The New York Yankees took the world by storm last weekend when they scored 20 runs in a game against the Milwaukee Brewers. Quickly, the reports of the Yankees using the newly dubbed "torpedo bats" began to spread until everybody around baseball seemingly knew what they were.
A "torpedo bat" is simply a new piece of hitting technology where the hardest and densest part of the bat is moved down the barrel a bit. This puts more wood where the batter is likely to hit the ball which increases the chance of barrels and hard-hit balls while decreasing the chances of mishits and jam shots.
And it's taking the world by storm.
While a few players like Aaron Judge has declined to use the bat, rightfully so after what he's done without it, just about everybody else in the sport is willing to use the new piece of technology.
This includes Cincinnati Reds 23-year-old superstar Elly De La Cruz.
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Elly De La Cruz's torpedo bat debut ends in fireworks and home runs
On Monday, De La Cruz tried out a torpedo bat in batting practice. He liked the way it felt and the way he swung, so he decided to use it in the game against Kumar Rocker and the Texas Rangers.
In his first plate appearance, the star smashed a 103 MPH single with a staggering 76 MPH bat speed. During his second appearance, he increased his exit velocity and bat speed as he slugged a 107 MPH home run with a 77 MPH bat speed. De La Cruz would flyout in his third at-bat, though the batted ball had an xBA of .470 with a bat speed of over 81 MPH. He would smash another 100-plus MPH batted ball for a double in his next at bat before slugging a 110 MPH homer in his final at bat. Not a bad debut for the torpedo bat in the 23-year-old's hands.
Of all the single performances with the torpedo bat, De La Cruz likely sits atop the list with the best performance. He finished the day 4/5 with two home runs, a double, a single, seven RBIs, and a stolen base.
If he can continue to put together performances like this, Shohei Ohtani is going to have a big challenger for the NL MVP on his hands.