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Buy the #1 Catchers’ Gloves - Catch Every Baseball with Quality Gloves
Things to consider before buying your catcher's mitt
Catcher's Mitts and Catcher's gloves, including specialized Mitt Gloves and Ball Gloves, are crafted with deep pockets and an oval-shaped pocket design to create the perfect pocket for season after season of reliable performance. These gloves are fortified with extra padding to absorb the high-velocity pitches, ensuring a soft catch and safeguarding against the impact of pitches. The webbing is typically designed to remain closed, offering a larger pocket ideal for catchers managing fastballs.
Materials and Features to Consider When Buying a Catcher's Glove
When you're in the market for a quality catcher’s mitt or a series of professional players' gloves, consider the following materials for their durability and glove life:
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Synthetic Leather Gloves - A lightweight and supple choice, requiring minimal time of purchase break-in, perfect for those seeking quick glove recommendations.
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Cowhide and Leather mix gloves - Offering a balance between synthetic and full-grain leathers, these are ideal for a selection of catchers from youth to adults.
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High-end Steerhide gloves - The heaviest glove available, these come with the assurance of glove life and a smooth palm, suitable for traditional catchers.
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Kip leather gloves - These require less break-in time, a premium option for those valuing softness and a quicker shape season.
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Full Grain Leather gloves - The top pick for glove sports, these are favored by softball catchers and are known for their quality leather and resilience.
Catchers Glove and Mitt Features to consider:
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Webbing - A closed web design is often the best for catchers, especially during the warmer seasons.
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Palm Protection - Additional padding is crucial for catchers, who need to safeguard against fast, high-velocity pitches.
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Heel Protection - These protective pieces are essential for defending against pitches.
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Lacing - The type of baseball glove lacing affects the glove's overall shape and the creation of a perfect pocket.
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Glove Hinge - This feature allows for flexibility in glove type and can cater to a variety of catching styles.
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D-Ring fastener - Adjustable for a custom fit, ensuring your glove is perfectly suited for the season.
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Glove Pad - An additional layer within the mitt for impact absorption.
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Glove Coloring & Conditioner - Essential for maintaining the quality of leather and ensuring your glove remains season-ready.
How Do You Know What Catcher's Mitt To Use?
A good mitt is a cornerstone of any catcher's arsenal, playing a pivotal role in the outcome of the game. The pattern and product quality of a catcher's mitt can significantly impact performance.
The role of a catcher demands a mitt that's up to the task of season after season play. It should be part of a specialized selection of catcher's equipment that includes batting gloves and mitt gloves, tailored to the catcher's specific needs.
To discern which mitt glove, ball glove, or type of baseball gloves to select, consider the series and glove recommendations that cater to catchers. Whether you’re a softball catcher or a traditional catcher, the glove should feature a larger pocket and be made from quality leather to handle high-velocity pitches effectively.
Do Catchers Use a Glove or a Mitt?
The differentiation between a glove and a mitt is crucial. A mitt, designed for catchers, typically has two slots – one for the thumb and a larger pocket for the fingers. This design is in contrast to regular gloves, which have individual finger slots. This is why both first basemen and catcher's gloves are called mitts, each tailored to their respective positions with glove coloring and conditioner options to extend glove life.
How to Measure a Baseball Catcher's Mitt
When comparing infield gloves to a catcher's mitt designed for the catcher position, the size specifications are notably different. Fielder’s gloves usually span from 10 to 14 inches to cater to various age groups and the dynamics of the field, while catcher's mitts are tailored for the demanding role behind the plate with gloves that measure from 30 to 35 inches. Adult catchers, including those who play Fastpitch Softball or slow pitch softball, often require mitts at least 32 inches in size for handling the fastest pitches.
The vast size range is due to the mitt's specialized function in a catcher's arsenal. Unlike fielder's gloves, which prioritize weight and matching glove size to hand size, a catcher's mitt focuses on durability and palm protection to withstand the impact of pitches. The design accommodates a complete selection of mitts suitable for both baseball and Fastpitch Catcher's needs.
Catcher's Mitt and Glove Sizing
To ensure a perfect fit for your mitt:
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Spread the mitt with both hands to maximize its surface area.
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Press down with the palm to flatten the mitt against a solid surface.
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Use a flexible tape measure to gauge the mitt’s circumference for an accurate glove size.
Catcher's Mitt Sizing Charts
The selection of a catcher's mitt or baseball glove should be precise, ensuring a snug fit that accommodates the unique demands of the catcher position, including adult catchers mitts and specialized gloves for series play. The fit must offer adequate palm pad and protection without compromising on the field of play responsiveness.
Catcher’s Glove
Catcher’s gloves or mitts, especially those in exclusive product lines, boast a deeper pocket and thicker side walls. This robust construction is essential for fielding the impact of pitches and securing returns efficiently. Baseball and Fastpitch Softball Catcher's mitts are measured not just by finger slots but by the width and depth required to handle the variety of pitches encountered during a game.
In contrast, standard field gloves are measured from the heel to the top of the index finger. However, a catcher's mitt size is based on the total circumference, creating a substantial pocket for the catcher to manage the game effectively.
Catcher Mitts Break In Time
Choosing Your Baseball Gear: Break-In Essentials
Once you’ve found a catcher’s mitt that works well for you, it‘s important to shape the palm and webs into a proper pocket before using it. Leather choice is the biggest determiner of break-in time. Leathers made from softer materials wear out more easily, and they break-in sooner than leathers made from harder materials. Because pigskin leather can usually be broken in within a couple of hours of use, they're a good choice for new players.
Professional Series and Long-Term Durability
Meanwhile, the harder leathers like steerhide might take up to two or three months of regular use before they're fully broken in. A professional player will purchase a new steerhide glove before his or her primary mitt wears out and wear it on a part-time basis to get it ready to be used regularly. Remember that most models come pre-broken-in from the factory which would speed up break-in time significantly.
So, if you have a game coming up in the next few days, consider choosing pigskin for your baseball gear. But if you have more time or if you're playing in an advanced league, or if you've committed to multiple seasons of playing, then a stronger leather will be well worth the investment.
In Conclusion
The bottom line is that while you're crouching there, enjoying the view, make sure you know which glove is best suited for your needs and your position of catcher, because as a catcher, the ball will eventually come to you no matter where you are. This is how All-Star Pro Elite Catchers and other professional catchers do it!