Exit Velocity by Age
Also known as: good exit velocity, exit velo by age, exit velocity by age, exit velocity benchmarks, average exit velocity by age, exit velocity chart, exit velo for my age, high school exit velocity
There is no official exit-velocity standard by age, and charts online disagree widely for any given age. Compare a reading only with ones taken under matching conditions: drill, device and bat type. As a top-level reference, MLB's Statcast counts a ball hit 95 mph or harder as hard-hit.
Exit velocity is how fast the ball leaves the bat. It climbs with age, strength and bat speed. A 10-year-old and a high school senior are not on one scale. The numbers posted online come from many sources. Some use tee work, some use front toss or live pitching, and some report a player's best swing while others report a mean. One hitter can post very different numbers in different setups.
To measure fairly, keep the device, the drill and the bat constant. Radar guns, ball trackers and showcase systems can read differently. In live hitting, the pitch's own speed adds to the reading. Bat type matters too. A USSSA, USA Baseball, BBCOR or wood bat can give different numbers for one swing. Many coaches track both a max and a mean of the top few balls.
Showcase and scouting services publish results from their own events. Those are a fairer way to compare a player with peers measured identically than a generic chart. At the top level, Statcast calls 95 mph or more a hard-hit ball. That line is set for big-league hitters, not youth players. The best yardstick for a young player is their own trend over months. Gains usually come from bat speed, strength and squaring the ball up.
Tips by skill level
Keep your testing consistent: one drill, one device, one bat. Write down the mean of your top few balls and compare it with your own numbers from last month.
Track max and mean ball speed alongside bat speed. If bat speed rises but the readings off the barrel do not, the issue is likely contact quality rather than strength.
Example
A 14-year-old's parent finds three charts online that list three different 'good' numbers for his age. Instead, his coach records his top five tee readings on one radar once a month. Over a season his mean rises steadily. That trend says more than any chart.
Why it matters
Ball speed off the bat is a useful power measure, but only when it is compared fairly. Chasing a number from a chart that measured it differently leads to the wrong conclusions.
Common mistakes
- Comparing a tee reading with someone else's live or game reading
- Comparing numbers from different devices or bat types
- Judging a player on one max reading instead of a mean over time
- Holding a youth player to the MLB hard-hit line
Frequently asked questions
What is a good exit velocity for a 14 year old?
There is no official number, and charts online disagree widely. Compare a 14-year-old only with players measured under matching conditions: drill, device and bat type. Showcase results are a fairer peer comparison than a generic chart, and steady gains over time matter most.
Why is my exit velocity different off the tee than in games?
The setup changes the number. In live hitting the pitch's speed adds to the reading, and different devices can disagree. Compare tee readings with tee readings.
What exit velocity is considered hard hit?
In MLB's Statcast, a hard-hit ball is one hit 95 mph or harder. That line is set for big-league hitters, not youth players.
Sources
Related terms
- Exit Velocity (EV)Exit velocity is how fast the ball comes off the bat, in mph. It is a ceiling metric — the harder you hit it, the farther it can go.
- Hard-Hit RateHard-hit rate is the percentage of batted balls struck above a set exit-velocity threshold — usually 95 mph in MLB, scaled lower for amateur levels. It measures contact quality independent of luck.
- Bat SpeedBat speed is how fast the barrel is moving at contact, in mph. It contributes to exit velocity alongside bat path and where on the barrel you make contact.
- Bat Speed by AgeBlast Motion, a bat-sensor maker, publishes practice-swing ranges of about 30–45 mph for 8- to 10-year-olds and 40–52 for 11- to 12-year-olds. For older players its ranges are about 46–62 mph at 13–14, 55–65 at 15–16 and 60–70 at 17–18. Treat them as rough guides from one sensor in tee and toss work. In MLB, Statcast's average swing was about 72 mph when bat tracking launched in 2024.
- Squared-Up RateSquared-up rate measures how close exit velocity comes to the theoretical max for that swing and pitch. It tracks contact precision, not raw bat speed.
- Showcase EventAt a showcase event, players all do the same drills and tests for college recruiters or pro scouts. It is separate from any regular game.
Related guides & benchmarks
Work on the cause
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