BASEBALL/Torpedo bat set to debut in CPBL soon

Taipei, April 19 (CNA) The torpedo bat is likely to make its debut in Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) sooner than expected after the league announced a way for certified bat providers to quickly get new types of bats into the hands of CPBL players.

Under a new league rule announced Friday, once a bat brand gets certified by the league, it can add new types of bats to its product list for the CPBL simply by submitting two samples for each type to the CPBL, the league said in a Friday announcement.

The new bats do not have to be individually tested, and the list can be updated once a year, according to the league.

That means that if any of the 20 certified bat producers present a torpedo bat sample to the league, it could enter service rather quickly.

The CPBL said Friday that it has had extensive discussions on the use of the torpedo bat and had received samples from one manufacturer, but it did not reveal when those samples were received or if it had received any following the latest change in its regulations.

Still, the league said torpedo bats could make their CPBL debut as soon as Monday.

The move comes amid heightened interest among CPBL players in experimenting with the so-called torpedo bat, a design that has sparked considerable debate in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States.

The New York Yankees put the torpedo bats in the spotlight when most of the team's players used them to hit 15 home runs and score 36 runs in their season-opening three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

But the jury is still out on how much the bats really help. Yankees shortshop Anthony Volpe, who hit four home runs in the first five games of 2025 using the new equipment, still has four home runs 20 games into the season and is hitting .197.

Unlike standard bats, which distribute mass evenly throughout the barrel, torpedo bats concentrate their mass closer to the batter's arms, specifically targeting the sweet spot, while fully complying with MLB regulations governing bat specifications.

Commenting on the bats' potential advantages, retired CPBL player turned bat manufacturer Liu Fu-hao (劉芙豪) noted on April 3 that torpedo bats may better suit MLB batters.

"Torpedo bats shorten the swing trajectory and enhance ball contact," he explained, suggesting they cater to hitters whose sweet spots are nearer to their bodies.

Several CPBL players, including 2024 CPBL Taiwan Series MVP Tseng Song-en (曾頌恩) of the CTBC Brothers and 2024 WBSC Premier12 MVP Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) of the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions, have provided positive feedback after testing the unconventional bats.

Uni-Lions veteran Hu Chin-lung (胡金龍) expressed a preference for standard bats, however, due to their superior balance.

The impact of torpedo bats on game dynamics and player health remains uncertain.

For instance, New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton continues to be sidelined this season due to persistent elbow pain after using torpedo bats in 2024, though no direct link to the bats has been established or ruled out.