SIKESTON -- Who could deny enjoying the natural sound of a wooden bat and a leather baseball connecting for a crisp line drive?

Fans of "America's Favorite Pastime" surely cannot, and those fans should be delighted in the fact that many of the area's high school programs are getting more involved with the true pastime of the game, the wood bat.

Sikeston has been heavily involved in the Reidland Wood Bat Tournament in the past few years, while Charleston now hosts a wood bat tournament.

For the Bulldogs, the wood bat tournament in western Kentucky has been quite a success, as they have wrapped up perfect tournament records in some, while finishing over .500 in others.

"It puts baseball back to putting runs at a premium," said Sikeston head coach Kevin Self. "You don't get a lot of runs off of a shot into the gap. You have to have good base-running, because the ability to manufacture runs is at a premium.

"Fundamentals are a lot more important," he went on to say. "Games are won on an error, a bunt or a sacrifice fly. We've won a lot of one-run games in that tournament."

Charleston head coach Michael Minner said that wood bat tournaments help to keep games on schedule because it changes things up for the kids.

"They really enjoy it," Minner said. "We swing wood bats a lot in practice, and for us the wood bats suit our needs. We bunt a lot. We're a hit-and-run type team, so wood bats help by utilizing our speed."

Minner and Self both agreed that they would like to see the high school programs in the state of Missouri eventually switch back to wood bats, like other states have done in recent years.

"I think eventually we will," said Minner of the transition back to wood bats over composite aluminum. "I don't know when, but a lot of people are making a push for it. It doesn't bother me, but I'd say sooner than later.

"I'd love to see it," he added. "I guess growing up hearing it -- I don't think there's a better sound than contact on a wood bat. It's just the sound of the baseball with a wood bat. The good solid contact always sounds the same."

Self recalled when Missouri switched over to the minus-five (weight-to-length) ratio on metal bats and how many more injuries began to be reported.

"Once they got down to the minus-five ratio of weight to length on the bats, we had a lot more kids get hurt," Self said of the weight change. "It allowed kids to generate more bat speed, and when we went back to minus-three that has calmed down. There are some states that have gone back to just using wooden bats because of the injuries. It's not worth a kid getting paralyzed or killed over a line-drive off of a bat.

"Bat technologies have helped kids to get an advantage," he went on to say. "It's just not worth it if you get somebody hurt. It wouldn't surprise me if you see all states go back to it. College is looking at it real close, and if the college level does switch, then high school may soon follow."

Minner said that he's in favor of the change to wood bats and that's why he likes the idea of hosting the wood bat tournament.

"I like seeing bunting and hitting," said Minner. "I'd rather see a ball in the gap and see kids run than see home runs belted all day."

Self thinks that the idea of wood bat play just appeals to younger players now more than it has in recent years.

"It's just a totally different game," said Self. "Our kids are drawn to that, because in the major leagues wood bats are what they use. A lot of kids don't get to do that much. It's more challenging and the sound of a wood bat just brings back memories to me."

"The game changes because you don't have to throw it by people. Pitchers can just try to move the ball around the plate."

Self also said that he sees immediate improvement in his teams, each time they resume play with metal bats after a wooden bat tournament.

"When you go and play in a wood bat tournament, coming out you see bats come alive when you go back to aluminum," he said. "I think it helps your team."

To an outsider, one would think that a wood bat tournament could be costly, or hard to put on with the possibility of breaking the equipment which is necessary to compete.

Charleston figured that problem out way ahead of time, as their wood bat tournament is sponsored partly by Howard's Sporting Goods in Cape Girardeau, where Minner used to work, while as a student in school at Cape Central.

"We charge an entry fee and then we buy the bats," said Minner. "We have that worked out."

Self said that Howard's has also been considered as supplier for a SEMO Conference wood bat tournament that may be in the works for the future.

"We've considered that," said Self. "With wood bat tournaments you have to have sponsors. The schools in the Kentucky tournament get those bats for like six dollars apiece. Some are knock-offs, but some are just models that nobody wants. They're right there in the dugout when we get there. When we break one, they just bring another."

In the future, Self said that the SEMO Conference may introduce a wood bat tournament, but for now the Bulldogs will remain in the Reidland Tournament, which they were scheduled to begin on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs were also scheduled to play today at 2 p.m. (Reidland) and 4 p.m. (Calloway County) at Reidland. The Bluejays will host their wood bat tournament April 18-19.