Why removing torpedoes from US cruisers was defensible

Was the US Navy right to remove torpedo launchers from its World War II cruisers?

For the unreliable American torpedoes then available, probably yes, even though effective torpedoes are normally a valuable cruiser weapon.

Cruiser torpedoes remain useful because gunfire may not stop a battleship or battlecruiser. A credible torpedo battery forces a stronger opponent to respect the cruiser at ranges where guns alone may be insufficient. The American decision to remove them remains understandable because its weapons lacked Japanese range and entered the war with severe development and reliability problems. Carrying an unreliable torpedo can consume weight without providing the deterrent assumed in the design. The value of torpedoes in principle was different from the value of the specific Mark 15-era system.