'Torpedo' bat explodes on to the scene

Controversial new shape causes opening weekend stir, but designer says it's more about the player than the lumber

For the MIT-educated physicist behind the torpedo bat, it's more about the talent of the players than their lumber at the plate.

The torpedo model — a striking design in which wood is moved lower down the barrel after the label and shapes the end a little like a bowling pin — became the talk of major league baseball over the weekend.

The New York Yankees hit a team-record nine homers that traveled a combined 3,695 feet on Saturday. Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger, Austin Wells, Anthony Volpe and Jazz Chisholm Jr all went deep using a torpedo bat. New York's 15 homers through the first three games matched the 2006 Detroit Tigers for the most in major league history.