[cshude]

I would try to wean yourself off the "baseball bat" grip ASAP for a couple reasons- first, it would be more likely to lead to wrestling with the instrument rather than playing it. One of the things that all players, especially beginners, struggle with, is playing without a lot of tension. If you're already gripping the thing like you're at the plate, it'll only get worse when you're playing. Also, I could see it leading to pains in the hand down the road- remember that, unfortunately, we haven't been able to see what would have happened to Jimi (RIP) after 30+ years of playing like that.
Another key thing to think about is that trying to switch back and forth from the baseball bat grip to a more traditional thumb to the middle grip is a lot of wasted movement when playing songs that have both chords and single note riffs. You're much better off just going with a traditional style.
One exercise I test myself on every once in a while to make sure I'm not throttling too hard on the neck is to play a bunch of chords without even using my thumb at all, just using the tension produced by the entire left arm/shoulder to play.