How to Break in Heart of the Hide Gloves

"Heart of the Hide" is a line of baseball gloves produced by the Rawlings company. These baseball and softball gloves are made for infielders, outfielders, pitchers and first basemen. While the sizing of each of these gloves is slightly different, the manner in which you break them in is the same. The official Rawlings website details percentages as to how much effort it will take to break in their gloves. Rawlings sells gloves that that are between 30 and 80 percent broken in at the factory, depending on the size and model. The player must break in the glove the rest of the way.

Soften the leather by applying a small amount of Rawlings Glovolium Break-In Formula onto your applicator sponge. Starting in the palm of the glove and working outward, cover the entire glove with a thin layer of formula. The Rawlings website cautions that you merely coat the glove and not saturate it. Allow the glove to dry before moving onto the next step.

Play catch with your glove. The more use it gets from catching the baseball, the faster the pocket of the glove will break in. This will also help the inside of the glove form to your fingers, making the motion of closing the glove easier.

Place the plastic over-sized ball into the pocket of the glove. The pocket is found above the heel of the glove and below the webbing.

Close the glove and secure with the strap provided in the package. The strap is made of an elastic material and should be slid over the top of the glove. Set the strap so that it is in the middle of the glove.

Repeat steps 2 through 5 until your Rawlings Heart of the Hide glove is broken in. When a glove is officially "broken in" is up to he owner -- some players like a slightly stiffer glove, while others like a looser glove. Repeat these steps until you have reached your desired result.

Tips

If you do not have the official Rawlings Break-In Kit, you can substitute a baseball or softball for the plastic ball, shaving cream for the Glovolium and twine or rope for the strap.

The official Rawlings website suggests placing a ball inside your baseball glove when it is not in use so that the glove retains its shape and does not flatten out.

Rawlings suggests using Glovolium on your glove a few times a year to help keep the leather from drying out. Repeat more frequently if the glove gets dry and dirty.

Warnings

Do not submerge your Heart of the Hide glove in water. It can actually dry out the glove and cause the leather to crack, ruining the glove.

Do not heat the baseball glove in a microwave oven. This will void the Rawlings warranty.

Saturating or adding too much oil to your glove is not advisable.