‘It’s about the batter not the bat’: Torpedo bat designer defends design amid debate

For the MIT-educated physicist behind the torpedo bat, it’s more about the talent of the players than their lumber at the plate.

The torpedo model — a striking design in which wood is moved lower down the barrel after the label and shapes the end a little like a bowling pin — became the talk of major league baseball over the weekend.

The New York Yankees hit a team-record nine homers that traveled a combined 3,695 feet on Saturday. Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger, Austin Wells, Anthony Volpe and Jazz Chisholm Jr. all went deep using a torpedo bat. New York’s 15 homers through the first three games matched the 2006 Detroit Tigers for the most in major league history.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz used a torpedo bat for a game for the first time on Monday night. He hit his first two homers of the season and finished with a career-high seven RBIs in a 14-3 victory over Texas.

“At the end of the day it’s about the batter not the bat,” said Aaron Leanhardt, a former physics professor at the University of Michigan who is being credited with the design. “It’s about the hitter and their hitting coaches. I’m happy to always help those guys get a little bit better but ultimately it’s up to them to put good swings and grind it out every day. So, credit to those guys.”

The 23-year-old De La Cruz said the torpedo bat felt good. Asked if he planned to use it again after his performance, he just laughed in response.

Leanhardt, 48, a field coordinator for the Miami Marlins, said the origin of the bat dates to 2023, when he worked for the Yankees. He said several versions were tested that didn’t create the desired effect.

Leanhardt was approached by major league and minor league players early in the design stage, seeking information on the bats.

“I’ll let the players always talk about their own experiences. I’m not going to drag anyone into this,” Leanhardt said Monday. “But there were definitely guys on the major league side and on the minor league side in 2023 that were definitely asking me questions and offering design advice and demoing them.”

Leanhardt said the past couple of days had been “surreal.” Some of Miami’s players joked around with him as he answered questions from the media before their game against the New York Mets.

“The industry as a whole was probably a little bit more aware of this maybe than you guys were,” Leanhardt said. “Guys have been asking me about it. Guys have been wanting to swing them.”

Bat manufacturer Victus Sports dropped off a batch of torpedo bats for the Phillies just before first pitch of their home opener on Monday. Alec Bohm grabbed one, took about five swings and decided to use one.

His logic seemed sound: Look how it might have aided the Yankees.

“You see a team hit 20 homers and you’re gonna try it,” Bohm said. “It didn’t work.”

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Bohm managed just one single with his new lumber. He noted it “felt just like a normal bat” and wasn’t sure if he would swing with a torpedo again any time soon.

“It’s a bat. It’s different,” he said. “It’ll probably run its course.”

Victus and Marucci Sports started selling torpedo bats online on Monday. Each company highlighted its offerings on social media. Chandler Bats also had new torpedo bats on its website.

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich said he didn’t feel like the bats had any effect on their opening series against the Yankees.

“I think they have a lot of really good players. That’s probably the biggest factor in how that went,” he said.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said shortstop Francisco Lindor used a similar bat in their series at Houston. He got the models late in spring training.

“Nothing new for us,” Mendoza said. “This is something that every team, every player continues to look for an edge and find ways to improve within the margins. And this is a perfect example.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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