The Envy is Mizuno’s newest, top-of-the-line, 100% composite softball bat, but it remains true to the company’s popular Techfire series by restoring many of the best characteristics of the previous models – Crush, Fury, Rage, and Techfire Classic – while learning the lessons of Mizuno’s first 100% composite – Blur – and putting it all into one bat.
The Envy features Mizuno’s new exclusive Complex Composite Construction, a unique combination of Fiber Reinforced Plastic through the entire shell with a new Filament Wound Composite pipe inserted into the barrel. This filament pipe replaces the aluminum layer found in the barrel of previous Techfires with a combination of glass fibers. The FRP shell is tough and resistant to breaking. The FWC pipe maximizes performance by allowing the barrel to flex more than previous Techfires.
It has the same 12-inch barrel that was featured in the Techfire Classic and Crush, but it also features an increased Sweet Area thanks to the all-composite construction.
In an effort to show off its new, expanded Sweet Area, Mizuno has given the Envy a two-tone paint job – the handle and end are deep green while the barrel is a bright green. The brighter color is designed to give the hitter a better idea of the size of the bat’s live hitting surface.
It has a thin handle of 13/16”. It has a rubberized clear plastic end cap and a raised, cushioned synthetic grip. It is available in 34 inches and 26-28 and 30 ounces and swings true to weight.
We hit the 27 oz. version.
After a departure from its Techfire style of bats to build 2004’s 100% composite Blur, Mizuno has returned to the design that made 2003’s Crush the company’s most successful softball bat ever. The 2005 Envy is similar in many ways to the Crush – the 12-inch barrel, thin handle and balanced weighting – with a couple of technological improvements such as the Filament Wound Composite Pipe to replace the aluminum sleeve in the barrel and an expanded Sweet Area to magnify the traditional Techfire sweet spot.
It did not take a lot of swings for our hitters to agree that Mizuno had done what it set out to do with this bat – improve on the still-popular Crush model.
“I think this bat swings better than any of the previous Techfires,” said one reviewer. “It has good pop and good balance. This is one of the better bats you are going to get for the price.”
That is a fair statement as the reviewer being quoted hit a number of low compression balls (.44/375) over of the 350-foot fence at the baseball field we were testing on in 100-degree heat.
The Envy is a great bat across the board – it has a solid feel and swings true to its posted weight, perhaps a bit heavier than other 100% composite bats. The 12-inch barrel has plenty of sweet spot so it doesn’t take long to find it or to get comfortable hitting it. How much the advertised “expanded Sweet Area” helps can’t really be measured, but no one had trouble finding it, not even the guys who hit it right out of the wrapper. The pop is very good, but it is also an effective bat for moving the ball around and hitting hard shots in the 5-6 and 3-4 holes.
For these reasons, all types of hitters liked the bat. Power hitters got plenty of distance. Line drive hitters could push the ball or turn on it into the corner and quickly developed the confidence to do so. There is no sting at all, though balls caught on the end of the barrel sound horrible (even though they don’t really hurt either).
The Envy is is ideal for all types of hitters.
One note: the Envy is designed for use in ASA, but it seems to compete with many other companies’ USSSA-only bats which are not allowed in ASA. It tested well side-by-side with some of the 2005 models.
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