Baseball Glove

Abstract

A baseball glove the catching side of which has a marginal portion of a fluorescent orange material at least partially surrounding the pocket of the glove and extending along the thumb and finger edges of the catching side at least substantially from the heel portion of the glove to the tip portion thereof, such marginal portion occupying at least a major part of that portion of the catching side of the glove which lies adjacent the pocket. The fluorescent orange marginal portion also occupies at least part of the finger edge surface of the glove adjacent the tip portion thereof.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to a baseball glove and, more particularly, a baseball glove so constructed as to tend to keep the eyes of a player throwing a baseball at the glove riveted on the glove, and especially the pocket of the catching side of the glove.

While the invention may be used for gloves other than a catcher's glove, such as a first baseman's glove, it will be considered herein in connection with a catcher's glove as a matter of convenience in disclosing the invention.

Prior art having some relevance to the present invention includes the following United States patents:

Patent No. patentee ______________________________________ 1,633,926 Craig 2,092,574 Eddy 2,662,225 Wheeler 2,787,236 Welch 3,588,915 Latina ______________________________________

The prior art also includes a catcher's glove manufactured and sold by Rawlings Sporting Goods Company of St. Louis, Missouri, and known as the "BE-Bruce Edwards `Target` Baseball Catchers Mitt."

To provide a basis for the terminology used hereinafter and in the claims, the invention contemplates a baseball glove provided with a front, catching side having thumb and finger edges and an opposed, rear side spaced from the catching side. The rear and catching sides are interconnected along opposite edges thereof by thumb and finger edge surfaces and are provided therebetween with a hand-receiving cavity having a palm portion, a thumb portion extending along the thumb edge surface of the glove, and a finger portion extending along the finger edge surface of the glove. The finger portion may include one or more finger receiving cavities for the four fingers of the player's gloved hand. The catching side has a heel portion and a tip portion and has a pocket, for receiving a baseball, extending from adjacent the heel portion of the catching side toward the tip portion thereof and overlying at least the palm portion of the hand-receiving cavity, the tip portion in some gloves at least being defined by a web spanning the thumb and finger edge surfaces of the glove. Normally, the entire glove, and particularly the entire catching side of the glove, is made of a relatively dull, substantially nonreflective color, ranging from tan to dark brown. Such a catching side or surface provides a poor "target" for a throwing player, and particularly a pitcher, to concentrate on in throwing a baseball to the player wearing the glove.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF INVENTION

With the foregoing background in mind, the primary object of the invention is to provide a baseball glove so constructed that it permits a throwing player, and particularly a pitcher, to focus his entire attention on the catching side of the glove and, more particularly, to "zero in" on the pocket of the glove.

More specifically, the invention may be summarized as comprising, and an important object of the invention is to provide a glove which includes a catching side having a marginal portion of a bright, contrasting, reflective color at least partially surrounding the pocket of the glove and extending along the thumb and finger edges of the catching side at least substantially from the heel portion to the tip portion thereof, such marginal portion occupying at least a major part of that portion of the catching side which lies adjacent the pocket.

With at least some baseball gloves, the glove is normally held in a position such that one of the edge surfaces, and particularly that portion of such edge surface which is adjacent the tip of the glove, faces the throwing player and is thus exposed to his view. In a catcher's glove, the finger edge surface of the glove is exposed to the pitcher's view. To further delineate and focus the throwing player's attention on the pocket of the glove, the exposed edge surface, and particularly the exposed finger edge surface in a catcher's glove, is also included in the aforementioned marginal portion of a bright, contrasting, reflective color, which is another important object of the invention.

Still another important object is to form the aforementioned marginal portion of a fluorescent orange material, such as leather, vinyl, or the like, overlying the prescribed portion of the catching side of the glove and suitably secured thereto, as by adhesion, stitching, or the like.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a construction wherein the marginal portion is substantially U-shaped, with the base of the U adjacent the heel portion of the catching side of the glove. Related objects are to provide a construction wherein the U-shaped marginal portion has a discontinuity adjacent the heel of the catching side of the glove, or is continuous in the vicinity of the heel portion.

