Imagine being the catalyst for a league-wide craze, not through brilliance, but through utter humiliation. That's exactly what happened to the Milwaukee Brewers, and their story is far more interesting than just a bad weekend. They inadvertently kicked off the "torpedo bat" phenomenon, and while it brought them initial embarrassment, it also served as a crucial turning point in their season, ultimately leading them to the NLCS. But here's where it gets controversial... Did this early season debacle actually help them in the long run?
Six months after their pitching staff seemingly gifted the New York Yankees a home run derby, the mere mention of "torpedo bats" still elicits a mix of grimaces and chuckles from the Brewers. As veteran pitcher Brandon Woodruff put it, "We opened up in New York — and got absolutely pummeled." Jake Bauers, the reserve infielder, offered a more visceral analogy: "I would equate it to a boxer walking out in the first round and just getting punched right in the teeth, in the first second of the fight." Even team owner Mark Attanasio conceded, "Well, it’s kind of a joke now."
To recap: During the opening weekend of the 2025 season, the Brewers endured a brutal 27 innings at Yankee Stadium. Their pitchers surrendered a staggering 36 runs, including a whopping 15 home runs. This offensive explosion sparked immediate suspicion and investigation. The culprit? The composition of the bats wielded by Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe and some of his teammates. These bats, dubbed "torpedo bats," featured a unique design with the densest part of the wood strategically positioned where each player made contact most frequently.
This innovation promised hitters a chance to regain ground in a sport increasingly dominated by pitchers. The allure of extra power and improved contact was undeniable. Across Major League Baseball, batters clamored for their own torpedo bats. The demand even trickled down to amateur leagues. Major bat manufacturers like Marucci, Chandler, Louisville Slugger, and Rawlings quickly jumped on the bandwagon, offering torpedo bats to the public. A representative from Chandler even reported "record sales volume in all channels" for these new bats. They can thank the Brewers for that!
When asked if the Brewers considered requesting a finder’s fee from these bat companies, given the revenue they generated, Attanasio laughed heartily. He was basking in the glow of their victory over the Chicago Cubs, which secured their spot in the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Joking, he said they should speak to the team’s president of business operations, Rick Schlesinger, about the possibility.
But let's be honest, at the time, very few within the Brewers organization were laughing. After that disastrous opening weekend, the outlook for the 2025 season appeared bleak. The team had traded away two-time All-Star closer Devin Williams and hadn't signed any free agents to multi-year contracts. FanGraphs projected their postseason odds at a discouraging 35.4 percent. It seemed as though the Brewers' recent run of success was coming to an abrupt end.
For years, the Brewers' strength had been their pitching. However, even after trading former National League Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes, the Brewers still managed to achieve the fifth-lowest ERA in the majors in 2024. Yet, as the 2025 season began, their pitching staff looked vulnerable. After a tough-luck loss by Opening Day starter Freddy Peralta, Nestor Cortes surrendered five home runs in a 20-9 defeat, followed by Aaron Civale allowing three more in a 12-3 thrashing.
Initially, the Brewers dismissed it as just a bad weekend in the Bronx. The rest of the baseball world, however, was captivated by the torpedo bats. Some Brewers players found the attention annoying. Reliever Jared Koenig described it as "a media frenzy, an unnecessary thing." But the Brewers' hitters, at the very least, wanted to try them out.
Woodruff recalled, "The Yankees had them. And then you see all these other teams start getting them before us. And we’re like, ‘Look, man, I know we’re small-market, but can we get some torpedoes in our guys’ hands?’”
As it turned out, the torpedo bats didn't revolutionize baseball. The league batting average in 2025 was .245, only a slight increase from .243 the previous season. In an era defined by high velocity and extreme spin, a new bat can only do so much. And this is the part most people miss... The Brewers themselves realized that the bats weren't the answer.
Bauers explained, "Everyone in here tried to order one, just to see what it was all about. After taking BP and a few at-bats with them, we quickly realized that it wasn’t the bats."
The real story lies in how the Brewers rebounded from that humiliating weekend. Their success hinges on roster flexibility and a willingness to make changes. They weren't afraid to promote promising minor league prospects, and when Civale requested a trade, general manager Matt Arnold acquired first baseman Andrew Vaughn, who ultimately hit the game-winning home run in Game 5 against the Cubs.
Civale's trade request came after he was moved to the bullpen in June, partly due to his 4.91 ERA and partly because Arnold was constantly seeking upgrades. Earlier, in April, Milwaukee used a competitive-balance pick to acquire Quinn Priester, a former first-round pick who was struggling in the Boston Red Sox system. The Brewers encouraged Priester to rely on his two-seam sinker, resulting in a 3.32 ERA over 157 1/3 innings.
With Priester securing a rotation spot, the team needed to make room for rookie Jacob Misiorowski's 104 mph fastball. Civale's departure paved the way for Vaughn, who posted an impressive .869 OPS in the regular season and hit two home runs in the postseason.
Interestingly, Vaughn never played alongside Cortes. During the winter, Milwaukee acquired Cortes and third baseman Caleb Durbin from the Yankees in exchange for Williams. Durbin became a regular at third, while Cortes proved to be a disappointment, injuring his elbow after only two starts. He was later traded to the San Diego Padres for backup outfielder Brandon Lockridge.
By this point, Milwaukee was surging toward the best record in baseball. Attanasio highlighted a leaping catch by Jackson Chourio in May as a potential turning point. "A bunch of us and the baseball ops people said, ‘If the season turns, that might be the play,’” Attanasio recalled.
The Brewers only had one losing month this season: March, which included that fateful weekend against the Yankees and their torpedo bats. In the aftermath of the sweep, manager Pat Murphy suggested the team would learn from the experience. Bauers reflected on this after the club rebounded from a 6-0 loss to the Cubs in Game 4.
"Maybe if we don’t go through that, we’re not able to get blown out at Wrigley and come back home and win Game 5 and turn the page," Bauers said. "It removed any doubt about if we were able to bounce back, if we were able to punch back. We really found out who we were as a team."
So, what do you think? Did the Brewers' early season struggles, fueled by the "torpedo bat" craze, ultimately contribute to their success? Or was it simply a case of a talented team overcoming adversity? And, perhaps more controversially, do you believe that focusing on gimmicks like specialized bat designs distracts from the fundamental skills and strategies of baseball? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
