How to Break in an Outfielder's Glove

Condition your glove twice a year.

Any baseball player will tell you that you must break in a baseball glove and maintain the leather for better performance and to add life to your mitt. Breaking in a glove will require you to condition it with oil twice a year. Conditioning the glove will prevent your leather mitt from hardening and cracking. Once the leather starts to harden it will make it more difficult to open and close the mitt while catching.

Things You'll Need

• Saddle soap
• Baseball glove
• Baseball
• Shoe string
• Cloth

Instructions

1. Play catch with your glove as often as you can. This process will break it in quickly and form a pocket for the ball.

2. Apply a small amount of saddle soap to a cloth and rub it in the glove. Start with the palm of the glove and work your way out to the fingers and webbing, then apply it to the outside of the glove and the laces. Only add more saddle soap when your cloth is dry, so you don't over saturate.

3. Place a baseball in the palm of the oiled glove and close the glove around it. Tie a shoe string around the glove to hold the ball in place.

4. Let your glove dry completely before use.

Tips & Warnings

• During the off-season store your oiled glove in a cool, dry place.

• Wear a batting glove under the outfielder's glove to protect it from sweat.

References

• Baseball Gloves: Breaking in A Baseball Glove