Torpedo bats were a major topic of discussion throughout the first weekend of the 2025 Major League Baseball season, especially stemming from the New York Yankees’ record-setting home run performance through the first three games.
While there were opinions on whether the torpedo bats were legal or not — and by MLB rule, they are legal — the bats are another example of the sport evolving for a fanbase constantly hungry for something to pique their interest every season.
Torpedo bats have an untraditional barrel that rests closer to the hitter’s hands and is designed with more wood concentrated in the area where the hitter is most likely to hit the ball. That area is wider than the rest of the bat, according to a story by The Athletic on the bat’s design, making the equipment look more like a torpedo or bowling pin.
The uniquely shaped lumber is the result of two years of research and experimentation by a former Massachusetts Institute of Technology physicist-turned-coach, according to The Athletic.
A Major League Baseball spokesman told The Athletic that the bats don’t break any rules. MLB Rule 3.02 states that a bat “Shall be a smooth, round stick not more than 2.61 inches in diameter at the thickest part and not more than 42 inches long. The bat shall be one piece of solid wood.”
The baseball world’s fascination with torpedo bats also has become a major sell for companies.
While high school baseball uses aluminum bats, summer baseball programs use wood bats. The Midland Baseball Complex in Batavia hosts youth and high school league teams, and high school players could try the torpedo bats out in the summer, President of the Southwest Ohio Baseball Coaches Association Pete Rudowski told the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Marucci, Victus and Chandler were the first manufacturers to publicly sell torpedo bats beginning March 31, at prices ranging from $199 to $239, according to The Athletic.
Chandler Bats told The Athletic that their torpedo bat releases generated “record sales volume in all channels.”
In addition, Louisville Slugger and Rawlings are selling the bats online now, with retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods soon to follow.
From an on-the-field impact, I believe torpedo bats also can be a response to pitchers jamming batters inside. If a batter can fight off those closer inside pitchers, those bat contacts could push the ball farther toward the outfield and might turn into home runs instead.
Like the pitch clock has impacted and benefited both pitchers and batters, adjustments have been made over the years, and gamesmanship has been cultivated from the pitch clock. This is similar. The torpedo bats are not a revolution but an evolution in baseball that has and can benefit batters in a larger sample size.
But I also read in The Athletic that it will be a matter of time before pitchers adjust to the bats. One way would be to pitch batters more away. With that, pitching matchups could evolve, too. It would add to the already cat-and-mouse game that we see managers play, and it would add a layer of intrigue for die-hard baseball fans.
Baseball’s evolution is important for the game. Fans like offense — larger bases resulting in more stolen bags, limitations on defensive shifting and making the designated hitter a league-wide lineup position by removing the pitcher in the National League. While one study has shown that batting averages have dropped over the years, home runs are up.
The torpedo bats could increase the excitement of more offense in baseball, which is only good for MLB and fans.
Until pitchers find a way to deter those bigger hits.