If you’re a baseball fan, you may have heard the talk about this new bat that has crept into the MLB, but is now not so subtly exploding across the league. The new bat is known as the Torpedo bat (also called a bowling pin bat, but torpedo sounds cooler), and it gets the name because it is literally shaped like both of it’s names. If you haven’t seen or heard of this new phenomenon, here is a photo to give you an idea of what I am talking about.
New York Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm Jr. reacts after hitting a three-run home run, also scoring Paul Goldschmidt and Aaron Judge, during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, March 30, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
If you’re thinking to yourself, “That literally just looks like a regular bat, what is the difference?” I don’t blame you. If you look at the tip of the bat, you can see it starts to slim out slightly after it’s miniscule inflation at the barrel. There is a real science behind this new bat, and it’s popularity is rocketing upwards (pun intended) because of the numbers that have been posted by guys in the league who have used them to start the 2025 season.
The bats were developed by MIT physicist Aaron “Lenny” Leanhardt when he was an analyst in the Yankees organization. The former, or “regular” bats guys have been using for years holds the same dimensions from the top of the tip of the neck to the end of the bat. Bats have evolved over the years, guys coring out the tip to take some extra weight off, from going to the regular handle to an axe-handle for better grip and so on. But the ‘torpedo’ design has partnered physics and baseball like never before. Now, the torpedo design holds the bulk of the weight in the “sweet-spot” where hitters make (or hope to make) most of their contact. In doing this, it also shifts the weight of the bat closer to the hitters hands making the swings get through the zone at a quicker rate.
But none of this works without results, and the Yankees have delivered on those results right out of the gate. New York broke the record for most home runs to begin a season (18) previously held by the Tigers who hit 16 back in 2006. The Yanks put up 20 runs against the Brewers in their second game of the season, hitting 9 homers, then followed that up with a four homer game the next day. Immediately people, especially players around the league, took notice and started ordering these bats. That’s the thing about baseball players, there is no group more superstitious. If a team housed a wild animal in the dugout and went on a winning streak, other teams would be calling the local zoo.
These bats, however, have called into question the legality of them within the guidelines of the MLB requirements, but they meet all required standards in size and weight put forth by the MLB. Currently, the rules allow for a maximum barrel diameter of 2.61 inches, a maximum length of 42 inches and a smooth and round shape. And the new bat fits that bill. Teams that questioned the regulations of the bats were quickly dispelled because there is nothing technically illegal about them. So, as the old saying goes, if you cant beat ’em, join ’em. Others who have used them in games include Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero, Minnesota’s Ryan Jeffers and Toronto’s Davis Schneider.
Not every Yankee uses this bat, slugger Aaron Judge still uses the standard bat and is still whacking balls out of the park like he usually does. And the Yankees HR numbers tend to be a bit inflated playing in one of the shortest ballparks in the MLB. But there is no question the new bats stock price skyrocketed after the hot start seen up in the Bronx, it will be interesting to see how many more hitters make the transition to the new trend.
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