Torpedo Bats Are Taking Over MLB – And Your Pitching Staff Could Be Their Next Victim

Facing off against the Milwaukee Brewers in their second game of the season, the New York Yankees blasted one home run. Then another. Then another, and another, leading to nine total home runs for the home team en route to a 20-9 victory.

The Yankees would add another four home runs the next day, completing their sweep of the Brewers. With the hitting onslaught, it’s no surprise that the seemingly unnatural shape of some of the Yankees’ bats drew massive outcry. Thus, the ‘torpedo bat’ entered the national consciousness.

A torpedo bat, very simply, is a regular bat with the mass redistributed. The bat appears to bulge closer to the handle, lending more power to the area where the ball most often catches the bat.

The concept isn’t rocket science. And it’s permitted by MLB’s current guidelines for bats, which dictate only maximum barrel width and maximum bat length. In keeping with the required “smooth and round” shape, the torpedo bat simply redistributes some of the wood, shifting the swing and, yes, in some cases bettering results.

Is the torpedo bat ridiculously overpowered? If you look at the Yankees’ Opening Weekend numbers, yes. But the Yankees have played twice since that series, losing both games to the Arizona Diamondbacks and putting up three and one home runs. Aaron Judge, who had three homers that second game, doesn’t even use the new bat shape. The outcome of their first series was likely due more to the Brewers’ depleted pitching staff than anything – the bats were just what made the headlines.

Even the crosstown New York Mets don’t seem to mind.

“There were guys using them last year,” said former Yankee Juan Soto. “I had teammates last year that asked me if I wanted to try it, but it never caught my attention.”

“Some of the other teams use it,” he said. “They’re just trying to find something where the hitters feel more balanced. Every swing is different and everybody is going to feel different with a different kind of bat. It’s just finding a way to make it better for them.”

Most other Mets players just shrugged, claiming “no opinion.” The general attitude seems one of acceptance toward an eventually league-wide innovation – one that probably isn’t as big a deal as the public thinks.

In the meantime, though, several other teams have tried out the new style. The Cincinnati Reds’ young star Elly De La Cruz used one and went 4-for-5 with two home runs against the Texas Rangers. The Reds would then proceed to get shut out by the Rangers over the next two consecutive games. Players from clubs including the Mets, Chicago Cubs and Minnesota Twins have joined the fad as well.

Torpedo bats may not be the cheat code they’ve been touted as, but, as a new method of customization, they’ll likely be around for a while. So get used to it.