How to Choose a baseball and glove

Step 1

Gloves are always made specifically for certain positions on the field, whether it be outfield, infield or pitching; so first you need to decide which position you will be playing on the field because the type of glove that you buy will directly correlate to you performance. An outfielder would not want to take the field wearing an infielders glove and the same for an infielder with an outfielders glove.

Step 2

Once you have determined the position on the field that you will be playing, next comes the size of the glove. Depending on your age level, you will want to buy a glove that will meet your needs. If your child is under the age of 8 you will want to look for a glove that is 9" for the infield or 11" for the outfield. 9 to 13 you can go with 9"-10" for the infield and 11"-12" for the outfield. High school and adult players will have bigger hands so their gloves will be bigger, for infielders look for gloves that are 10.5"-11.5" and outfielders for gloves that are 12"-12.5". Now for children the glove size does not matter as much as long it meets there age requirements because most times kids will be playing multiple positions. High school teens and adults should be looking for gloves that are more position specific,middle infielders(2nd Base & Shortstop)usually go with a glove ranging from 11"-11.5" although some shortstops like a bigger glove since they cover more space, so they sometime will use gloves 11.5"-11.75" like 3rd Basemen and Pitchers. Now the outfielders cover the most space on the field out of all the positions and the most have more extension on their gloves to catch those tough fly ball, so gloves 12"-13" are the size gloves that outfielders use.

Step 3

The glove size is a very important aspect in choosing the proper glove for you, the next step is choosing what brand of glove feels the most comfortable on your hand. The only commonality between most glove companies is that they use rawhide to make their gloves, each brand of glove that is out on the market fits and feels different. So, when you go to your local sport store, make sure you try on every brand of glove and do not chose one just because it is appealing to the eye. Make sure you feel comfortable with you hand squeezing like you are catching a ball, you do not want it to be too loose or too stiff but if the glove you like is stiff it will take some conditioning and breaking in. The biggest aspect is comfort and confidence in the glove you have on your hand which will be helping in assisting you make the plays.

Step 4

If you are serious about taking your game to another level, you unfortunately might have to invest on average $200 to $300 for the best gloves on the market. You are really paying for the quality of which the glove is made and not that it will magically make you an better defender. The more expensive gloves are usually the ones that will last you longer and can handle the wears and tears of the season, although cheaper gloves can be effective if you do not plan on using it forever. But do not get fooled, just because a glove is the most expensive that does not mean it is the best. Before you go out glove shopping make sure you do your research on the best gloves for the best value, compare different gloves, their prices and the comfortable level with the glove. When taking all of these aspects into consideration, I am confident that you will find the perfect glove.