Baseball worksheet
Baseball Shopping Checklist
A printable baseball shopping worksheet for bat, glove, helmet, and cleats — including the league rules to confirm before you spend anything.
Press Ctrl+P (Cmd+P on a Mac) to print this worksheet or save it as a PDF. The site navigation and links are removed from the printed version automatically.
Measurement fields
How to take each measurement
Take these at home before you shop. Measurements recorded calmly are more accurate than ones taken in a shop with a restless child, and having them written down is what keeps a fitting from turning into an estimate.
- Age
- Use league age as of the cut-off date in your division's rules, which is not always the child's current age.
- Height
- Measure against a wall without shoes, heels together, looking straight ahead.
- League bat stamp required
- Check the league's published bat rules or ask the coach. Write down the exact certification mark required for your child's division.
- Bat drop limit
- Drop is length in inches minus weight in ounces. Note the maximum drop your division permits, plus any barrel diameter limit.
- Glove position
- Note the throwing hand (the glove goes on the other hand) and whether the child has a settled position. If they rotate, write 'utility'.
- Head circumference
- Wrap a soft tape around the widest part of the head, above the eyebrows and ears, keeping it level.
- Shoe size
- Current athletic shoe size, plus a note on whether your division permits metal spikes — most youth divisions do not.
Shopping checklist
Fill in the bat rule line first
Everything else on this sheet is a preference. The bat certification requirement is a constraint, and it is the one that turns an otherwise sensible purchase into an unusable one. Youth divisions specify which certification mark is legal, along with barrel diameter and drop-weight limits, and a bat lacking the required stamp cannot be used in a game.
Confirm it before you shop, not in the aisle. Write the exact mark on this sheet along with the maximum drop, then choose among the legal bats by length and swing control. Favour a bat the player can move through the zone over the longest one they can lift — bat speed produces better contact than reach at every youth level.
The glove test that takes ten seconds
There is one test that decides whether a glove is right for a young player: can they squeeze it shut with one hand, without straining? If they need the other hand or their whole forearm tenses, the glove is too big, too stiff, or both, and balls will bounce out of a pocket that never closes.
Note the throwing hand on this sheet, since the glove goes on the opposite hand and this is a genuinely common purchasing error with online orders. And unless your child has a settled position, write 'utility' — first-base mitts and long outfield gloves are the wrong tool for a player who rotates through positions.
Ask what the team already owns
Many youth teams keep shared batting helmets and a set of bats, which can make two of the larger items on this sheet unnecessary in a first season. It is worth asking before you spend, and it also tells you which bat certification the team's existing bats carry.
If you do buy a helmet, size by head circumference against the specific model's chart rather than by hat size, confirm the NOCSAE mark is present, and check whether your league requires a face guard or C-flap — if it does, fit the helmet with the guard attached rather than adding it afterwards.
Common questions
How do I print this checklist?
Use Ctrl+P on Windows or Cmd+P on a Mac, then print or choose 'Save as PDF'. Site navigation and links are removed automatically from the printed version.
Why does the bat rule come before everything else?
Because it decides which bats are legal at all. A bat that fits your child perfectly and lacks the required certification mark cannot be used in a game, which makes it the most expensive mistake available to a baseball parent.
What is bat drop?
Length in inches minus weight in ounces — a 30-inch, 20-ounce bat is a drop 10. Divisions set a maximum drop, and a lower drop number means a heavier bat relative to its length.
How do I know what size glove to buy?
By whether your child can close it one-handed without straining, more than by any inch number. Record the throwing hand on the sheet too — the glove goes on the opposite hand, and this trips up online orders regularly.