Off-Season Glove Care

With most baseball seasons coming to an end, now is the time to start getting all of your equipment ready to put away for the winter. One of the most overlooked parts of this process is your glove.

Most people will just put a ball in the palm, wrap it up and leave it wherever their bag is being stored for the off-season. This is fine, if you don't mind your glove potentially being unplayable at the beginning of the season or it not having the shape that you had from the previous season. So let's explore what you should be doing to keep your glove ready for next season.

1. Store your glove in a cool, dry place

Your glove is obviously made of leather, whether it be cowhide, kip or steerhide, it needs to be treated with care. If you store your bag in a basement or your car for the winter, be sure to get your glove into the house. Allowing your glove to be left in a moist atmosphere could cause it to grow mold during the off-season in severe situations. In the best case scenario, that moisture will sit on the glove and on the first warm day, it will bake the leather causing it to dry out.

2. Clean and Condition your glove before you put it away

While this should be a regular occurrence for normal glove care, make sure it's done before you store your glove. Getting rid of excess dirt and conditioning the leather keeps it supple and ready for next season.

3. Keep it accessible

I know it's the off-season, but your glove doesn't know that. Take it out every once in a while. Throw a ball into it, hit it with the mallet or just squeeze it. It will feel much better in the spring.

4. Pick up a Pocket Form

If you aren't able to store it out in your room or somewhere else in your house, try to pick yourself up a WebGems Glove Care System. They offer different forms for twist, flare and mitts. It will help keep that form you've worked on all year. Check it out here.

#baseball #glove #glovecare