An advantage of making the aforementioned marginal portion a separate piece overlying the catching side of the glove, and suitably secured thereto, is that it can be removed and replaced with a new marginal portion if the old one tends to lose its brightness and reflectiveness through the accumulation of dirt, or other foreign material, in use. Preferably, however, the marginal portion is made of a material which is readily cleaned so that it will retain its brightness and reflectiveness.

The foregoing objects, advantages, features and results of the present invention, together with various other objects, advantages, features and results thereof which will be apparent to those skilled in baseball in the light of this disclosure, may be achieved with the exemplary embodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing and described in detail hereinafter.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a semiperspective catching side view of a catcher's glove which embodies the invention;

FIG. 2 is a semiperspective view of the back or rear side of the catcher's glove shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, semidiagrammatic sectional view taken as indicated by the arrowed line 3--3 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but showing an alternative embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS OF INVENTION

Referring initially to FIGS. 1 to 3 of the drawing, illustrated therein is a catcher's glove 10 provided with a front, catching side 12 having thumb and finger edges 14 and 16 and an opposed, rear side 18 spaced from the catching side. The catching and rear sides 12 and 18 are interconnected along opposite edges thereof by thumb and finger edge surfaces 20 and 22, these edge surfaces being relatively wide in the catcher's glove shown. The thumb and finger edge surfaces 20 and 22 extend substantially from the heel portion 24 to the tip portion 26 of the glove 10. The tip portion 26 includes a web or webbing 28 extending between the tip ends of the thumb and finger edge surfaces 20 and 22.

Provided between the catching and rear sides 12 and 18 of the glove 10 is the usual hand-receiving cavity 30, FIG. 2. This cavity includes a palm portion 32, designated in FIG. 1, which receives the body of the catcher's gloved hand. The hand cavity 30 also includes a thumb portion 34, FIG. 2, extending along the thumb edge surface 20 of the glove 10. Further, the hand cavity 30 includes a finger-receiving portion 36 extending generally along the finger edge surface 22 and located on the opposite side of the webbing 28 from the thumb portion 34. The finger-receiving portion 36 may include one or more finger pockets, depending upon the preference of the player. In the particular construction shown, the finger-receiving portion 36 includes three pockets, one for the index finger, one for the middle and ring fingers, and one for the little finger.

Overlying the palm portion 32 of the hand-receiving cavity 30 is the usual "pocket" 38 with which any glove is provided. This pocket extends from adjacent the heel portion of the catching side 12 of the glove 10 toward the tip portion thereof and overlies at least the palm portion 32 of the hand-receiving cavity 30.

Conventionally, the entire glove 10, and particularly the entire catching side 12 thereof, is all of one color. Such color normally ranges from tan to dark brown, depending upon the processing of the leather of which it is ordinarily made. Thus, the glove 10, and particularly the pocket 38, is of a relatively dull, substantially nonreflective color providing a poor focusing point for the attention of a throwing player, such as a pitcher, in the case of a catcher's glove.

The glove 10, as thus far described, is entirely conventional, the particular glove shown, and thus far described, being one that is commonly used by many catchers throughout baseball. The present invention involves modifications of the basic glove 10, which modifications will now be described.

The catching side 12 of the glove 10 is provided with a marginal portion, designated generally by the numeral 40, of a bright, contrasting, reflective color, compared to the pocket 38, at least partially surrounding the pocket and having portions 44 and 46 respectively extending along the thumb and finger edges 14 and 16 of the catching side 12 at least substantially from the heel portion 24 to the tip portion 26 of the glove. The marginal portion 40 occupies at least a major part of that portion of the catching side 12 which lies adjacent the pocket 38, and preferably occupies substantially all of such portion of the catching side.

In the catcher's glove 10, the catcher normally holds the glove in such a position that the finger edge surface 22 faces toward and is exposed to the pitcher. To provide the part 46 of the marginal portion 40 with a greater effective width from the pitcher's point of view, the part 46 of the marginal portion 40 also includes a part 48 which extends beyond the finger edge 16 of the catching side 12 and over the finger edge surface 22 adjacent the tip portion 26 of the glove 10, as will be clear from FIG. 1, and as best shown in FIG. 3. The part 48 overlying the finger edge surface 22 thus provides the marginal portion 40, from the pitcher's viewpoint, with a substantially constant width from one end of such marginal portion to the other, which is an important feature.

