How to Break in a New Leather Baseball Glove

This article will deal with how to break in a leather or leather composite baseball glove. A lot of baseball gloves these days are synthetic, and the same rules do not apply to those gloves. Know your glove type beforehand and save yourself unnecesary work!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Leather softener/conditioner
• Softball
• Rubber bands/rope
• Practice, practice, practice

1. Beat it up!
   
   The first thing to do with a new leather baseball glove is to beat it up a little bit. Bend it, punch it, slap it, beat it. Open it, close it. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. You get the idea. Loosen up the leather.

2. Play catch!
   
   Begin playing catch with the glove right away. But keep it clean for now! Try not to get much dirt on it at first. Perhaps the best method to accomplish this is to play catch with yourself and a new, clean baseball. Just throw the ball into it with your free hand over and over and over again. Or try punching the pocket with your fist.

3. 

   Oil it up!
   
   But use the right stuff! Don't make the mistake of misunderstanding the difference in leather cleaners and leather conditioners! For instance, saddle soap is a cleaner, mink oil is a conditioner. There's no sense in using saddle soap if your leather is not yet dirty, and it doesn't really condition the leather much.
   
   In my personal opinion there is nothing better than neatsfoot oil for conditioning any leather product. Leather is 'cow skin', simply put, and what better to condition cow skin than 'cow oil'? Neatsfoot oil is exactly that--it is taken from the shin bones and feet of cattle.
   
   Mink oil will work great, too, as will linseed or castor oil. Of course, you can always purchase a formulated leather conditioner that is likely available where you bought your glove, but be careful of what's in it and, again, make sure it is a conditioner and not a cleaner. Some won't even specify what exactly is in it! I prefer to keep it simple and know what I'm using. Neatsfoot oil is cheap and readily available at any self-respecting feed store.
   
   Whatever conditioner you decide on, oil up that glove real good. And leave it overnight to allow the oil to work its magic! It'll make it soft and pliable.

4. Form a pocket!
   
   Playing a little catch the first day helped to begin to form the pocket. But let's fast-forward the process! After having oiled your glove, put a softball in it and wrap it up snug with rubber bands or soft rope and leave your glove overnight. While the leather is being penetrated and conditioned by the oil, it will also develop a memory around the softball. Using a softball rather than a baseball helps create a large, deep pocket.

5. 

   Play ball!!!
   
   Repeat Steps 1 and 2. Keep playing lots of catch! And now don't worry about keeping it so clean. Just play.
   
   It is a good idea to repeat the softball and rubber band trick until you feel you have formed a good pocket. Some players store their gloves this way year-round. Also oil your glove again if and when you feel it is necessary to make it easier to open and close around the ball. But clean the dust and dirt off first before you oil!

[surly-mac]

on 5/30/2009 Breaking in a new leather baseball glove is another of the traditional 'mysteries' of the game. Thanks for a good article with great tips. I love the smell of well-oiled cowhide in the morning...

[hollyhood314]

on 5/22/2009 i was a softball player in high school and I can attest to the fact that your tips do work. a worn in glove is so much more comfortable and better to play in

[kittykat3]

on 3/23/2009 Great tips! I used to play softball. 5*.

[xtraordinary]

on 3/13/2009 I'm on a softball team and just inherited a new glove, so I'm going to put this in my favorites. Someone on my team told me something about baking it in the oven to break it in as well, but I'm not too sure on that one yet! 5 stars!

[stacyrhea]

on 3/11/2009 I love the smell of leather! Great article!