I know a family that bought 3-4 of them last year for a total of around $1,200.00, because their kid can't hit well. They kept thinking that surely the next bat would do the trick. The problem isn't his bat, the kid just isn't coordinated and can't hit well.
Aside from the social pressure, which is part of everything that goes on in youth sports and other activities, ford150's example above is a big problem, IMO.
Society today wants a magic potion to make everything easier. We've been geared toward that all our lives. Our parents and grandparents worked their asses off, far as we know, and today's lifestyle for us and our generation of kids is easier, in general, as part of a largely disposable society. We want things faster, easier, cheaper and look for that "Oh, here, this will work" gizmo, tool, app or whatever to make it better.
Our son was a pretty good fielder in rec baseball but never really got it together at the plate. He just didn't. We had nice bats but not $300 Dimarinis or whatever they are. He tried some of his friends' expensive bats in the cage and ... they didn't work. They weren't a magic wand.
Lee Trevino learned to play golf hitting rocks on a terrible course with old, crappy clubs. Dimaggio learned to hit bottle caps and crappy balls in NY streets and alleys. Heck, Venus and Serena Williams grew up in Compton and probably didn't have $500 racquets when they were learning to play.
Honing skills and techniques is the basis for good athleticism. Once you develop and start advancing then, maybe, a $350 bat might help. But if you can't put the ball into play consistently with a $100 bat then shelling out another few hundred won't make a difference.
