The New York Yankees caused a stir last weekend with a nine-home run game and another with four, and the publicity for the new bat exploded among the media and social networks, as well as among all the fans.
The torpedo bats used by the Bronx Bombers are not for the exclusive use of the Bronx Bombers, as a player in Queens also knows what it is like to hit with the new bat.
Francisco Lindor, player for the New York Mets, is the only player on that team who uses the torpedo bat, but unlike his teammates, the Puerto Rican shortstop has shown that standing in the batter’s box with the new bat does not mean anything different.
Lindor went 0-for-11 with three strikeouts in the Mets’ season-opening series against the Miami Marlins, but even so, and after the scandal that has been generated by the Yankees, several of his teammates are willing to experiment.
Juan Soto and the Mets would try to test the torpedo bat
The new player for the New York Yankees, Dominican Juan Soto, explained that several of his former Yankees teammates were already using the torpedo bat from the previous season, and unlike what he thinks at the moment, he was not interested in using it.
“Last year (with the Yankees) I had teammates who asked me if I wanted to try it, but it never caught my attention,” Juan Soto said. “But yes, I would try it.”
Some of the Bronx Bombers used the innovative bat, which places more mass just below the barrel, and the Bronx Bombers hit 15 home runs in their three-game series against Milwaukee.
That included a team-record nine home runs in Saturday’s game.
One of Lindor’s teammates on the Mets, Pete Alonso, said he will probably order torpedo bats just to see if they help him.
“With certain modifications to the bats and stuff, the players are doing their best to catch up with the pitching, because the pitching throughout the league is pretty good,” Alonso said.
“In the end, hitters are trying to reach the pitch and see how to maximize their consistency. They are getting a tool that suits their needs, like someone wearing shoes that fit perfectly, a glove that fits their position or a bat tailored to their swing, so for certain players it can certainly be beneficial,” added Alonso.
However, the slugger also downplayed the idea that the torpedo bats directly contributed to the Yankees’ historic numbers against the Brewers.
“The Yankees had an offensive outburst, and they’re very talented hitters, and that can happen even if some of the players didn’t use the torpedo bat,” Alonso said. “That’s a talented lineup, and that’s what happens when you have a group of players hitting balls down the middle of the plate… I’ll probably order some and try them out.”
For his part, Mark Vientos said he learned in spring training that several Yankees players would use the torpedo style through conversations with a representative of the bat manufacturer, and explained that he has considered using the torpedo bat after the initial success of the Yankees that could lead him to reconsider the idea.
“That’s what makes it interesting, to try it,” Vientos said. “But of course, they’re a good team and they had a good week, but next week they might have a bad week and then people will say: ‘It’s not the bat'”.
Lindor explained to The Post that he had been using the torpedo bat since the 2024 season.
“Some are more pronounced than others,” he said. “For me, it’s not about the balance point. It’s about finding the balance point of the bat and making sure it has something that feels good to hit.”
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza expects others to try it, but it won’t be a matter of players going to the plate in a game competition to use a Torpedo bat for the first time.
“You have to get used to it and see what it’s like,” said Mendoza.
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