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'Torpedo bats' aren't cheat codes for MLB hitters
'Bro, you still gotta hit the ball'
The "torpedo bat" trend in baseball has taken over the internet and permeated clubhouses all over Major League Baseball as players and fans try to quickly learn what it is.
The torpedo bats, which are legal and follow MLB's strict bat guidelines, put more of the bat's wood and move it from the handle and shaft into the barrel. The process, in theory, would allow players to make more contact with the barrel — or "sweet spot" — at the point of contact.
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But let's get something straight. The hype around torpedo bats being the ultimate tool for hitters is premature. The talk around the equipment makes it sound like players are out there using -3 aluminum bats like college hitters. The reality is not even close to that.
(Grant Thomas/Yahoo Sports)
After one week of games, there's not nearly enough data to jump to conclusions about the effectiveness of torpedo bats compared to your standard bat. Most players just began using torpedo bats this spring, though a select few, including Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton , tried them out late last season. We'll need the better part of a full season of batted-ball data before we'll be able to draw any meaningful conclusions about these bats' impact.
Also, bat customizations have been happening for years, with hitters around baseball making changes to help them feel comfortable. In recent years, we've seen several changes to bat handles, including the axe handle popularized by Mookie Betts , the hockey puck knob/counterweight handle and even some players, like Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil , not using a knob at all.
Some hitters make such changes because they think it will help them get the bat in the strike zone more quickly, others simply because they feel more comfortable. Either way, viewing this latest bat innovation as something more than a different tool is extreme.
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Many fans and internet onlookers have used the Yankees ' 36-run, 15-homer onslaught in their opening series against the Milwaukee Brewers as evidence that these bats are somehow juiced or a hitting cheat code. The pictures online — some of which have probably been altered for entertainment purposes — don't help tell this story. The reality is that the day after their series sweep in the Bronx, the Brewers gave up 11 runs to the Kansas City Royals . Just maybe, the Brewers' pitching has been extremely bad to open the season.
"I probably would not have initially used a torpedo bat," Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli told Yahoo Sports this week. "I just personally liked and felt much better swinging thinner bats that were more balanced and not top heavy in some way. I never liked the big-headed bats at all, and I rarely used them at any point in my career ."
Another major issue with any assertion that these torpedo bats present a huge competitive advantage is that it completely disregards the fact that we're talking about the best hitters in the world. It is not at all the case that without these bats, these players wouldn't have a chance against major-league pitching.
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No, the idea that the bats are a cheat code ignores the fact that hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things to do in sports. It almost makes it seem like anybody could swing a torpedo bat and have success against a major-league pitcher. That's not at all how this works. A torpedo bat is a tool, much like any of the other innovations and technological advances the game has seen throughout its century-long history.
As one NL All-Star told Yahoo Sports: "Bro, you still gotta hit the ball."
A common sentiment from players about torpedo bats is that hitting is about the player, not the bat. If you can't make contact on a 97 mph fastball or nasty slider with a normal bat, picking up a torpedo bat isn't going to help. And baseball players, many of whom are creatures of habit, are inclined to stick with what works for them.
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Yankees superstar Aaron Judge , who has more homers than any player since his debut in 2018, already said he's not switching bats. And why should he?
Said one AL veteran of the torpedo bat: "I've been hitting for 20 years. I'm not using that bulls***, man."
Earlier this week, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz hit two mammoth homers — that collectively traveled an estimated 894 feet — about in his first game using a torpedo bat. Coincidence? Probably so. De La Cruz had three two-homer games in his career before he ever picked up a torpedo bat, so the idea that the bat somehow made him better or led to that stat line is ridiculous. We're talking about one of the best hitters in professional baseball.
The rest of this season, whenever a player crushes a homer or has a high exit velocity using a torpedo bat, some fans might point to the bat as being the cause. The reality is that these hitters are in the big leagues for a reason, and while there's a chance a torpedo bat adds a little extra impact here or there, the bulk of the impact on a baseball is the result of the hitter.
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"I think when you take three steps back, you hear the word torpedo bat, and you see the video of a freeze frame of it, and you go, 'does this look like it'll be helpful?' I think most people would say yes," Baldelli said.
"But these guys that are out there trying to hit major-league pitching. For those guys, it's not that simple. There's a lot more to it, and you're going to ultimately use [a bat] that feels good and what's compatible with your swing above all else."
