Skip to main content

Ambidextrous baseball gloves

Is there a baseball glove for a switch pitcher?

Yes, there is a six-finger glove made for ambidextrous pitchers, but you don't need a special glove to start switch pitching.Tips for throwing with both arms Try throwing a tennis ball against a wall or play catch with a friend. Use your bare hands to catch the ball or try using a batting glove for catching. Switch throwing hands while you practice. It might feel weird at first, but it doesn't take long to learn to throw with both arms. Throw from a short distance. Practice in slow motion. Break down the steps of throwing. Keep practicing. It takes a lot of practice to get good at ambidextrous throwing. Once you feel comfortable making throws with the opposite hand, you can buy an inexpensive glove for practice. It helps to have a different color or style glove to avoid picking up the wrong one. Young players don't need a custom glove. Some leagues allow you to put an extra glove behind the mound (like a rosin bag). Other leagues will not allow extra equipment on the field of play, so store the extra glove where you can gab it from the duggout when needed. 
Six-finger Ambidextrous Glove


Ambidextrous Baseball Glove by Akadema


Akadema 12" Trap design. Each year Akadema makes a limited 100 gloves for Ambidextrous players.Until recently, ambidextrous baseball gloves were custom made and very expensive ($400 - $600), so players used two separate gloves. Now you can order a high quality leather ambidextrous glove for $130 from Akadema. Buying an Akadema glove can be cheaper than owning two separate pitching gloves - plus it's really cool.
Henry Knight pitching using an Akadema ambidextrous glove
Henry Knight, a high school switch pitcher, has been using an Akadema ambidextrous glove for two years and likes being able to switch between throwing arms without changing gloves. College switch pitcher Ryan Perez, who throws 90 mph with both arms, also uses an Akadema glove. The six-finger glove is very stiff out of the box, and requires breaking in like other quality gloves. I tried it out and it's fun to use.
The glove doesn't have webbing like a standard fielders glove - which is a bit awkward at first. When you get it down on the ground to snatch ground balls - the glove fans out like a large scoop which is really nice. The 12" glove is huge for young players. I wish that Akadema made a smaller size for young pitchers. 
Akadema Ambidextrous Baseball Glove in Action





Custom Made Baseball Gloves
--- Carpenter Trade Company ---

Custom Crafted Ambidextrous Glove by Carpenter Trade Co.
All gloves have an "open back" design made with black material that has a suede-like surface (Clarino™ microfiber synthetic leather). Scott Carpenter, a master glove designer, has experience making ambidextrous gloves for switch pitchers ($600). Baseball and softball fielder gloves are available for $500+. www.carpentertrade.com

--- Mizuno ---
Pat Venditte, switch pitcher in the minors leagues, wears a custom six-finger glove from Mizuno. The Mizuno GMP1A Ambidextrous Glove is available for $450 by contacting an authorized retailer. Learn how to order a custom Mizuno ambidextrous glove



--- Louisville Slugger TPX ---
On the web, I have seen the Louisville Slugger TPX ambidextrous glove, but I did not know if these were still made - so I contacted customer service via email. The next day, I received this response:

You can custom order the Louisville Slugger Ambidextrous Glove for $399.99 by calling 1-800-282-2287 and a representative will be happy to assist you. (updated June 2012)


Training gloves 

Valle Switch Ambidextrous flat training mitt can be used on either hand.
Valle Baseball makes a nice ambidextrous pancake glove. This flat training glove does not have a pocket, so it forces you to use two hands. My son loves his pancake glove and his teammates find it challenging to use. Cost is around $49 for the Valle Flat Ambidextrous Pancake Glove www.vallebaseball.com




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Pitchers Glove Rules - Size and Color

What are the rules on a pitchers glove? According to the official baseball rules, a pitchers glove can be up to 12 inches in size , of any weight , and any color except white or gray as long as it is not distracting.  The Akadema ABX-00 glove, pictured above, is 12 inches,  solid black and is not distracting according to local umpires. Little League Rules Gray glove is not allowed for pitching  White glove is not allowed for pitching Little League Rule 1.14: Each fielder, other than the first baseman and the catcher may wear a glove not more than 12 inches long nor more than 7 3/4 inches wide, measured from the base of the thumb crotch to the outer edge of the glove. The glove may be of any weight. Little League Rule  1.15 (a) : The pitcher's glove may not, exclusive of the piping, be white or light gray, nor, in the judgment of an umpire, distracting in any manner. (source: Little League Baseball Rules Regarding Bats and Gloves ) Off

Fastball Velocity - How fast do kids throw?

How fast does a Little League pitcher throw? The average fastball is between 50-60 mph for a  pitcher in the Majors division of Little League (11-13 yo). Pitchers in the Little League World Series throw fastballs 60-70+ mph. Only a few pitchers touched 70+ mph in 2015 and 2016. One man-child hit 81 mph on the radar. This velocity is almost unhittable from 46 feet  and extremely rare for a 13 year old. #18 RHP Carlos Gonzalez - Panama 79-81 mph fastball  105 mph MLB equivalent reaction time #18 RHP Jaekyeong Kim - South Korea 75-76 mph fastball #19 RHP Ryan Harlost - Mid-Atlantic, Endwell, NY 71-74 mph fastball Threw a complete game to win the 2016 Little League World Series Loreto Siniscalchi , a 6'1" pitcher from Canada, threw in the mid 70s and completely dominated the hitters from Japan.  He led Team Canada to its first victory over Japan in 18 years. Big right-hander Isaiah Head from Kentucky threw 70-73 mph fastballs. His record was 3-0, 12 I

Baseball Glove Options for Switch Pitchers

Custom made  Mizuno ambidextrous glove Looking for a glove for a switch pitcher? Before spending hundreds of dollars on a custom glove, please think about age of the player and how much time they will spend pitching. Here are glove options for ambidextrous pitchers, based on age: Age 3-5 Kids don't pitch at this age. They should be learning the proper way to throw. Young kids should try catching the ball with two hands. Use tennis balls or foam balls for throwing. Forget about the low quality plastic glove - it's in the landfill within a year. Gloves are awkward for young kids. If they learn two hand catch when they are young and continue with the skill, they will do well fielding balls when they are older. Learning to throw with both arms is easy at this stage. If a child can throw with either hand when they are three-years-old, it doesn't mean that they are talented or ambidextrous - it just means that they are a typical kid. Gloves:  Buy a small leath