要約
「トーペドバット」はMLBで人気の新しいバットで、選手やファンが興味を持っている。バットは規定に合法で、木材を移動させることでバレル部分を強化する。しかし、効果を正確に評価するにはもっとデータが必要。バットのカスタマイズは昔からあり、快適性やパフォーマンス向上のために行われている。ファンたちはバットの影響を議論しているが、その効果は確証されていない。
記事の主要内容
ポイント1
野球界で流行している「トーペドバット」のトレンドが、選手やファンがそれが何かをすぐに学ぼうとしていることから、インターネットを席巻し、メジャーリーグベースボールのクラブハウス全体に浸透しています。
ポイント2
トーペドバットは、MLBの厳格なバットガイドラインに従い合法であり、バットの木材の多くをハンドルやシャフトからバレルに移動させます。このプロセスは、理論上、選手がコンタクトする際にバレル—つまり「スイートスポット」—により多くの接触を可能にすることができます。
ポイント3
しかし、はっきり言っておきましょう。トーペドバットが打者にとって究極の道具であるという熱狂は早すぎます。装備についての話は、選手が大学野球選手のように-3のアルミニウムバットを使用しているかのように聞こえますが、実際はまったくそうではありません。
その他の内容
1週間の試合後、トーペドバットの効果について従来のバットと比較するための結論を急ぐにはデータが不十分です。ほとんどの選手は今年の春にトーペドバットを使い始めたばかりで、ヤンキースの強打者ジャンカルロ・スタントンを含む選ばれた選手は昨シーズン末に試しています。これらのバットの影響について有意義な結論を導くには、バットされたボールのデータがフルシーズンの大部分を必要とします。
また、バットのカスタマイズは長年行われており、野球界の打者たちが快適さを手助けするために変更を加えてきました。近年、バットハンドルにいくつかの変更が見られ、ムーキー・ベッツが広めたアックスハンドル、ホッケーパックノブ/カウンターウェイトハンドル、さらにはメッツのセカンドベースマン、ジェフ・マクニールのように、ノブを使用しない選手もいます。
こちらは、ノブのないジェフ・マクニールの特異なバットの様子です。重量は標準の32オンスですが、マクニールはそのモデルが重さがより均等に分散されているため、彼にとって軽く感じると述べています。絵 pic.twitter.com/4rZybaBMp4
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) 2018年8月4日
一部の打者は、バットを速くストライクゾーンに入れるのを助けると考えてそのような変更を行う一方、他の打者は単により快適に感じるために変更を行います。いずれにしても、この最新のバット革新を単なる異なる道具以上のものと見なすことは過剰です。
多くのファンやインターネットの見物人
翻訳された本文（約7割）
The “torpedo bat” trend in baseball has taken over the internet and permeated clubhouses all over Major League Baseball as players and fans try to quickly learn what it is.
The torpedo bats, which are legal and follow MLB’s strict bat guidelines, put more of the bat’s wood and move it from the handle and shaft into the barrel. The process, in theory, would allow players to make more contact with the barrel — or “sweet spot” — at the point of contact.
But let’s get something straight. The hype around torpedo bats being the ultimate tool for hitters is premature. The talk around the equipment makes it sound like players are out there using -3 aluminum bats like college hitters. The reality is not even close to that.
After one week of games, there’s not nearly enough data to jump to conclusions about the effectiveness of torpedo bats compared to your standard bat. Most players just began using torpedo bats this spring, though a select few, including Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton, tried them out late last season. We’ll need the better part of a full season of batted-ball data before we’ll be able to draw any meaningful conclusions about these bats’ impact.
Also, bat customizations have been happening for years, with hitters around baseball making changes to help them feel comfortable. In recent years, we’ve seen several changes to bat handles, including the axe handle popularized by Mookie Betts, the hockey puck knob/counterweight handle and even some players, like Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil, not using a knob at all.
Here’s a look at Jeff McNeil’s unusual bat, which does not have a knob. Although it’s a standard 32 ounces, McNeil says the model feels lighter to him because the weight is more evenly distributed. pic.twitter.com/4rZybaBMp4
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) August 4, 2018
Some hitters make such changes because they think it will help them get the bat in the strike zone more quickly, others simply because they feel more comfortable. Either way, viewing this latest bat innovation as something more than a different tool is extreme.
Many fans and internet onlookers have used the Yankees’ 36-run, 15-homer onslaught in their opening series against the Milwaukee Brewers as evidence that these bats are somehow juiced or a hitting cheat code. The pictures online — some of which have probably been altered for entertainment purposes — don’t help tell this story. The reality is that the day after their series sweep in the Bronx, the Brewers gave up 11 runs to the Kansas City Royals. Just maybe, the Brewers’ pitching has been extremely bad to open the season.
“I probably would not have initially used a torpedo bat,” Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli told Yahoo Sports this week. “I just personally liked and felt much better swinging thinner bats that were more balanced and not top heavy in some way. I never liked the big-headed bats at all, and I rarely used them at any point in my career.”
Another major issue with any assertion that these torpedo bats present a huge competitive advantage is that it completely disregards the fact that we’re talking about the best hitters in the world. It is not at all the case that without these bats, these players wouldn’t have a chance against major-league pitching.
No, the idea that the bats are a cheat code ignores the fact that hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things to do in sports. It almost makes it seem like anybody could swing a torpedo bat and have success against a major-league pitcher. That’s not at all how this works. A torpedo bat is a tool, much like any of the other innovations and technological advances the game has seen throughout its century-long history.
As one NL All-Star told Yahoo Sports: “Bro, you still gotta hit the ball.”
A common sentiment from players about torpedo bats is that hitting is about the player, not the bat. If you can’t make contact on a 97 mph fastball or nasty slider with a normal bat, picking up a torpedo bat isn’t going to help. And baseball players, many of whom are creatures of habit, are inclined to stick with what works for them.
Yankees superstar Aaron Judge, who has more homers than any player since his debut in 2018, already said he’s not switching bats. And why should he?
Said one AL veteran of the torpedo bat: “I’ve been hitting for 20 years. I’m not using that bulls***, man.”
Earlier this week, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz hit two mammoth homers — that collectively traveled an estimated 894 feet — about in his first game using a torpedo bat. Coincidence? Probably so. De La Cruz had three two-homer games in his career before he ever picked up a torpedo bat, so the idea that the bat somehow made him better or led to that stat line is ridiculous. We’re talking about one of the best hitters in professional baseball.
The rest of this season, whenever a player crushes a homer or has a high exit velocity using a torpedo bat, some fans might point to the bat as being the cause. The reality is that these hitters are in the big leagues for a reason, and while there’s a chance a torpedo bat adds a little extra impact here or there, the bulk of the impact on a baseball is the result of the hitter.
“I think when you take three steps back, you hear the word torpedo bat, and you see the video of a freeze frame of it, and you go, ‘does this look like it’ll be helpful?’ I think most people would say yes,” Baldelli said.
“But these guys that are out there trying to hit major-league pitching. For those guys, it’s not that simple. There’s a lot more to it, and you’re going to ultimately use [a bat] that feels good and what’s compatible with your swing above all else.”
感想
新しいバット「トーペドバット」が注目を集めているようだ。規定に合法でありながらも、まだ効果に関してはデータ不足のようだ。バットのカスタマイズは昔から行われてきたが、今回のバットはどれだけ違うのだろうか。ファンや選手の議論も盛り上がっているようだが、果たしてその効果は本当にあるのだろうか。新しい技術の導入はスポーツ界に新たな展開をもたらすかもしれない。
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