Bear Mayer, the CEO and founder of BRUCE BOLT, invented long cuff batting gloves just a few years ago. Since then, other companies like Rawlings and Marucci have followed suit. This week, I tried long cuff batting gloves for the first time. Here are my thoughts.

Initial Reactions

First, I noticed that these gloves are thicker and feel more heavy duty than any other pair of batting gloves that I have used. It feels as though I taped my wrists before putting on the batting gloves. If you are used to taping your wrists before a game, these gloves are definitely for you.

Second, I noticed how thick the wrap is around your wrist. The benefit here is extra protection for hit by pitches. I was hit in the wrist when I was about 10 years old, and that injury put me out for a few months. These batting gloves would have likely made that injury less severe.

Third, for players playing in summer and the hotter months, these gloves might lead to more sweat, as it’s harder to breathe. However, BRUCE BOLT are notorious for having the best air flow and breathability.

Fourth, I noticed how long it took me to put the long cuff gloves on. The first time I put them on, it took me a little while to figure it out. After using them a few times, it got a lot simpler. My initial concern was that it would take longer to put these gloves on and off, which can be annoying when trying to put them on quickly before an at bat or going out to the field.

Fifth, I noticed the looks. Everyone assumes these gloves have been around for a long time, but long cuff batting gloves are actually very new. Despite being so new, the look is already a classic. I genuinely loved the way these looked on my hands.

Performance

Those were my initial reactions. But what about how they actually perform in action?

I cranked up my pitching machine and took a full round of batting practice with the pink Harrison Bader series and the standard white long cuff series. I expected my wrists to feel constricted with the long cuffs, but I was pleasantly surprised, and immediately felt comfortable in the box. I didn’t even use batting gloves growing up, because I liked to feel the grip of the bat in my hands, so I was surprised when these thicker gloves felt comfortable so quickly.

After a full round of batting practice, I didn’t even feel like I was wearing batting gloves. They were just as comfortable as the short cuff and my wrist didn’t feel constricted like I thought they would. The compression around the wrist actually felt pleasant.

The Bottom Line

Here’s my overall take away. If you’re someone who likes to tape your wrist before the game, you will definitely like the feel of these gloves. If you’re someone who likes a more thin and light feel on your hands, I recommend going with the short cuff. The short cuffs feel much lighter and easier to put on and off. That being said, after a full round of BP, I already felt used to the long cuff. So at least for me, the adjustment period wasn’t too long. If you don’t yet have a preference on feel, then I recommend going with the long cuffs. I like the look of the long cuffs better. And after just one round of batting practice, I felt comfortable with them.

That said, in practice, I’d probably prefer to use short cuffs because of the ease and simplicity, but in the game I’m going with the long cuff gloves for style points and protection.

The final thing to consider is the price difference. With BRUCE BOLT there is generally a $10 difference between the short cuff and long cuff. Granted, BRUCE BOLT’s are a premium product, so when you’re spending close to $100 on a pair of batting gloves, the extra $10 isn’t as much of a factor. If you want 10% off of your next pair of BRUCE BOLT gloves, use the code CRUZ23 at checkout.