A few days ago, I received an email from one of my players, asking me for any tips on breaking in a glove. Seeing that this is the time of year when more than a few players are fortunate enough to work on some new leather, I thought I’d share my two cents with all my readers. Here’s a list of points you should consider before you start to customize your glove.
- Gloves today are different. Years ago, all gloves were leather. Today, there are a lot of great (and expensive) leather gloves on the market. If you are an older player (high school and higher), investing in one of these gloves is the right move. They take more work to break in, but they will last forever if you treat them right. If you are a younger player (or parent), grabbing a less expensive glove wouldn’t be a bad option. The less expensive gloves aren’t made of real leather, and because of that they break in a lot easier. However, they fall a part a lot quicker too. In any event, a synthetic leather glove is the way to go for younger players, especially if you know you will outgrow the glove sooner than later.
- Don’t go “old school” on your glove. There are a few “traditional” methods for breaking in a glove that are just bad ideas.
- Stuffing your glove under your mattress (with or without a ball in the pocket) not only wrecks your chances of developing the “break” correctly (and outfielder’s glove might be an exception), you’re ruining your chances of a good night’s sleep because of the the new lump under your mattress.
- Wrapping your glove with a rope or big rubber band and sticking in a bucket of water. Water is the one of the three worst things for a glove (dirt and extreme temperatures are the other two) and ropes/rubber bands leave marks and indentations that can compromise how your hand fits in the glove. Wrap your glove with an ACE bandage. Drink the water. It’s better for you than your glove.
- Using a softball instead of a baseball to break in the pocket. Ask anyone that’s sacrificed their old baseball glove in order to play softball, the glove will never be the same again. If you are breaking in your glove to catch baseballs, use a baseball.
- Oiling, or should I say over-oiling will only saturate the glove and make it heavy. Oil is good – in small doses. The same goes for vasoline.
- Shaving creams. Unless it’s something like Edge gel – or something with lanolin, save the shaving cream for your face. Players used to use shaving foam with aloe, but they were quick to realize how much water aloe has in it. Again, you don’t want to use too much, but you do want to address the whole glove – especially the laces. (They’re usually the first to go!)
- Oven-baked gloves. I’m on the fence with this one. I would never put a glove in an oven “naked.” However, there are oils that are designed for baking your glove. I tried it once with an older glove, and it seemed to “rejuvenate” my aging glove. I would hesitate to put a new glove in the oven, for the simple fact that there are better options (one obvious one) than kitchen appliances.
- Consider a “gamer” and a practice/back up glove. This is mainly for the older guys that play a lot of games. More specifically, it pertains to first baseman and catchers – the two positions that get there defensive tools abused. This will lengthen the life on your favorite “game-ready” glove, while allowing you to use the practice model for the grunt work, or as a possible replacement-in-waiting as you break it in with on-the-field activities.
Something else to consider…
Do you have a glove or a mitt? Did you know that there are both gloves and mitts on a baseball field? Did you know that a glove is not a mitt, and a mitt is not a glove? Did you know that a mitt can only be worn playing one of two positions? If not, you should know that the only mitts on a baseball field, belong to catchers and first basemen. Besides the difference in name (and restricted use), mitts get broken in differently than gloves. (Side Note: infielder gloves need to be broken in differently than an outfielder’s.)
Which leads me to actually breaking in a glove (or mitt!)… which because I ran off at the keyboard, I will save for next time.
Treat your glove right and it will return the favor!
Coach Bones
Next Time: Breaking in Your Glove by Position
