1 of 1

Write now Article Tools

The pop of a baseball striking the soft leather of a player's glove is one of the traditional audio pleasures of the game of baseball. But it wasn't always that way. In the dawn of organized baseball of the mid 1800's until well into the 1870's, baseball was a "Stick and Ball" game, with the use of gloves unimagined. Once introduced, and accepted, the technical changes in the evolution of the baseball glove to today's "mitts" mark the most significant alteration in the way the game is played versus the days of the New York Club's victory over the Knickerbockers in 1846.

Baseball has always been a fielding game even the best strike out average for a pitcher over nine innings is Nolan Ryan's 11.48 in 1987, - someone has to get those 15 plus outs on a ball in play. The games in the early days were high scoring affairs, with one of every two runs scored coming unearned and increasing a team's defensive prowess was a great way to gain victory over an opponent.

But while there was a competitive edge to fielding gloved versus barehanded, the need for protection was the mother of invention for the use of the baseball glove. In 1875 Charles C. Waitt a first baseman and outfielder with St. Louis wore gloves, similar to driving gloves to "save his hand". His conversation with opponent ball player and eventual sporting goods magnate Albert G. Spalding, who had similar hand pain from years of playing with no protection, would launch "Spalding's Model" glove.

A formal product - advertised to ball players with the line: "no catcher or player subject to sore hands should be without a pair of these gloves" - still could not overcome the unmanly stigma associated with playing ball with a glove. In the 1880's Buck Ewing popularized the use of a "puff-pillow" catcher's mitt with its billowing padding, no doubt driven by the constant abuse germane to the catcher position. To continue playing in 1883, despite breaking two fingers in his left hand, Arthur Irwin had a padded glove made by a shoemaker.

With more players using gloves, the availability of standard models and the demonstrated benefits for extended play and protection, padded gloves were in use for most fielders by 1900. Even with these gloves, teams averaged close to three errors a game. Once the protection need was addressed, further refinement in the design of mitts looked to improve performance. In 1919 Bill Doak, pitcher for the Cardinals, created a prototype for a glove with a web between the thumb and fingers and sold

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about The history of the baseball glove?
We want to hear your view. Write now!