For many of the Los Angeles Dodgers growing up, it was a gift. Getting that first baseball glove as a kid was a right of passage — forging an identity carried with them from dirt streets in the Dominican Republic to grassy fields in Oregon.
The gloves they’ll take the field with for the home opener against Arizona Diamondbacks Tuesday are generally provided for them through sponsorships and deals. Most have backup gloves, too. But many can remember that first baseball glove they got as kids — when playing in the pros was just a dream.