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Hall of Fame bat has roots in Salem

LOUISVILLE — When Cincinnati Reds utility player Scooter Gennett became just the 17th player in Major League Baseball history to hit four home runs in a game on June 6, he did it with a bat that came from Louisville — just not the one most baseball fans think of.

Gennett’s historic bat was made in Louisville, Ohio, by SabreCat Bat Company, which is operated by 1991 Salem High School graduates Rob Roberts and Eric Thorne.

When Roberts started the company in 2009, he never dreamed of one day playing a role in baseball history.

“When you start a company like this, getting to the major leagues is always in the back of your mind, but you never dream of something like this,” Roberts said. “It’s been a crazy two weeks.”

After Roberts left Salem, he went on to be a standout player at Malone University, where he still holds the school record for career hits (206) and runs scored (159). He first got the idea go into the baseball bat business when he was inducted into the Malone Hall of Fame in 2008.

“My dad bought be a trophy bat when I got inducted into the Hall of Fame, and I thought it was really cool,” Roberts said. “I researched the industry and bought a machine that could make bats in my garage. It just grew from there.”

After Roberts started SabreCat, Thorne — who played basketball with Roberts at Salem — came on later as a partner. SabreCat first started making bats for Scooter Gennett in 2012 when he was in the Milwaukee Brewers minor league system. Gennett’s family is originally from the Canton area, and he was put in touch with Roberts through a friend while home for Thanksgiving.

“We customized some bats for him that he took back to Florida,” Roberts said. “He fell in love with them.”

Gennett liked the SabreCat bats so much, he continued to use them when he got to the major leagues in 2013. SabreCat eventually partnered with Scooter’s father Joe Gennett (a Massillon Perry graduate) to form Show Bats, which is the major-league arm of SabreCat. Show Bats is one of 32 companies licensed to produce major league bats. The company is based in Florida, but SabreCat manufactures the bats in Louisville. So far, Gennett is the only major leaguer to exclusively use a Show Bat.

Roberts said that he has seen an increase in business since Gennett’s four-homer game.

“Our business has definitely gone up,” Roberts said. “We’ve been making commemorative models of the bat he’s used and they’ve been flying off the shelves.”

Roberts got word of Gennett’s big night halfway through the game. He wound up hearing the fourth home run before he saw it.

“I was watching the game on the MLB At Bat app on my phone, my wife and my son were watching in other rooms,” Roberts said. “Right before he hit his fourth home run I got a call from someone ordering bats and I got kicked off the app. When I heard my wife and son start to cheer, I knew he did it. It was nuts.”

At 5-10 180 pounds, Gennett does not fit the profile of someone who might hit four home runs in a game. His 42 career home runs are the fewest of anyone who has hit four home runs in a game.

“We texted each other after the game,” Roberts said. “I just said congratulations. He deserves it with how hard he’s worked to get to this point.”

Gennett’s bat is now on display at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Roberts has never been to Cooperstown. He now has the perfect reason to visit.

“We’ll be going later this summer,” Roberts said. “I can kill two birds with one stone.”

For Roberts, the most rewarding aspect of the whole experience has been seeing all of the work and sacrifice put into building the company pay off.

“This has made everything we’ve done worthwhile,” Roberts said.

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