How Much Does a Baseball Glove Cost? | Get a Better Idea

Planning on getting a new baseball glove for your kids? Or perhaps you are a returning player who wants to get back in touch with his old passion? Well, whatever the case – you need to know how much a new baseball costs to help you set a realistic budget.

If you have browsed a bit already, I’m sure you have noticed how some gloves cost only under 50 USD while others can run you over 400 dollars. The thing is, baseball gloves can cover a wide variety of price ranges, and your budget should reflect what sort of player you are.

For example, going with a sub-100-dollar glove as a competitive high-school or adult baseball player is really not worth it. The performance you get from it will not help you keep up with the competition. And going with a 500-dollar glove as a casual player who plays only on weekends is not really easy on the wallet either.

As you can see, there are a lot of calculations involved here if you want to get the most value. Don’t worry – I will cover all that here so that you have no confusion as to how much you should spend on your new baseball glove.

Quick Chart on How Much a Baseball Glove Cost

How Much Does a Good Baseball Glove Cost?

I have always had a bit of an issue with the term “good.” It’s extremely subjective, and what a casual player would consider a good baseball glove might not be the same as what a professional player would consider a good baseball glove.

So, for simplicity’s sake, let’s say that you are a casual or an amateur player. Now, what would a good baseball glove be for you, and how much should it cost?

Well, as a beginner, going with a high-end, MLB-level baseball glove is not really a wise idea. One – it would be extremely pricey. And two – you will not be able to utilize the glove to its fullest potential.

At that performance level, I would strongly suggest going with a glove that costs under 100 dollars. The Rawlings Player Preferred is one of my favorite choices if you are shopping for a good baseball glove in an affordable range. Another excellent alternative here is the Wilson A1000, but that one can cost you around 150 dollars.

How Much Does a Professional Baseball Glove Cost?

If you play in a professional capacity, for example, in high-school baseball or adult leagues, then going with an affordable glove might not be the best idea. At that level of play, everyone is trying to give their best, and every bit of advantage counts. So going with a high-end baseball glove is the right approach, even if it costs more.

Still, you don’t have to go overboard with your expense, though. If you set your budget around 400 dollars, there are some pretty amazing options at that price point. The Rawlings Pro Preferred is a fantastic pickup if you want a professional-grade baseball glove. And the price point is around $350-$500.

How Much Does a Major League Baseball Glove Cost?

In the MLB scene, the pros usually wear gloves that are specially designed to suit their individual needs. So naturally, the gloves that they use are extremely expensive and are also not that easily available. You typically need to place a custom order if you want a glove that your favorite player uses in his games.

The gloves that the MLB players use typically cost a lot more than 500 dollars, and since they are not that easy to find, you shouldn’t worry about them so much. If you are a competitive player, then going with a professional-grade baseball glove should be good enough.

Since MLB players are endorsed by different brands, they don’t have to spend a dime on a new glove. So going with a custom-tailored glove is not a big deal for them. But for players like you and me, that’s not really a necessity. Of course, if you want to get one, even as a keepsake, I won’t stop you.

How Much Do Vintage Baseball Gloves Cost?

Vintage gloves and mitts are more of a collector’s item rather than something you would actually use in a real game. The price of these gloves depends on the state of the glove, how rare it is, whether it has a history, and many other factors. So, I can’t really give you an exact estimate.

A vintage Babe Ruth baseball glove, for instance, fetched a hefty $1.53 million at an auction. But then again, that is a pretty infamous glove and was in pristine condition at the time of selling.

How Much Does It Cost to Make a Baseball Glove?

Ever wondered why some baseball gloves cost only around 100 dollars while others can easily cost four times as much? Well, the thing is, the price of a glove depends on a lot of different factors. So, let’s talk about it a bit to help you better understand the pricing of different baseball gloves.

1. Materials

The main thing that matters in baseball gloves is the quality of materials used in their production. If your glove is made of high-quality leather, then it would cost more. You see, leather is expensive, and the pricier the leather, the longer it will last. Since a baseball glove needs to take a lot of abuse, going with a high-grade leather baseball glove is not a bad idea at all.

If you analyze the different leathers used to manufacture baseball gloves, you will find that there are only four kinds – synthetic leather, full-grain leather, steer hide leather, and kip skin leather. Let’s look at the quality and pricing for each leather type.

· Synthetic Leather

Synthetic leather is the material of choice for most affordable gloves ranging from 10 to 60 dollars. As the name suggests, this is not real leather but rather a synthesized product designed to feel close to how real leather feels.

Naturally, it won’t last as long as a real leather glove, but they are pretty reliable. So, if you want an affordable glove to start your journey in this sport, synthetic leather is a great material to go with.

· Full-Grain Leather

Full-grain leather is also used typically with affordable baseball gloves like synthetic leather. However, unlike synthetic leather, full-grain leather is, well, real leather.

A glove made of this material typically costs around 60 to 150 dollars. Some of the better full-grain leather baseball gloves out there cost as much as 200 dollars.

· Steer Hide Leather

 Steerhide leather is the material used to manufacture truly premium, high-end baseball gloves. Gloves made of this leather feel stiff at first, but once you break them in, they feel extremely comfortable. The material has a smooth texture which feels pretty nice on your hands.

There are some cheap options out there, but typically gloves made of Steerhide costs around 300 dollars. This is the choice of material for many pro-MLB players, and I think that should give you an indication of how good the material is.

· Kip Skin Leather

While many pros favor Steerhide leather, that is not the most expensive material that manufacturers use in making a baseball glove. That honor is reserved for Kip skin leather.

Kip skin leather gloves are among the highest-priced baseball gloves that you can find on the market. That is – if you can find them in the first place. Typically, this material is made on custom gloves, and picking one up will set you back more than 300 bucks easily.

2. Size

Baseball gloves size matters. If you go with a big boy glove for teenagers or adults, they will cost more. And inversely, a decent baseball glove for youth players or players under 12 years old costs significantly less.

When you think about it, though, it does make sense. With a bigger glove, the manufacturers need to use more materials which naturally increases the cost of production. So, the price of the overall glove increases. Always measure baseball glove size before purchasing.

Now the price difference between an 11-inch and an 11.5-inch glove is not that much. However, if you have an oversized hand and need something like a 13 or 14-inch baseball glove, then, unfortunately, you would have to spend a bit more for your gloves.

3. Brand

While the brand is not the biggest factor in dictating the price of a baseball glove, it still does hold some sway over the pricing. If you go with top-tier brands like Wilson or Rawlings, you will have to spend a bit more than a no-name brand.

Thankfully, both Wilson and Rawlings, along with most other reputed brands, also offer affordable options in their catalog.

The Bottom Line

Baseball gloves can be pretty darn expensive, and there are a lot of good reasons for that. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get an affordable one if your budget is tight. I hope now that you have a better idea of how much a baseball glove costs, you will be able to set a proper budget and get the glove that best suits your needs. Good luck!