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MLB says Yankees’ new “torpedo bats” are legal and likely coming

(thelibertyline.com)
302 points cf100clunk | 2 comments | 31 Mar 25 15:27 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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islewis ◴[31 Mar 25 16:09 UTC] No.43536621[source]▶
I've always wondered what the technological development of F1 would look like in other sports. This feels pretty close.
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floatrock ◴[31 Mar 25 16:23 UTC] No.43536806[source]▶
There are stories like this in marathon running shoes (something like 3D printed to the athlete's exact gait and basically last just a single race) and swimming (the michael phelps olympics dolphin suit).

I'm sure cycling and golf have been doing things like this since forever.

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soared ◴[31 Mar 25 16:33 UTC] No.43536915[source]▶
There are videos on YouTube of people using banned golf clubs that are super interesting - sand wedges with big holes in the club head so they slice through the sand, or comically large driver heads.
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1. kjkjadksj ◴[31 Mar 25 17:03 UTC] No.43537242[source]▶
Golf actually adopted tech that probably ought to have been banned. Namely the modern ball and driver going from balata and persimmon. Pros went from driving it 260 yards to 325 sometimes longer and entire courses had to be redesigned as they would just trivially drive over fairway hazards and rough. Golf became a bomb and wedge game ever since as they can’t make certain historic courses terribly longer.

They are exploring the idea of rolling back the ball but the implications of that are endless.

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2. nemo44x ◴[31 Mar 25 20:16 UTC] No.43539408[source]▶
Golf should rate gear differently for different levels of play. Most golfers need these improvements as it makes recreational golf more enjoyable. But it makes the game too easy for professionals. Gear rated for their tournaments would be better I think. But there’s a rub.

Players like to endorse gear because people want to play what the best players play. They think it will make them better. So it’s hard to endorse gear you aren’t playing with.

Theres also data that suggests longer hitting guys will be more dominant with a rollback. I don’t know but I guess the nerds figured out how to optimize golf and it’s all about distance. The days of precession and artistry may be gone. I’m not sure how to defend against bomb and gouge and not sure if we should.