Spring Series: How to Clean Your Leather Baseball Glove

By Jessica Barron Apr 3, 2017
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With opening day upon us, are you ready to hit the field for baseball season? Then you better not strike out with glove care. Whether it's Buster Posey catching, Clayton Kershaw pitching or Yoenis Cespedes hitting home runs out of the park, any Big Leaguer can tell you a well-conditioned glove is the key to a great ball game.

When you take good care of your leather glove by cleaning and treating it, the glove stays supple. That makes it easier to grip and maneuver, ensuring you make the play. If you fail to care for your glove, it can become brittle and cracked, making it more difficult to move or squeeze shut. Balls may fall out of your glove on a routine play, and your teammates will be begging you to go get that glove cleaned.

Luckily, with a good glove care regimen, you can revive even the most brittle of gloves. Here are three tips to get you started.

1. USE A LEATHER CARE KIT FOR MAINTENANCE

It is important to use products made for leather on your glove. You risk staining or damaging the glove by employing anything other than leather-specific products. At Furniture Clinic, we have the leather product that our customers consider a home run each and every time: Leather Ultra Clean, designed to remove dirt and grime.

Sometimes, you have to get a little dirty to make a game-winning play. When you're the hero your team deserves on the field, Leather Ultra Clean is the hero that you deserve off the field. Fortunately, this is a product that won't cut your post-game celebrations short: it's equally quick-to-use as it is effective.

To use Leather Ultra Clean, spray the product onto a brush - like the Tampico Brush - clean the glove in a circular motion, including any crevices, to rid it of lingering debris. As you are cleaning the glove's surface, the foam will absorb the dirt within the creases and crevices. Next, you simply wipe away the resulting foam by using an absorbent cloth.

2. PUT ON A LEATHER PROTECTION CREAM

Once you've gotten rid of all the visible dirt, move on to the rehabilitation and protection phase. Apply Leather Protection Cream to smooth out any rough spots and keep the leather supple for long after you clean it. This will make the surface strong and create a barrier to turn future stains away. It acts almost as a moisturizer does for dry skin, repairing cracks and adding protection.

If you have started your Spring Cleaning and found an old, neglected glove in the garage or attic - have no fear! We have a product designed for gloves that need a little extra TLC. Our Leather Revive is ideal for baseball gloves that are dry and cracked. When applied to the surface of your leather glove, Leather Revive softens the leather - making the glove appear new again and providing more comfort for the lucky baseball player who gets to wear it.

3. GET THE TOUGH SPOTS

When you apply the cream, try to get it everywhere, from between the fingers to inside any grooves that have developed. Baseball players know that great defensive teams find ways to cover the toughest spots to reach in the outfield. While it's hard to predict where the batter will hit the next ball, the defense can be proactive by accounting for every inch of the outfield, and tasking areas of coverage to each outfielder.

When you use Leather Protection Cream, you are creating a defense that accounts for every part of your glove - even the spots that are toughest to protect from dirt and grime. When it's game time for your new leather defense, it's important to not get overzealous with the cream - too much can stain or result in a build-up.

Store Your Glove the Smart Way

Want your glove to remain in top condition now that it has been cleaned, conditioned, and protected? Use these tips to keep it safe during the season: