How Much Have Torpedo Bats Helped MLB Baseball Hitters?

The "Torpedo" bat is all the rave to begin the 2025 MLB season.

But what are Torpedo bats? Who's using them? And are they truly better?

Let's run through the logistics behind the new fad and see how much Torpedo bats have helped MLB baseball hitters early on.

What Are Torpedo Bats?

Amid the New York Yankees' 15-homer barrage in their opening series sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers, fans and commentators alike noticed several Yankees using bats which resembled a bowling pin more than a traditional baseball bat.

These "Torpedo" bats are legal according to the MLB rulebook. The bat is tailored for each specific hitter's "sweet spot" and is thicker in that portion of the bat. It was developed by former Yankees analyst -- and MIT physicist -- Aaron Leanhardt.

Leanhardt told The Athletic the Torpedo bats are "about making the bat as heavy and as fat as possible in the area where you're trying to do damage on the baseball."

The idea being that every player's swing comes with a different sweet spot -- one their bat's barrel should cater to.

Which MLB Hitters Are Using Torpedo Bats?

Several MLB hitters have used some variation of the Torpedo bat this season; some more than others.

The Yankees, of course, are the reason Topedo bats have been such a rage early on. Anthony Volpe, Austin Wells, Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm, and Paul Goldschmidt all busted out Torpedo bats during their opening series. They helped New York put up 35 runs across their first three games.

Elsewhere, Adley Rutschman debuted his version of the Torpedo bat this spring and has carried it into the regular season.

Dansby Swanson and Nico Hoerner were spotted using them during the Chicago Cubs' first domestic series.

Notably, Francisco Lindor and Jose Trevino claimed to have begun using the Torpedo bat last season.

There are also several players who have tried the Torpedo bats but have yet to break them out full time. That includes Elly De La Cruz, who went 4-for-5 with 2 home runs in his first game using a Torpedo bat. Among others:

• Davis Schneider complimented the large barrel after a brief time with a Torpedo bat.
• Both Junior Caminero and Yandy Diaz tested them out in recent games.
• Ryan Jeffers told ESPN he ordered a batch after his first batting practice with them this spring.

The list is growing, too. After Alec Bohm broke one out in their home opener, the Philadelphia Phillies had several players place orders for Torpedo bats, including Bryce Harper.

How Much Have Torpedo Bats Helped?

It's too early to draw any meaningful conclusions about whether Torpedo bats are truly superior, but the early Statcast numbers suggest this is something to monitor.

We're dealing with small samples here. But of the 8 players who have started using the Torpedo bats this season, six have seen their 2025 barrel rate go up from last season. Five have a higher average exit velocity, and six have posted a higher launch angle sweet spot.

*Lindor and Trevino numbers are from the 2023-2024 seasons. Both increased their 2024 barrel rates from the season prior -- though we don't have an exact timeline when they began using torpedo bat.

If we throw Lindor and Trevino into that sample, Torpedo bat users' barrel rates have increased an average of 7.7% from the previous season (2025 numbers as of April 1st).

Again, it's too early to know for certain whether Torpedo bats provide a competitive advantage. But the early results suggest there could be an increase in barrel rate when using Torpedo bats. With barrel rate correlating well to counting stats, this certainly warrants further examination as we get a bigger sample of the Torpedo bat.

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