Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Best Baseball/Softball Glove and Bat?

Just to do something different...What are y'alls opinions on which brand of glove and bat are best?

We've had Nokona's, Wilson's, Mizuno's and Rawlings brand gloves over the years and IMO, Rawlings makes the best glove whether it be for baseball or softball.

The bat is harder to say. IMO if you're talking baseball, I still like a wooden bat. The kids mainly use aluminum, but my son likes a wooden one and Louisville Slugger makes the best IMO. We've got a Mizuno in there and the boy's current favorite is a Rawlings, but I think LS makes the top wooden bat.

For softball, we've owned an array, but my daughter seems to prefer and do best with DeMarini.

Thoughts?

I am a Nokona guy myself. I got one a few years ago and the longer I have it the more I like it.

We've got two. They both seem short. They are hard to get softened up IMO. I love the fact they are USA made.

I hope some folks chime in with info about "exotics" like Shoeless Joe gloves.

You didn't mention your bat.

What age group? It varies so much.

I like Rawlings gloves. Nokona takes forever to break in. When I played I preferred the Wilson A2000, but then went to Rawlings and never looked back. My son has a Rawlings.

Bats - all depends on age and what year it is. Every year, bat manufactures try to come up with the "hot" bat.

Now that there are perfromance standards - both the BPF 1.15 and BBCOR, it is a bit tougher to find the super "hot" bat, but they are out there. They are usually the $300 bat that cracks after 4 weeks of BP and games.

I don't get to bat anymore. I am a coach now.

The gear nowadays has passed me by, but when I played I used Wilson gloves. I found back then that the harder they were to break in, the longer they last. I know that was true of catcher's mitts. Mizuno was easily broken in, but lasted half as long as the Wilson's I used.

As far as bats, I loved wood too when you hit it in the sweet spot, but unfortunately it is half as big on wood as it is on comparable aluminum bats. That's still the biggest difference. I watched every game I could of the CWS, and there were many instances where if a hitter was using wood instead of aluminum, he'd have been carrying the handle to first base.

Rawlings Pro 12" for infield. Played softball 40 years and it's what I always wound up with.

Bats have evolved to the point that my 5' 2" wife would be a power hitter.

I've recently been hanging out with a friend who has an eight year old that is playing baseball year round. So, being a person who likes spending money, I now have a Nokona infielder glove, a Wilson A2000 outfielder glove, and a Rawlings HOH first base mitt. My favorite is the Wilson. It broke in just the way I like it. I may get a Wilson A2K infielder glove just for the heck of it. And this is to just play catch and work with kids.

As far as bats, I have no idea. That buddy of mine buys bats constantly. He never blames the $250 Nokona glove when his son has a bad day in the field, but he always blames the $300 bat when he has a bad day at the plate.

True from my observation as well.



Again, very true. The BBCOR bats that have been used in the last 4-5 years are designed to mimic the performance of wood bats with more durability - in theory that means lower costs. A good wood bat is $75 or more and you might go through 5-6 or more what with BP in a 20 game HS or College season. That might be offset by the outrageous prices for the "hot" composite or alloy bats.

My best friend has coached HS ball for 35 years at one of the State's very top programs. The year before they went to BBCOR, the team hit 46 home runs. The next year, 12!

They still have a bigger sweet spot and you don't get a deep bone bruise in your palm if you get jammed like you can with wood. Dang but the memory of that makes my hand ache.

Finally something I know about.hands down there are only three gloves to consider, the Rawlings Heart of the Hide, the Rawlings Pro Preffered, or the Wilson A2000.
Difference in the Heart of the Hide and the Pro Preferred? They are both great gloves, with the PP being a more rigid glove that takes twice the time to break in, but will last a lifetime if cared for. There is no longer just a glove, all gloves are now produced as position oriented. The infielders usually going with the 10" for SS and 10.5 to 11 for third base. Most of your outfield and pitchers will have a 12" on their hand.
About 90% of MLB will have a Rawlings or Wilson A2000 on there hand.

I would like to hear somebody blaming their bat for an O-four, that must be pretty fun! 😄

I agree about the gloves that are harder to break in lasting longer. With kids, it might not be quite as much of an issue, because they'll go through a glove every two years just from growing out of it. Ellie really like Mizuno gloves, but they just don't last as long. They're basically broken in when you get them, but they're about done in one year if they're playing lots of ball. She had an infielder's glove, and a first baseman's glove. First baseman's gloves really get beat up from scooping balls out of the dirt. The same goes for the other infielders too. You can always tell who the better infielders are. They're the ones with frayed laces on the fingers of their gloves, and the ones who aren't afraid to dive for a ball and get dirty.

As for bats, we tried a few different brands, but always came back to Easton. This is the paying father speaking here, but I just feel that for the money, they made the best performing product. It also depends on what kind of hitter you have. A left handed slapper swings a very different bat from a right handed power hitter. We tried Mizuno, Louisville Slugger, and one of those Badden Axe bats with the weird handle and end cap on it. Always came back to Easton. In most cases, you do get what you pay for. Know your budget and look for the most bat you can get for your money. Look for blems on line if you want to stretch your money a little farther. Try JustBats.com

I have always wanted MLB to allow the players in the All Star Homerun Derby to be able to use aluminum for one round...what a show!!!

I used a Nokona as my infield glove when I played in HS and a Rawlings for outfield and when I occasionally played softball. The Nokona is a lot nicer glove, but the Rawlings was also not their best offering. Haven't used either of them in probably at least 5 years

Interesting........

http://www.whatproswear.com/wpw-report-top-glove-brands-worn-by-mlb-stars/

He's always saying "the bat's too heavy for him" or "the bat's too light". I'm standing there telling him to stop pulling his top hand off during his back swing. The ball makes a different sound when he has a full back swing. My friend thinks that the best equipment wins. I'm always telling him that it helps, but he needs to know how to use it.

Thanks for all replies thus far. Very interesting, especially the WPW.

Softball is a completely different animal that I want no part of. I have a difficult time coaching teen boys. Couldn't imagine coaching teen girls...

I've coached both boys and girls. I wouldn't say one was more difficult than the other. They both present unique challenges. Dealing with the adults is MUCH more difficult IME, than any of the kids.

That's kind of like the cleats they wear......they're getting paid to wear brand "x". I'll never forget when I got to play in a split squad game in spring training, and it happened to be Will Clarks' birthday. He had just signed a shoe deal with Nike. Mike Krukow and Scott Garrelts were real pranksters, and they got Will's brand new $700 ostrich cowboy boots and painted the Nike swoosh on them. Boy was he ever pissed!

Steinbrenner.....I remember those deep hand bruises well, and you ain't lyin'! That's why they invented that thumb ring/pad thing. Sounds like the BBCCOR (or whatever you called them) kind of defeated the purpose, and $75 for wood? I would have cost the Giants AA club a small fortune.........