There are some definite problems with some bat reviews. Like ultra1 and ultra2 not being the top two forever, but with that said; I have used the reviews as a reference to buy multiple bats and have found them to be very helpful.
I was coaching baseball for many years and was not able to play tournaments, so I wasn’t able to see for myself what was working. Because of that I learned to read the reviews. I think if you see a bat that has multiple reviews (more than 15-20) and it manages to stay in the top 10 in the distance category, it is probably a good bat. I don’t really go off of the ranking # but more that it stays in the top 10 even after 20+ reviews. Everyone can’t be wrong or just in love with their bat.