The Nerf Sport Swerve Pitch Baseball and Bat is a fun way to pass an afternoon. The ball is made of foam covered in white rubber and has a pad, not unlike the latching side of velcro, which performs various tricks depending on how you hold and throw it.
It took the neighborhood kids no time to figure out, while I stood by the side wondering how to exactly accomplish the tricks, such as sinkers and curveballs, which came so quickly to the kids. Once over my initial confusion, I gave up trying to figure out how it works to enjoy myself and play a game.
When I say a game I mean a very long game, as the ball actually works. I figured out that throwing it almost any which way will guarantee shouts of “Hey, it’s supposed to come to me!” or “You’re cheating, throw it the right way!” At one point I was told if I wasn’t going to try and actually do the tricks I couldn’t play anymore. I think that has to do more with the fact that the kids wanted the game to themselves more than anything.
The bat is a roadside barrel orange and very light, despite that it looks like it could club something silly. When the ball can actually be hit, and we have a very large yard, the ball flies; into our compost pile, the neighbors’ yard, over and actually onto the roof at one point.
I don’t recommend playing this game with dogs outside because ours managed to catch it more than the kids hit; it ended up covered with dog slobber and teeth indentations.
Also, I would recommend that if you’re playing with very small children to make sure they have head gear on and to have other kids playing to throw the ball slowly. The ball has a small marble in the middle and is not recommended for children under the age of three. To get the ball to really perform, speed seems key, but with small kids, it might end up hurting them. I was hit in the face with the ball by accident and ended up with a small bruise and I thought a little foam covered ball wouldn’t hurt.
Like I said before, it’s a fun way to pass an afternoon and draws out a long summer day. This toy is recommended for ages eight and up but that is up to the parents as this is a very fun game. The Nerf Sport set can be found in most stores and can watch it in action at Nerf.com. The set retails for $10.99 at Hasbro.com
The Nerf Sports Swerve Pitch Baseball and Bat was provided to The Untrained Housewife for the purposes of review.
I play wiffle ball and my orange nerd swerve just broke. I can’t hit without that bat! Any chance you would sell it to me. Thanks for your time.
Bo Hartle