Although organized baseball has been around since pre-Civil War
days, the baseball glove didn't gain widespread acceptance until
the mid 1880's. In fact, in the earliest days of the game, the
general consensus among ball players was: Real Men Don't Wear Gloves!
There were those who tried early on to introduce a baseball
glove of sorts, however. In 1869, a catcher for the Cincinnati
Red Stockings had a local saddle maker develop a leather mitt
for him. However, the idea was ahead of its time, and did not
catch on. Likewise, Charles Waite of St. Louis took the field
in 1875 wearing a thin, flesh-colored glove, comparable to today's
driving glove, only to face the jeers of both the crowd and the
players.
Despite this early ridicule, more and more fielders began to
use baseball gloves towards the end of the 1870's. These early
gloves more closely resembled today's batting gloves, except that
the fingers and thumb were cut off above the first joint, and
a minimal amount of padding was added to the palm.
In the mid 1880's, the overhand pitch was introduced into the
game. As such, catchers began seeking more adequate protection
for their swollen hands and thus, the catcher's mitt was born.
The glove was basically the same as that of the fielder's gloves,
but with more padding than a regular baseball glove. Buck Ewing,
a New York Giants catcher, introduced a revolutionary "pillow-type"
catcher's mitt about this same time.
More and more players began to accept the use of baseball gloves
as the game moved forward into the 1890's. Players sported versions
of cowhide, horsehide, or even buckskin gloves equipped with cotton
or wool padding. These early models sold for as much as $2.50
per glove.
In 1912, a major development was made in the baseball glove
when the Rawlings Sporting Goods Company introduced the "Sure
Catch" glove. This new glove was the first one-piece glove
with sewn-in finger channels. Resembling a duck's foot, the glove
was endorsed by pro ballplayers across the nation.
In 1920, a St. Louis Cardinal pitcher named Bill Doak, approached
Rawlings with an idea that revolutionized the baseball glove.
This new concept included a multi-thong web stretched between
the forefinger and thumb. And thus, the pocket was born and proved
to be remarkable fielding aid.
In 1935, Rawlings improved the Bill Doak glove by replacing
the thonged web with a 2 piece leather web. About the same time,
the first baseman's mitt came into being, incorporating a "T"
web design. Six years later, Rawlings patented the "Deep
Well" pocket for this newly popular mitt.
Since that time, baseball gloves, first baseman's mitts and
catcher's mitts have undergone a number of subtle changes. However,
the basic design of the glove has remained somewhat constant.
Although, it should be noted that today's gloves and mitts are
much larger, contain much more padding, and are made to last much
longer than their primitive ancestors.
And incidentally, despite what our baseball ancestors may have
once thought… real men do wear baseball gloves!
See also: Glove Care &
Glove Making |
