_________
_________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact:
Rexford Peterson
Chief Financial Officer
314-349-3500
__________
__________ RAWLINGS RECALLS SLOW PITCH SOFTBALL ALUMINUM BATS
St. Louis, Missouri, May 20, 1999 Rawlings Sporting Goods,
Inc., (NASDAQ:"RAWL") initiated a recall today of its slow pitch
softball aluminum bats for safety reasons. The consumer press
release is attached.
The bats, which have been sold since October 1997, are being
recalled because of instances of the tops of the bat shearing off
during use. The recall is limited to slow pitch softball aluminum
bats since these include a screwed in end weight, which
appears to be creating the stress and shearing.
Commenting on the recall, Steve O'Hara, Chairman and CEO, said,
"We're disappointed that testing in 1997 did not reveal this
possibility and that a recall is now necessary. We are grateful
to the Consumer Product Safety Council for their guidance and
experience in helping us execute this recall quickly
before any serious injuries might occur."
Commenting on the financial impact of the recall, Mr. O'Hara
continued, "From a financial perspective, fortunately, slow pitch
softball aluminum bats have been a small part of Rawlings' business.
The bats are manufactured and designed by a third party
and we have purchased less than 70,000 of the models involved and
sold approximately 45,000 to retailers. We expect the total charge
for the recall to be approximately a few cents per share this quarter.
Since we use outside suppliers to design and build these bats, any
further costs associated with the recalled inventory will be
determined after consultation with others included in the
production process including the bat designer and bat manufacturer.
Rawlings Sporting Goods markets baseball gloves, balls and bats,
as well as basketballs, footballs, protective equipment and team uniforms,
under the Rawlings brand name. It also sells hockey sticks and protective
equipment
under the Vic brand name.
Certain information discussed in this news release includes
forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties
such as statements involving the likely financial impact of this
recall on sales and earnings and the ability of the company to repair
the product or recover inventory costs from suppliers. It is important
to note that actual results and ultimate corporate actions could differ
materially from those in such forward-looking statements. Other factors
that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not
limited to, quarterly fluctuations in results, ongoing
changes in customer buying patterns, retail sell rates for the
Company's products, demand and performance of the Company's new
products, which may result in more or less orders than those anticipated
and the impact of competitive products and pricing. In addition, other
risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in the
Company's SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-K for the
year ended August 31, 1998.
NEWS FROM CPSC
________________________________________________________________
U.S. CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION
OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS WASHINGTON, D.C. 20207
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: YOLANDA FULTZ-MORRIS
MAY 20, 1999 (301) 504-0580 EXT. 1219
RELEASE # 99-113
CPSC, RAWLINGS SPORTING GOODS CO. INC. ANNOUNCE RECALL OF
SOFTBALL BATS
WASHINGTON, D.C. In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product
Safety Commission (CPSC), Rawlings Sporting Goods Co. Inc., of
St. Louis, Mo., is voluntarily recalling about 45,000 slow-pitch
softball bats. The tops of the bats can shear off during use,
posing an injury hazard to batters and bystanders.
CPSC and Rawlings have received 16 reports of the top of the
bats shearing off. No injuries have been reported.
The bats subject to this recall are Rawlings slow-pitch
aluminum softball bats with model numbers SBZ2, SBZ3, SBZ4, SBB3,
SBB4, SBB5, SBB6, SBB7, SPT-PK2, and DUAL-E. "Rawlings" and the
model numbers can be found on the barrel of each bat. The bats
are adult sized, and come in various colors.
Major retailers, including Wal-Mart, Target and Kmart, and
sporting goods stores nationwide sold the bats from September
1997 through May 1999 for between $40 and $200.
Consumers should stop using the recalled bats immediately
and call Rawlings at (800) 367-3455 between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. CDT
Monday through Friday for instructions on returning the bats for
a refund. Consumers also can write to Rawlings at P.O. Box 22000,
St. Louis, Mo., 63126.
-more-
(bats)
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the
public from unreasonable risks of injury or death from 15,000
types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To
report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call
CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at
(800) 638-8270, or visit CPSC's web site at
http://www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. For information on CPSC's
fax-on-demand service, call the above numbers or visit the web
site at http://cpsc.gov/about/who.html. To order a press release
through fax-on-demand, call (301) 504-0051 from the handset of
your fax machine and enter the release number. Consumers can
obtain this release and recall information at CPSC's web site at
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this press release on CPSC's web site, create a link to the
following address:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml99/99113.html.
####
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