MLB’s Home Run Derby showcases the once-viral torpedo bats — but has their moment passed?

ATLANTA — On April 1, Alex Bregman posted his latest order to an Instagram story. The post featured a natural wood Marucci torpedo bat. Bregman added his initials and number — “AB2” — along with a rocket ship emoji.

At a time when the Yankees were crushing home runs and bat companies were backlogged with orders, Boston’s star third baseman was among a wave of players who rushed to get their hands on a bat some theorized could take over the game.

A few months later, the torpedo bats were again on center stage at Monday’s Home Run Derby, where Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hoisted a trophy with help from the bulblike bats that have weight and wood redistributed toward the barrel.

In reality, though, the torpedo bat was again on an outsized stage. Rather than taking over the league, torpedo bats seem to have quickly settled in with past hitting fads like puck knobs and axe handles — popular among certain players but not for everyone.

“I tried it one time,” Bregman said. “It felt too heavy for me. I haven’t even seen it since the day I got it. I was like, ‘No, not for me.’”

Alex Bregman showing off his new torpedo bat pic.twitter.com/LXTe8lUjXQ

— Andrew Parker (@ByAndrewParker) April 1, 2025

Raleigh, who came only one home run shy of tying Barry Bonds’ record for most home runs at the All-Star Break (38), is the most notable player using a torpedo bat at All-Star Week. He is a switch-hitter who uses different variations of the torpedo bat from both the right and left sides. The right-handed models have the weight distributed toward the end. The left-handed bat is more balanced and features a more pronounced torpedo shape.

The original goal of the torpedo bats was to redistribute lumber from the end of the bat closer toward the barrel. This creates a bigger sweet spot and can alter how the bat feels in a hitter’s hands.

“I picked it up, started using it, and it worked,” Raleigh said. “As a baseball player, it’s kind of like that sometimes.”

Monday night, Raleigh used a wood-colored Victus from the left side and swung a custom-painted bat featuring his Big Dumper nickname from the right.

Just ran into the guy from Rawlings on his way to drop off Cal Raleigh’s special Big Dumper HR Derby bats at the ballpark.

How cool are these! pic.twitter.com/nqRNFsLwGd

— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) July 13, 2025

Interestingly, though, Raleigh was the only player in Monday’s Home Run Derby swinging the bat that once seemed bound for mainstream use. Derby contestants Jazz Chisholm Jr., Brent Rooker, Oneil Cruz and runner-up Junior Caminero are among players who have experimented with torpedo bats this season.

But in many cases, the bats have not become mainstays in the hands of hitters.

Chisholm was among the players who garnered acclaim with the tapered lumber early in the season. He hit three home runs in the Yankees’ bashfest series against the Milwaukee Brewers that propelled the bats to the forefront of national conversation. Teammates such as Anthony Volpe have used the bats into the summer.

But a few weeks after that Brewers series, Chisholm did away with the torpedo.

“It just didn’t work for me,” Chisholm said. “I feel like I’m a guy who has quick hands, so I don’t really catch the ball as deep as everybody else. I hit it off the end of my bat, so if the end of my bat is nothing, I’m not gonna hit the ball as well.”

New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso — a two-time Home Run Derby Champion who did not participate in the event this year — has for years used a Dove Tail Bats model that features an axe-like ProXR handle. Dove Tail Bats was a pioneer in manufacturing bats designed with a similar concept — different lumber distribution and a larger sweet spot — though they are less extreme than the torpedo bats we see today.

In early April, Alonso ordered a batch of true torpedo bats. They never saw game action.

“I picked it up and it just felt awful,” Alonso said. “To me, it was probably the worst-feeling bat I’ve ever picked up. So I’m like, ‘You know what? I tried it. I overturned that stone.’ Just nothing came of it for me. Some people can pick them up and they feel it and they love it. For me, it doesn’t do it. And that’s OK.”

Other players in the league have had similar experiences. Rather than become entranced by the allure of the torpedo bats, they were perturbed by the different feel.

“I wasn’t a fan,” said James Wood, a Washington Nationals outfielder who also participated in the Home Run Derby. “They felt heavy, and I like what I have.”

To most players, bats remain a personal thing. Even as teams and bat companies conduct deeper analysis to determine how they can design bats to benefit players, sometimes hitters simply like what they know.

Bregman has used the same Marucci model since the minor leagues. Tigers outfielder Riley Greene, who has 24 home runs this season, swings a traditional Victus model and never had any interest in trying a torpedo bat.

“At least for me, I don’t think it would change much,” Greene said. “You still have to hit the ball, and you still have to hit the ball on the barrel.”

Raleigh leads the major leagues in home runs so far this season. But Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani are close behind, and neither player has needed to wield a torpedo bat to wreak havoc on opposing pitchers.

“It’s all about feel and production,” Alonso said. “If you don’t have the right feel, you’re not gonna produce.”

If feel is what matters most, then perhaps it should be no surprise torpedo bats remain in favor for players like Raleigh.

And for hitters like Bregman, Alonso and many more, the old bats are still working just fine.

(Photo of Cal Raleigh at Home Run Derby: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)

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