How 'Torpedo' Bats Will Change The Way You Collect Baseball Cards
The famous phrase "chicks dig the long ball" has been true since Babe Ruth was belting homers out of Yankee Stadium in the 1920s.
The now-iconic line -- immortalized in a 1999 Nike commercial -- was meant to highlight the plight of the era's elite pitchers whose achievements were overshadowed by hitters.
Nearly three decades later, that line couldn't be more true. The start of the 2025 MLB season, only a few days old, has highlighted once again the plight of pitchers and the prowess of hitters.
The "Torpedo Bat" has already made its way onto a trading card... 😅 pic.twitter.com/9SHzCyhB8k
— Topps (@Topps) March 31, 2025
Call it the "torpedo" bat era.
The bats everyone is talking about emerged this past weekend after the New York Yankees tied an MLB record as they hit 15 home runs in their opening three-game series, including a franchise-record nine in their 20-9 rout against the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday.
The culprit was the so-called “torpedo” bat, named due to its shape. The bat barrel has been customized for each hitter, making the Yankees one of the most-feared teams for pitchers to face this season.
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The result will be more homers across the league, especially as more players and teams use them. What does it mean for baseball card collectors?
It means bet on hitters more than pitchers.
Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has already seen his cards skyrocket in value just a few days since the start of the season, a sign that hitters are the way to go in 2025.
While prospecting pitchers has always been tough even for card collectors, the rise of Paul Skenes, last season's NL Rookie of the Year, was a sign that things could be changing.
Torpedo bats have all but quelled that speculation -- at least for now -- as MLB card collectors gobble up Judge cards, in addition to ones of superstars such as Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It should be noted, however, that Judge, who hit four home runs in the first three games, is not using the bat.
This year's class of rookies features several pitchers. They include Jackson Jobe of the Detroit Tigers and Roki Sasaki of the Dodgers. Their card values could take a hit should MLB fail to ban torpedo bats or whether this trend of smashing homers continues this season.
While Ohtani, a superhero when it comes to the hobby over the past few years, can also pitch, it remains to be seen if he ever takes the mound this season after last year's MVP season. If anything will keep Ohtani from doing so, it could very well be torpedo bats.
If Ohtani remains a hitter, it's something that will likely draw a sigh of relief from Dodgers fans and baseball card collectors everywhere.
Clemente Lisi is a writer and editor with nearly three decades of experience. You can follow him at x.com/ClementeLisi.