RealGM

NEW YORK — Baseball will start testing bats following Tuesday's meeting of a player-management safety committee, but the sport made no decision on the contentious issue of banning maple models.

Along with conducting field and laboratory tests, the panel will consult with manufacturers and experts, and also survey what protective devices are in place for fans and players at the 30 big league ballparks.

"We really didn't come to any conclusions," said New York Mets reliever Aaron Heilman, a member of the committee. "It's an issue that affects a lot of people, and it'd be a shame to kind of rush into things and make a decision based on not all the facts."

The sides didn't put a timetable on issuing recommendations other than to say "as quickly as is possible."