Torpedo Bat Fades in CPBL, Wu Nien-ting Still Loves It, Chang Cheng-yu Unaccustomed to Balance
The "torpedo bat," popular in Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) last year, has largely disappeared this season. While Uni-President Lions' Wu Nien-ting continues to use it, Wei Chuan Dragons' Chang Cheng-yu, who initially favored it, switched back to his old bat due to discomfort with its balance.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 2, 2026 at 18:26
- 🔍 Collected: May 2, 2026 at 18:32 (5 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 2, 2026 at 18:45 (13 min after Collected)
(Central News Agency reporter Su Chih-yu, Taipei, 2nd) The "torpedo bat," which became popular in the Chinese Professional Baseball League last year, has almost disappeared this year. Uni-President Lions player Wu Nien-ting is one of the few batters who continues to use it, while Wei Chuan Dragons player Chang Cheng-yu, who originally loved it, switched back to his original bat type this year due to being unaccustomed to its center of gravity.
The torpedo bat first became a topic of discussion in Major League Baseball (MLB) last year, and CPBL players also tried it out one after another. Its core design involves narrowing the bat head and concentrating the weight at the sweet spot. While this can increase the initial velocity of the batted ball, it also reduces the margin for error in hitting.
However, since the start of the CPBL season this year, players have hardly been seen using the torpedo bat, with only Wu Nien-ting remaining a loyal user. Wu Nien-ting told a Central News Agency reporter: "I also thought about whether to switch back, but I'm used to hitting with it, so I'll continue to use it."
Wu Nien-ting pointed out that everyone has different habits when using a bat, and he just happened to be more suited to the design of the torpedo bat. He didn't customize it according to his hitting habits. "I just used what the manufacturer provided last year. Regardless of the bat, it's fine as long as I can get hits," he said.
Chang Cheng-yu was the first player in the CPBL to hit a home run with a torpedo bat last year, but he reduced its usage frequency in the second half of the season and completely switched back to his original bat this year. He said: "The torpedo bat is more powerful when you hit the sweet spot, but I'm not the type who can master the hitting point very well, so I often hit closer to the bat head, and it doesn't fly very far."
Chang Cheng-yu also stated that even traditional bats have different centers of gravity, and the torpedo bat emphasizes the sweet spot. However, whether it's ultimately easy to use has nothing to do with the quality of the bat, but rather with individual usage habits. "It should be used by someone like Nien-ting, who is better at hitting the sweet spot," he said. (Edited by Li Shu-hua) 1150502
The torpedo bat first became a topic of discussion in Major League Baseball (MLB) last year, and CPBL players also tried it out one after another. Its core design involves narrowing the bat head and concentrating the weight at the sweet spot. While this can increase the initial velocity of the batted ball, it also reduces the margin for error in hitting.
However, since the start of the CPBL season this year, players have hardly been seen using the torpedo bat, with only Wu Nien-ting remaining a loyal user. Wu Nien-ting told a Central News Agency reporter: "I also thought about whether to switch back, but I'm used to hitting with it, so I'll continue to use it."
Wu Nien-ting pointed out that everyone has different habits when using a bat, and he just happened to be more suited to the design of the torpedo bat. He didn't customize it according to his hitting habits. "I just used what the manufacturer provided last year. Regardless of the bat, it's fine as long as I can get hits," he said.
Chang Cheng-yu was the first player in the CPBL to hit a home run with a torpedo bat last year, but he reduced its usage frequency in the second half of the season and completely switched back to his original bat this year. He said: "The torpedo bat is more powerful when you hit the sweet spot, but I'm not the type who can master the hitting point very well, so I often hit closer to the bat head, and it doesn't fly very far."
Chang Cheng-yu also stated that even traditional bats have different centers of gravity, and the torpedo bat emphasizes the sweet spot. However, whether it's ultimately easy to use has nothing to do with the quality of the bat, but rather with individual usage habits. "It should be used by someone like Nien-ting, who is better at hitting the sweet spot," he said. (Edited by Li Shu-hua) 1150502