By Adam Turteltaub, Chief Engagement & Strategy Officer, SCCE & HCCA
There’s a controversy in baseball this season about what are being called “torpedo bats”. They earned this name because of their shape. These bats fall within the rules of baseball, but they may be changing the game.
Where did they come from and what is so special about them? When we think of baseball analytics we tend to think of the Moneyball revolution: the never-ending stream of new statistics for analyzing the game and shedding new insights on player performance. These numbers tell fielders where to stand when a certain batter is up, pitchers what pitches to throw, and batters what balls to swing at.
Now, though, we have what could be described as Moneybat. Analysts are using data on past hits to identify where on the bat a player tends to make contact with the ball. Manufacturers then create a customized bat with a sweet spot at that precise point.
It is, again, perfectly legal, but many do not like it. For some, the opposition stems from an aversion to any change in the game. For others, it’s because these bats threaten to change the game dramatically. After historically low batting averages and historically high strike out rates, suddenly batters are clobbering the ball. The Yankees, which have several players who have adopted the bat, have been on a home run tear. They set a new record by hitting 18 home runs during the first four games of the season.
This controversy points to the fact that sometimes in baseball and in business the rules have a great deal of flexibility. They leave room for innovations that have not yet been considered, and they bestow unexpected and sometimes enormous benefits to those who take advantage of them.
As a compliance officer, there’s a need in those situations to confirm whether the seemingly unfair advantage is within the law. It’s probably also wise to ask if it is ethical. If it’s the result of an innovation in thinking, it probably is. If it’s a gaming of the system, then it probably isn’t.
If all is on the up and up, then it’s time for the compliance team to smile, stand aside, and enjoy an opportunity to prove that it, too, can be very happy to play ball.