The New York Yankees entered the 2025 MLB season with their usual unpopularity among baseball fans, a sentiment intensified by the use of the much-debated “torpedo bats” during their opening series against the Milwaukee Brewers. These “torpedo bats,” developed by current Miami Marlins field coordinator and former Yankees minor-league hitting analyst Aaron Leanhardt, have sparked considerable debate in baseball. Through the first three games of the season, the torpedo bats have shown exceptional results for several Yankees hitters, including Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Paul Goldschmidt, Anthony Volpe, and Austin Wells. The Yankees have scored a remarkable 36 runs, leading all teams in baseball. While the MLB has confirmed the bats’ legality, they face criticism from traditional baseball fans who view them as a competitive edge.
Notably, die-hard Boston Red Sox fan Dave Portnoy has been vocal about the Yankees’ use of torpedo bats, bringing up his high school baseball background. On Sunday, he posted a video on X ranting about the bats, asserting that their design allows mediocre players to perform better. “If you get sawed off, or you hit a ball off the label, that means you’re not getting your hands through quick enough — and you stink,” Portnoy stated. “Just taking the bat and making the thing like a corked bat with this torpedo hump means that all you have to do is make contact for it to be a home run.”
Portnoy specifically called out Chisholm during his rant, prompting the Yankees’ outfielder to respond mockingly about Portnoy’s high school days. “This is a high school baller talking,” he tweeted, followed by further clarification on how the torpedo bats work: “Okay explanation the barrel is bigger and within MLB regulation! For the idiots that say it’s moved to the label you’re an idiot! Nobody is trying to get jammed, you just move the wood from the parts you don’t use to the parts you do! You’re welcome no more stress for y’all!”
This is a high school baller talking 🤣
— Jazz Chisholm Jr (@j_chisholm3) March 31, 2025
Okay explanation the barrel is bigger and within mlb regulation! For the idiots that say it’s moved to the label you’re an idiot! Nobody is trying to get jammed you just move the wood from the parts you don’t use to the parts you do! You’re welcome no more stress for y’all !
— Jazz Chisholm Jr (@j_chisholm3) March 31, 2025
In response, Portnoy shared a photoshopped image of Chisholm at bat with an exaggerated barrel. “This you ain’t it?” he jested. The irony of Portnoy’s criticism lies in the fact that the use of torpedo bats is not unique to the Yankees; other players, such as Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman, New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor, and Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson, also utilize them.
Despite Portnoy’s attempts to paint the Yankees as uniquely guilty of exploiting torpedo bats, the reality is that these bats, as long as they’re deemed legal by the MLB, may become increasingly common across the league if their positive results persist.
