That's what I set to find out, and begrudgingly so at first. Would I be disappointed or pleasantly surprised? Find out by watching this video! ;)

Time stamps:
0:25 Bats being compared
0:50 Bat tester
1:34 Swings with Ghost Advanced (excerpt from test session)
2:31 1st swings with Rawlings Mantra (excerpt from test session)
3:12 Swings with Ghost Limited Edition (excerpt from test session)
4:29 2nd day of swings with Rawlings Mantra (excerpt from test session)
5:33 Scatter chart of hits
5:48 Performance results
6:29 Pros and Cons of each bat (table)
7:17 Final thoughts

Please note that the scatter chart and listed results are not to be taken as scientific proof of how each bat will perform for everyone. There were a number of variables to consider during my hitting sessions with each bat (e.g. quality and location of practice pitches, fatigue due to just having returned from a two hour practice beforehand, etc.) that could have affected the outcome of each session.

As a side note: Rawlings purchased Easton in October 2020.

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