Have you ever seen a player, at any level, game three different gloves in three consecutive games at the same position? Javy Baez did just that in a recent series. Javy Baez has a rotation of game gloves made by SSK and he does not hesitate to put any of them in play. Frankly, the guy could wrap an old dish rag around his left hand and make plays. Everyone in the game knows that Baez is one of the best shortstops in baseball, and in 2019 he finally took the job from Addison Russell. Now, with his position cemented, Baez can start winning gold gloves.
Of the three gloves, Baez’ red and black striped SSK glove is an 11.25″, large for Javy, who has also worn an 11″ inch—the smallest glove in baseball. Baez’ hands are his weapons and he doesn’t let an excess of leather get in the way. A small glove minimizes the chance of a bad transfer to Javy’s throwing hand, and in a game decided by milliseconds, that’s the difference. On the flip side, a smaller glove means less margin for error when catching the ball (duh). For more on infielder glove length, check our “Baseball Glove Length Guide.”
You can get Javy Baez’ red and black SSK via SSK’s website for $324.