The history of the baseball glove can be traced back to as early as 1860, when players started to experiment with a glove as a form of protection, often the type of glove used by railroad workers.

According to MLB Official Historian John Thorn, Doug Allison of the Cincinnati Red Stockings was one of the first players to wear a "buckskin mitten" in 1870 after suffering a hand injury. St. Louis' Charles Waitt was the first confirmed player to wear a glove in 1875.

As hand injuries continued to occur, the thought that gloves were a bad idea changed and by the 1890s baseball gloves were the everyday thing. Several glove experts, including Pittsburg-based Denny Esken, believes no one was credited for inventing the first baseball glove.

More glove ideas was already underway. In the 1950s, gloves really hit the market. Wilson's A2000, which had a large web, broad pocket and would eventually become the official glove of MLB, came out in 1957. Rawlings' XPG, with its deep pocket and u-shaped heel, was released in 1958. The six-fingered Trap-Eze debuted the following year.