How To Size a Baseball Glove for Youth Players

How To Measure a Baseball Glove for Youth Players

A good baseball mitt or glove should be in every baseball player's equipment bag. If your child is just starting to play America's Game, you may be wondering what glove to buy. Bownet® is here to show you how to size a baseball glove for a kid so they'll be ready to snag grounders, liners and pop flies.

Measuring a Baseball Glove

The baseball equipment industry has established a standard measuring system for fielding gloves. The size of a fielding glove is measured from the tip of the index finger to the center of the heel, i.e., the bottom of the glove, using a flexible tape measure. The size is typically etched into the glove's thumb or pinky finger.

To convert this to a child's actual hand size, a good rule of thumb is to measure the circumference of the hand around the center of the palm. This will roughly equate to the glove size they should wear; however, we still recommend having your child try the gloves on until they find a good fit.

Catchers' mitts are a little different since they're measured by circumference. To find their size, spread the mitt open, set it palm-side down and press to flatten it out. Then use a flexible tape measure to measure around the perimeter.

Alternatively, if you know your child's fielding glove size, you can determine what catcher's mitt size they need. Take the glove size and subtract it from 12.5, then subtract this number from 34.5 to get the mitt size.

How Should a Baseball Glove Fit?

Ultimately, you won't know if a glove is right for your child until they put it on. Here are a few tips for choosing youth baseball gloves:

• The fit should be snug but not tight.
• Look for a feel that's somewhat stiff, yet flexible enough to open and close without problems.
• Err on the smaller side for new players, as these gloves will be easier to handle.

Baseball Gloves for Each Position

Younger ballplayers who are playing multiple positions in the field will be fine with a single all-purpose glove. However, as they become more specialized, different gloves work better for different positions. For example:

• Pitchers and infielders use smaller gloves for more control. A pitching glove has closed webbing to conceal the ball, while infielder gloves have shallow pockets for faster transfer.
• Outfielders use longer gloves to improve their reach. These gloves have deeper pockets to help secure fly balls.
• First basemen use long, wide mitts with deep pockets. This helps them snag throws and dig balls out of the dirt.

Use our baseball glove sizing chart below as a starting point for youth and high school players. Once you have the right glove, you can #TrainLikeAPro with Bownet baseball equipment.

Baseball Glove Size Chart

Age	Catcher	First Base	2B/SS/3B	Pitcher	Outfield
Under 7	29.5-30"	11.5"	8-10.5"	8-10.5"	9-10.5"
8 - 10	30-32"	11.5 - 12"	10.5-11.5"	10.5-11.5"	10-12"
11 - 13	31-32.5"	11.5 - 12"	11-11.75"	11.5-12"	11.75-12.75"
Over 14	32-34.5"	12-13"	11.25-12"	11.5-12.5"	12.5-13"