As best shown in FIG. 1, the marginal portion 40 is preferably substantially U-shaped, and surrounds the pocket 38 on at least three sides, thereby providing excellent contrast for the throwing player between the relatively dull, substantially nonreflective pocket and the bright, contrasting, reflective color of the marginal portion 40. Thus, the pitcher, or other throwing player, can focus his attention readily on the "spot" to which he intends to throw the ball, which is an important feature.

To provide maximum contrast, the marginal portion 40 is formed of a fluorescent material, and specifically a fluorescent orange material, it having been found that fluorescent orange provides maximum contrast between the marginal portion 40 and the relatively dull, nonreflective pocket 38. Thus, a construction is provided on which a throwing player, and particularly a pitcher, can keep his eyes riveted very readily.

Preferably, the fluorescent orange marginal portion 40 is made of leather, vinyl, or other suitable material, overlying the corresponding part of the catching side 12 of the glove 10, and suitably secured thereto, as by an adhesive, or, as in the particular construction illustrated, by stitching 50. The material used for the marginal portion 40 is preferably such that it can be cleaned readily to remove accumulations of dirt, or other foreign matter, so that the desired brightness and reflectiveness can be restored easily from time to time. Further, if the brightness and reflectiveness of the marginal portion 40 decrease with use, even after cleaning, such portion can be removed reasonably readily and replaced with a fresh marginal portion.

In the particular construction shown in FIG. 1 of the drawing, the marginal portion 40 of the glove 10 has a discontinuity 52 at a crease 54 with which the particular glove 10 is provided adjacent the heel thereof.

In FIG. 4 of the drawing is shown a similar glove 10a which is identical to the glove 10 in most respects so that the same reference numerals are utilized. The glove 10a differs from the glove 10 in that it is provided with a marginal portion 40a, identical in most respects to the marginal portion 40, and including corresponding parts 44a, 46a and 48a, the only difference being that the marginal portion 40a is continuous in the area of the heel portion 24, there being no discontinuity corresponding to the discontinuity 52.

It will be understood that the gloves 10 and 10a shown are intended to be worn on the left hand of the player. The same construction may be utilized for a glove intended to be worn on the right hand, except that the marginal portions 40 and 40a would, in effect, be mirror images of the portions shown in the drawing.

Although exemplary embodiments of the invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, it will be understood that various changes, modifications and substitutions may be incorporated in such embodiments without departing from the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Claims

I claim as my invention:

1. A baseball glove provided with a front, catching side having thumb and finger edges and an opposed, rear side spaced from said catching side, said rear and catching sides being interconnected along opposite edges thereof by thumb and finger edge surfaces and being provided therebetween with a hand-receiving cavity having a palm portion, a thumb portion extending along said thumb edge surface and a finger portion extending along said finger edge surface, said catching side having a heel portion and a tip portion and having a pocket extending from adjacent said heel portion of said catching side toward said tip portion thereof and overlying at least said palm portion of said hand-receiving cavity, said pocket being of a relatively dull, substantially nonreflective color, said catching side having a marginal portion of a bright, contrasting, reflective color at least partially surrounding said pocket and extending along said thumb and finger edges of said catching side at least substantially from said heel portion to said tip portion thereof, said marginal portion occupying at least a major part of that portion of said catching side which lies adjacent said pocket.

2. A baseball glove according to claim 1 wherein said marginal portion also occupies at least part of one of said edge surfaces adjacent said tip portion of said catching side.

3. A baseball glove according to claim 1 wherein said marginal portion also occupies at least part of said finger edge surface adjacent said tip portion of said catching side.

4. A baseball glove according to claim 3 wherein said marginal portion is formed of a fluorescent material.

5. A baseball glove as defined in claim 4 wherein said marginal portion is at least one separate piece formed of a fluorescent orange material overlying said catching side of the glove and secured thereto.

6. A baseball glove as set forth in claim 5 wherein said marginal portion is substantially U-shaped.

7. A baseball glove according to claim 6 wherein said marginal portion has a discontinuity adjacent the heel of the catching side of the glove.

8. A baseball glove according to claim 6 wherein said marginal portion is continuous.