Wilson Glove Day 2023

Wilson Glove Day…it is one of the most incredible days of the year for the glove enthusiast. But why is it so great? After all, we're just watching grown men receive their high-quality Wilson gloves that they’ll be using for the season.

The reason the day is fantastic is because it allows baseball fans to get a glimpse of the joy that can be seen on a professional athlete’s face when they receive a special item made just for them. 

On the surface, a baseball glove is a tool. Its job is to grasp and hold onto balls that are hit in their direction. But as a glove gets used more frequently, it becomes much more than an instrument for defending baseballs. 

If Gold Glove winner (and Wilson glove man) Ke'Bryan Hayes were to play every defensive inning this season, he would be toting his A2000 out to third base at least 1,458 times. That's going to add up to a lot of minutes, hours and probably even days that he spends with his glove on his hand each season. That glove needs to be so perfect in how it fits and functions that he prefers not to take it off. The common adage is that a glove needs to be an "extension of a player's arm", but more frequently, a well-cared-for glove becomes an "extension of the entire player".

On Wilson Glove Day, it is apparent that these players understand just how special it is to play baseball for a living. They understand the relationship they're about to embark upon with these gloves. And best of all, they seem grateful...

This spring, the Wilson glove team led by their Glove Guru, Aso, visited five different spring camps in Arizona with their video crew to capture those inspiring moments when big leaguers are presented with their new gloves for the 2023 season.

Chicago Northsiders

With Wilson hailing from Chicago themselves, how could they not visit their friends from the North side of the city. However, a spring training trip to Mesa, AZ is a little more difficult than hopping in a car and driving to Clark & Addison to visit their friends at their ballpark in the Windy City. 

Dansby Swanson was the big name reeled in during the offseason, but when it came to Glove Day, Nick Madrigal stole the show. The 2B's powder blue, red laced and white bound infield glove is 11.5 inches and will allow for super quick transfers at second base. In this writer's opinion, Madrigal was the winner of Wilson Glove Day on the North side of Chi-town.

San Diego

San Diego made it to the NLCS last year and this year they’re poised to get back to the World Series for the first time in nearly 25 years. To get back to baseball's biggest stage, San Diego will have to commit to consistently playing the "best game of catch" (as the old baseball saying goes). 

The Wilson glove team paid their annual visit to the Peoria Sports Complex to help provide the gloves that will hopefully be playing excellent "games of catch" this season. And as can be imagined, the must-see model was Juan Soto’s outfield glove.

The Wilson A2Ks are the best gloves that Wilson has to offer. Soto's A2K is 12.75 inches and made in his own JS22 pattern. Soto flares the pinky in on his left handed thrower glove and flares the thumb out. Some glove purists might not love that personal touch…but the mesmerizing look of his signature leather cannot be denied. If you’re a Soto fan, keep your eyes out this fall for something similar to his A2K gamer below:

Seattle

Aso and his crew didn’t have to venture far from San Diego’s spring camp to make their next ball glove deliveries. The club from the Emerald City actually shares a camp with San Diego making things easy on the Wilson team.

Seattle gave us a fun glimpse into the family life of one player as Robbie Ray, the former 2021 Cy Young Award winner, designed a fun training glove for his young son in addition to picking up his gamer glove for the season.

However, the big noise in camp was coming from Julio Rodriguez. He dazzled the American League West last season en route to becoming the American League Rookie of the Year. Hauling in that kind of hardware earned him extra attention from Wilson.

A2000s are the popular choice of Wilson gloves among professionals and amateurs. And Julio followed that trend as he has settled in with an A2000 built in his own JR44 pattern.  Everyone who is a fan of Julio better be on the lookout for a glove like the one shown below dropping later in 2023:

Cleveland

It seems like the city of Cleveland has had plenty of reason to be optimistic during Spring time for the past seven or eight years. They’ve won 4 of the last 8 American Central crowns and there’s reason to believe they’ll add to that collection in 2023.

When a team is playing well, they’re typically going to be loose. And when it came to their Wilson gloves, you could tell that the Clevelanders were cheery and ready to receive their new leather for the upcoming season.

Zach Plesac, nephew of former All Star pitcher and current baseball analyst Dan Plesac, stole the show in Cleveland’s Goodyear-based Spring headquarters. His blonde A2000 popped with swagger due to his glove’s web featuring what he called the "swordsman" web. That web is closed and goes perfectly with a pitcher glove as it will shield batter's eyes from seeing the pitches that Zach may be gripping.

Chicago Southsiders

The Black and White have made their dwelling on the South side of the Chicago for generations. And just like their National League foes from the North side, they received a visit from Wilson at their AZ-based Spring digs.

Pitchers always seem to offer the most insight into their methods behind why they crafted their gloves a certain way. A veteran of 12 big league seasons, Lance Lynn loves hunting and naturally crafted a glove for playing catch that featured a splash of camo to it. As well, relief specialist Joe Kelly uses his D33-patterned A2000 as a canvas to call to mind his 4 children and even his parents. 

But the sovereign of gloves on the South side is none other than shortstop, Tim Anderson. Tim has had a signature model with Wilson for a little while, but is ready to usher in an updated look in 2023 that will be available to fans later in the year:

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The 2023 season is now underway! We hope that this post will get you to focus in on the leather being used by pros when you attend your next big league game. And if you want to meet a group of folks who all have a keen eye for gloves, you better meet our Glove Experts. If you have a question about buying a glove, you can call them at 866-321-4568, email them through experts@justgloves.com or you can simply start a live chat here!