The games of baseball and softball in their modern states seem to require players to have so much individual gear. However, it doesn’t seem that long ago that all you needed was your own glove.
Throughout the history of baseball, it always seems like there has been an unwritten code that each player should have their own glove. And it makes sense, as a glove continues to form more and more to the contours of your hand every single time that you slip it on.
Because of the personal nature of the item and its importance for onfield performance, players need to ensure that their glove is cared-for. But as we mentioned earlier, the many items that baseball and softball players own can make it hard to harness much energy or brain power towards thinking about how to store this one piece of gear.In Ken Burns’ incredible 10 part documentary on the game of baseball, he interviews political commentator and devoted baseball fan, Mike Barnicle. Mike discusses his baseball gloves that he’s saved his entire life and notes that when his boys would come to him mentioning that they needed help finding a piece of their ensemble of equipment, he would respond in this way…
“I would go and get one of my gloves and I’d hold it up and say ‘I’ve had this since 1954, I know where this is, go find your stuff and don’t lose it’ “
We’ve already penned a write-up that dives into the process of storing a glove during the offseason, but this article is here to prescribe tools that we believe will help you or your player store their glove while they are in season so that it stays in good functioning condition and doesn’t get lost. Please read on…
1) Lizard Skins Glove Wrap
When storing a glove between games, players have long been attracted to the “wrap” concept. Throw a ball in the pocket, throw a large wrap or a couple of rubber bands around it and let it form the pocket. Truly there is not a ton of harm in this method, but things can be done better. Enter Lizard Skins.
The Lizard Skins Glove Wrap goes well beyond the standard “wrap” concept. But there is one similarity: this Lizard Skins piece of equipment envelops your glove and has a baseball element in it that allows your glove to continually form a pocket while it is stored. The similarities end there.
Here are three big differences that we feel need to be noted…
- While in the Lizard Skins wrap, your glove is going to be protected from the rest of the items jingling and rolling around in your bag.
- The old way of wrapping creates a glove that’s fingers and thumb have to be curled in. The Lizard Skins wrap allows your glove to have a more neutral (uncurled) structure or if you prefer, even a flared design to it.
- The old way of wrapping a glove requires you to lay the glove on its side. We always recommend laying a glove flat on its palm or up on its fingers. The Lizard Skins wrap allows for the glove to be stored on its palm.
2) Glove Lab Glove Bag Clip
(Photo Credit To The Glove Lab)
When traveling to tournaments -or- between practices, some players want to completely skip the perils that can come from putting their glove into an equipment bag. Those perils include the smashing or the scuffing that may come from bouncing and rubbing up against other equipment that may be in your bag. If this worries you, then consider the Glove Lab’s Glove Bag Clip that allows you to easily carry your glove on the outside of your backpack. You’ll notice that the clip includes a soft pouch that will go inside the hand stall of the glove. The Glove Lab comments that the “pouch was [designed] to protect your glove's hand stall and wrist strap”. This should prevent any unwanted creases from forming on those sections of the glove while it is being transported! Shop the Glove Bag Clip!
3) WebGem Glove Care System
(Photo Credit to No Errors Website)
The WebGem storage tools are unique, fun and most importantly…USEFUL. The Webgems are essentially “wedges” that you can place in the catching area of your glove that will help it form to the shape you prefer while you're not using the glove. A few examples of the shapes in which WebGems come are “flare” (shown in the image above), “roll” and “twist”.
They also come with a specialized carrying case so that your glove doesn’t have to go into a large equipment bag to get smashed by other gear. However, due to the manner in which these tools are designed, you can still store a glove with a WebGem in our prescribed “flat on palm” or “up on fingers” orientation. Shop WebGems for infielders and outffielders!4) JustGloves Glove Care Kit
This storage aspect of our Glove Care Kit is pretty stark at this time, but keep your eyes out for a major update coming during 2024.
In its current state, it does have a drawstring bag that can be used to tote the glove around on a player’s back. This is most useful if you're traveling back from the field after a game of long toss. Within that drawstring you can also store all of the tools needed to give your glove a proper conditioning if needed!___
We hope that you have some ideas for the tool you might want to help store your glove during the season! If you have further questions about buying a new or used glove, then definitely reach out to our Glove Experts. They can be contacted on phone at 866-321-4568, through email via experts@justgloves.com or you can chat with them right HERE!
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