traditionally, leather is the material of choice for baseball fielding gloves. the reasons are obvious, as leather is generally hardly, durable and basically, looks nice. however, sporting goods giant has other ideas and that ‘other ideas’ is represented by the Nike Vapor 360 Fielding Glove. unlike traditional gloves, the Vapor 360 Fielding Glove does not rely solely on leather; it is glove is a result of combining Hyperfuse construction, Nike Flywire, and an engineered leather palm to result in a lightweight and ultra responsive glove that hit the baseball pitch right-out-of-the-box. you heard that right. absolutely no break-in is required like traditional gloves do, which can take up to three months or so.
instead of employing ‘brute design’ where heavy leather were used on the palm to take the beatings (at the expense of the need to break-in), the Vapor 360 Fielding Glove’s palm features a perforated leather that allows it to form quickly, while Nike TrueAdapt heel construction results in a thinnest possible structure for a more playable feel. additionally, Nike Flywire lacing system, along with tunable inserts in the thumb and pinky allows for player-specific fit, as oppose to one-size-fits-all or painstaking customization. at the inside of the wrist, it has a perforated, soft PORON foam for enhance breathability and comfort, and a lightweight, strong and responsive high-frequency molded web completes the new age baseball glove package.
the question remains on our minds is: how long will this advanced fielding glove last? with all the goodness it promised, it better make more than three seasons, but then again, that will depend on its price tag, which Nike has yet to disclose. the Nike Vapor 360 Fielding Glove will be available this holiday season through Nike online store.
