All,

I have been wondering something for a little while; whether there was a connection between the Louisville Slugger and Cooper Bat model numbers. The recent Mookie Wilson thread has once again piqued my curiosity.

Recently, Brian Hillerich helped me date my Louisville Slugger Mookie bat to 1984. It was a LVS Model W278, and was an early career bat.

This bat is 1 of 2 Mookie bats in my collection. The other being a Cooper bat from 1989-91. The Cooper model # is very similar to the LVS; it is a W282. This was used at the end of his career.

David Louie chimed into the Mookie thread and stated that his Louisville Slugger Mookie bat is a W279; in all likelihood used during the middle of his career.

Given the progression of the model numbers -- W278 -> W279 -> W282, and the fact that these were both Louisville Slugger brand and Cooper brand bats, is this more than a mere coincidence???

Any info would be appreciated.

Nick