What is Wilson SuperSkin?

It’s no secret that SuperSkin technology has impacted the way players look at baseball gloves and softball gloves. Providing significant glove benefits like a lighter weight design, better moisture resistance, and a faster break-in period, it’s not hard to see why SuperSkin A2000s and SuperSkin A2Ks have grown in popularity in recent years.

With SuperSkin being one of the best advancements in glove technology over the past 30 years, we felt that it would be valuable to put together a blog post that provides the history of the material, expert reviews on it and customer reviews as well!

How Was Wilson SuperSkin Invented?

SuperSkin was invented by Wilson’s Official Glove Guru, Shigeaki Aso, with his superior knowledge of gloves plus some ingenuity. In 1997, one of the game's greatest sluggers, Barry Bonds, was actually seeking to make a change to his outfield glove. Barry was wanting to find a lightweight glove that wouldn't sacrifice durability or performance.

By that point, Aso had developed Wilson gloves for scores of Major League Baseball players, but he had not yet tackled a problem like this one. He set out to find a solution that would meet Bonds' preferences, but little did he know that the answer was close by.

According to Wilson’s website:
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“In Chicago at Wilson LABS, sitting a mere 10 feet from Aso’s workstation on his co-worker’s desk was a material being tested on basketballs.

‘I noticed some material on his desk that had been used for the Evolution Basketball,’ explains Aso. ‘The Evolution Basketball was designed to wick away moisture to give players a better grip. And it was designed to be used on concrete, so I knew the material was durable. So I said ‘why not?’’
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Aso borrowed a few sheets of material and went to work adding this "basketball" material to the backing of Wilson gloves. The first prototypes made with the Evolution Basketball material were well-received, but they weren’t quite up to Aso’s standards of perfection. ‘The glove was still a bit heavy and it was picking up dirt,’ he says. ‘So we had to keep working at it.’”

After a long trial period, filled with many failed attempts, Wilson and Aso developed  what is now known as SuperSkin. And when Aso delivered the glove to Bonds, the slugger was elated and accepted the glove happily.

What Aso had created was truly ground breaking. When compared to regular leather backed gloves, these Wilsons with the SuperSkin backing were...

• Stronger
• Lighter In Weight
• More Moisture Repellant
• Easier To Break In

Since the late 1990s, hundreds of MLB players and thousands more amateur baseball and softball players have gone on to use a SuperSkin A2000 or SuperSkin A2K glove in a game.

What Are The JustGloves Experts Saying About SuperSkin?

• “I love that Wilson has expanded the use of the SuperSkin material so that on some gloves it nearly covers the entire backing of the glove (like in the infield model below). For a player looking to have as lightweight of a glove as possible, the more SuperSkin that you can have...the better! And it goes without saying, but a full SuperSkin backing on a glove is a beautiful sight to behold.” - Ben, Content Specialist

• "The A2000 line from Wilson is one of my favorite gloves out there. I like my gloves to remain somewhat stiff and hold their shape while also being malleable in key breakpoints (i.e. the base of the thumb and pinky). The quality of leather on the A2000 allows me to break in the glove exactly how I want while also holding its shape and quality for several seasons of use. Couple this with the SuperSkin tech, and it’s pretty perfect!" -Logan, JustGloves Buyer

• “In my opinion, nothing beats an A2K. While we don’t receive as many inquiries about them as we do on the A2000s, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a customer return an A2K to JustGloves. It seems as though once a player gets their hands on one and has a chance to appreciate the craftsmanship, they are hooked for life. I can’t speak highly enough about them. If you are looking for your forever glove, then it’s gotta be an A2K.” - Tyler, Content Specialist

As you can see from the comments of our experts, it's about the quality of the SuperSkin material PLUS the quality of the Wilson leather. The combination is nearly perfect as the SuperSkin backing allows the glove to deliver some softness right away while also being surprisingly rugged. Meanwhile, the stiff palm leather of both Wilson lines (the A2000s and A2Ks) allows the gloves to hold their shapes for many seasons.

What Are Customers Saying About SuperSkin?

• A2K SuperSkin 11.5 Inch Baseball Glove
  
  Pros: This glove has amazing build quality. The hand liner Wilson uses makes this glove super comfy and your hand feels like it's formed inside the glove - it literally feels like an extension of your hand. Break-in was really easy compared to my [other glove] due to the lightweight SuperSkin. When I say lightweight, I mean this thing feels like a feather. Transitions feel fast and getting to the ball in the hole feels effortless. Overall super happy with this glove.
  
  Cons: It plays a little smaller than I anticipated, but that just helps with my transitions so it’s kind of a wash.

• A2000 SuperSkin 11.75" Fastpitch Glove
  
  Pros: The glove came as described and I opted to pay for the glove to be conditioned. It was definitely worth the money. I did work the glove and pocket for a few more days and now [my daughter is] playing with it full time. The Superskin is definitely lighter than the full leather version.
  
  Cons: None

The customer testimonies make it pretty clear that if you are looking for a lightweight baseball or softball glove. An A2000 SuperSkin or A2K SuperSkin glove needs to be considered. Glove and fielding aficionados seem to agree that the lighter your glove is in the field, the more deft you'll be with your glovework. If you've felt that your current gamer is a little heavy, then it might not be a bad thought to consider getting a glove with Wilson SuperSkin.

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We really appreciate you reading through this post on Wilson SuperSkin gloves. If you still have questions regarding A2000 SuperSkin or A2K SuperSkin gloves, please do not hesitate to reach out to our squad of Glove Experts. They are trained in glove knowledge and will be happy to field any questions you might have for them! You can contact them through phone at 1-866-321-4568, via email through experts@justgloves.com or by LIVE CHATTING right here.