Former Michigan Professor Credited With Creating The Torpedo Bat

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Baseball is back, and I'm so excited to cheer on the West Michigan Whitecaps and the Detroit Tigers!

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One of the biggest stories happening at the start of the baseball season is a type of baseball bat that some players are now using.

What Is A Torpedo Bat

According to ESPN, The idea of the torpedo bat is to distribute the wood in a different geometric shape than the traditional form to ensure the fattest part of the bat is located where the player makes the most contact.

Standard bats taper toward an end cap that is as thick diametrically as the sweet spot of the barrel.

The torpedo bat moves some of the mass on the end of the bat about 6 to 7 inches lower, giving it a bowling-pin shape, with a much thinner end.

What MLB Players Are Using A Torpedo Bat

There are several MLB players that are currently using a torpedo bat including:

• Cody Bellinger, OF, New York Yankees
• Alec Bohm, 3B, Philadelphia Phillies
• Junior Caminero, 3B, Tampa Bay Rays
• Jazz Chisholm Jr., 2B, New York Yankees
• Oneil Cruz, OF, Pittsburgh Pirates
• Elly De La Cruz, SS, Cincinnati Reds
• Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, New York Yankees
• Nico Hoerner, 2B, Chicago Cubs
• Ryan Jeffers, C, Minnesota Twins
• Francisco Lindor, SS, New York Mets
• Adley Rutschman, C, Baltimore Orioles
• Davis Schneider, LF, Toronto Blue Jays
• Dansby Swanson, SS, Chicago Cubs
• Jose Trevino, C, Cincinnati Reds
• Anthony Volpe, SS, New York Yankees
• Austin Wells, C, New York Yankees
• Max Muncy, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers

Former Michigan Professor Credited With The Torpedo Bat

As torpedo bats are getting more and more attention we're learning more about how the idea came to be and that there is a cool Michigan connection.

Read More: 25 Things Michigan Is Known And Famous For

The torpedo bat design comes from Aaron Leanhardt.

He shared with MLB.com how the idea for the torpedo bat came to be:

“I think the eureka moment, really, was when players pointed to where they were trying to hit the ball, and they noticed themselves that that was not the fattest part of the bat, They noticed themselves that the tip was the fattest part of the bat, and then everyone just looked at each other like, ‘Well, let's flip it around. It's going to look silly, but are we willing to go with it?"

Do Any Detroit Tigers Use A Torpedo Bat

At the time of publishing there are currently no Detroit Tigers that are using a torpedo bat in games, but some players like Riley Greene are intrigued by them.

Riley Greene had this to say to the Detroit News:

“I am intrigued by it, The league says they are legal. I think just the way they are using the analytics and things, it’s smart. They’re trying to help their players. Would I ever use one? I don’t know."

I'm interested to see if the torpedo bat becomes more popular in the MLB.