If you’ve been following Major League Baseball this year, you’ve already heard a lot about the so-called “torpedo bats.” These bats, used on Opening Weekend by the Yankees and quickly growing in popularity, are slightly wider in the middle and more narrow at the far end. This shape allegedly creates an advantage for hitters, resulting in more barreled balls, home runs, etc.

I do not have a stance on the bat itself yet, but let me make a meta comment here:

Innovation-driven rules disagreements are one of the most beautiful features of the game of baseball, and we need them now more than ever.

Huge hat tip to Alva Noë and his outstanding book Infinite Baseball: Notes from a Philosopher at the Ballpark for opening my eyes to this fact. The only thing that makes baseball worth watching is that it is so unbelievably fun to discuss. Rule modifications–along with the clash of a regular cast of conservative and forward-thinking fanatics–are as much a part of the game as any play, player, or stadium.

We are in a period of human history where we seem content to talk endlessly about issues that have very little real impact on day-to-day life, while the issues that do impact day-to-day life seem too contentious or unwieldy to tackle. The torpedo bat debate is both, and neither, and something else altogether. Let’s fight it out, and let’s play ball.

Also, I highly recommend Noë‘s book for philosophers and fans alike. Very readable and very entertaining.