Marlins Coach Aaron Leanhardt, Architect of Yankees' Torpedo Bats, Swarmed By Media

Before he helped design the New York Yankees' viral "torpedo" bats, Miami Marlins field coordinator Aaron Leanhardt got his Ph.D. from MIT and was a professor at Michigan.

Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Miami Marlins hat and glove in the dugout before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The baseball world has gotten wrapped up in the New York Yankees' so-called "torpedo" bats over the first few days of the 2025 regular season, even though the architect no longer calls the Bronx home.

Aaron Leanhardt, who got his Ph.D in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and worked as a physics professor at the University of Michigan, is now a field coordinator with the Miami Marlins. He started developing a new bat with a thicker – albeit shorter – barrel when he was working in the Yankees' minor league hitting department in 2022, even giving it to big leaguers when he became an analyst at the MLB level in 2024.

The end result is a bat that fits all of MLB's rules and regulations, but with redistributed weight that makes the sweet spot even more dangerous.

In an interview with The Athletic, Leanhardt said he couldn't have created it if it weren't for the advice and input of other coaches, players, league officials and bat manufacturers. Still, Leanhardt has been credited with the invention of the bat, which could spark a movement considering the Yankees' 15 home runs over their first three regular season games.

Leanhardt spoke to the media Monday prior to Miami's series-opener against the New York Mets. As seen in a photo shared by Jack McMullen, the radio voice of the Marlins, Leanhardt was the man of the hour.

The Most Popular Man in Miami : Aaron Leanhardt (AKA Lenny, AKA The Godfather of The Torpedo) pic.twitter.com/M2Or0daTcH

— Jack McMullen (@Jack_McMullen11) March 31, 2025

If Leanhardt can convince the Marlins to start using his creation, perhaps the club can bounce back from a last-place finish in 2024. They already started off 2025 on the right foot, notching three walk-off victories over the Pittsburgh Pirates to claim their first series of the season.

Leanhardt and the Marlins open up their three-game set with the Mets at 6:40 p.m. ET on Monday.

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