The two most popular premier gloves on the market are the Wilson A2000 and the Rawlings Heart of the Hide. Often, final glove investments come to down to these two beauties. The gloves come in a number of similar patterns, price out exactly the same and have the brand recognition other glove lines could only dream about. The following Wilson A2000 vs Rawlings HOH article helps put some of their features in perspective. In the end, we hope to shed some light on which glove line you should choose.
Price check the Heart of the Hide Gloves.
Wilson A2000 vs Rawlings HOH
Although the most popular glove lines on the market the comparison articles are, surprisingly, few and far between. In fact, when we could not find a legitimate source on the subject we decided we better put one of these together. Off this site, we did find the product catalog of Rawlings gloves on their site helpful. In that same vein we found the information on Wilson’s glove landing page useful too.
We also spent time on closeoutbats.com site looking for information on pricing and model selection. It is always quite fun to run through those.
On this site, we found our general Wilson A2000 Review as well as our Rawlings Heart of the Hide reviews useful. Both those articles do compare the A2000 to the HOH as they are quite similar. This article, in many respects, expands on those thoughts and makes them a bit more accessible to our reader, and Google.
Wilson A2000 vs Rawlings HOH Similarities
The Heart of the Hide and the Wilson A2000 have much more in common then they do in contrast. In terms of choosing one over the other the decision often comes down to simply name recognition and ones comfort with the brand. Closeoutbats, who has been selling these two glove lines since the beginning of time, captured that thought in this quote:
“There is something special with both of those gloves. Every kid remembers the first really good glove they got. It is a real bonus to be able to get the same type of quality as one of your childhood hero. It is truly an experience to not be missed.”
Patterns
If you want a certain length of glove designed for a specific position then there are few exception you can’t find in either glove line. Both, for example, carry an 11.25 inch I-web or a 12-inch full webbed pitcher’s glove. The list of similarly sized and webbed gloves is long enough it is not worth even putting together. It is fair to assume that just about every A2000 glove has a similarly sized and webbed glove in the Heart of the Hide line. If you can’t find one then, in either brand, you can customize one to your exact specifications.
Finding the similar patterns is difficult as the numbering systems for the gloves have nothing to do with each other. We have a glove logic article on the Rawlings’ gloves that you might find helpful in this regard.
Leather & Glove Quality
Rawlings and Wilson will argue to they are blue in the face about the quality of their glove lines in relationship to each other. Wilson will point out their especially bred cattle in Japan that make up the A2000. Rawlings will point out their Tennessee Tannery and the product quality that comes from your own tanning service.
In a pure technical sense we admit there are some differences. But, in a practical sense, we find no useful differentiation in the quality of the leather and overall glove when comparing the A2000 vs HOH. Both gloves are well built and have become the standard by which all other glove lines measure their durability and quality.
Factory Work In
More recently, both the A2000 and HOH come with a factory work in. That is, the factory forms the glove some percentage of the way before shipping them to the vendor. This allows a faster work in and likely attracts younger players who want the instant gratification of playable glove.
Wrist Backing
Both the A2000 and Heart of the Hide use a synthetic backing on the wrist strap. This allows for better sweat wicking and a cooler feel during hot weather. This feature also lasts longer than the more traditional use of wool on the back of the wrist.
Wilson A2000 vs Rawlings HOH Differences
Branding
The most obvious difference between the two gloves is the different sentiment the A2000 and Heart of the Hide brands bring to consumers. As a very general rule, we notice that the older generation has more respect for the Rawlings’ line. Younger players appear to drool over A2000 gloves. If this is a temporary fad or a long term play has yet to be seen. It may be due to Wilson’s more recent advent into the glove world and their ability to attract a younger audience.
Although this has nothing to do with any functionality of the glove it is the driving force in ultimate decisions that are made.
MLB Pro Usage
Rawlings’ claim is that more MLB players use the Rawlings’ brand of gloves than any other. Last we checked with them the number was over 50% of MLB players had a Rawlings. Now, some of them are using the more posh Pro-Preferred, but enough are using the Heart of the Hide to add validity to the glove.
This does not mean MLB players are not using the A2000. On the contrary, Wilson is the second most popular glove brand among MLB players.
We are not implying this means MLB players think Wilson gloves are not as good, on average, as Rawlings. Rather, distribution, availability and contractual obligations have more to do with who wears what at the pro level then the quality of the product. But, it does imply that Rawlings may be more willing to put resources behind their gloves at the top level of the sport. If that is evidence the glove is worthy of your purchase too is question we cannot answer.
Stock Options
Rawlings Heart of the Hide comes in more stock options than the Wilson A2000. For example, Wilson’s site currently has 49 different A2000 gloves for sale. Rawlings’ site has 64 Heart of the Hide options. Rawlings offers more stock gloves with differing web patterns than the Wilson A2000 line. As such, if you are looking for a specific glove you might find it only in the Heart of the Hide glove and not in the stock A2000 line. Of course you can always customize a glove on the Wilson custom site but that is more expensive.
