Does the bat make that big of a difference. A bat doing all the work. A hitter should be able to swing anything and get a hit. It might just be that the balls are no good, at least that what they say at times what's the real truth.
I think the bat makes more of a difference in competitive rec. due to the home run difference. I know that Im seeing people today hitting homeruns who couldnt even get the ball to the fence before. So, I believe that the bat makes one heck of a difference. But like it was said before, you still have to have the skills to make contact with the ball.