A student performs an experiment to analyze the mass distribution of a non-uniform baseball bat of total mass \(M\) and length \(L\). The bat is wider and heavier toward the barrel end (\(x = L\)) than the handle end (\(x = 0\)), so its center of mass is located at a distance \(x_{\text{cm}} > \dfrac{L}{2}\) from the handle. Initially, the bat is supported horizontally in static equilibrium with the handle resting on a knife-edge pivot exerting upward force \(F_{\text{pivot}}\) and the barrel supported by a vertical spring scale measuring upward force \(F_{\text{scale}}\). If the knife-edge pivot is subsequently relocated to the bat's geometric center at \(x = \dfrac{L}{2}\), which of the following correctly compares \(F_{\text{scale}}\) to \(F_{\text{pivot}}\) in the initial setup and identifies the direction of the vertical force that must be applied at the handle end (\(x = 0\)) to keep the bat horizontal?