Cleats, or spikes, are an important part of a baseball player's uniform. This popular equipment has come a long way since its invention in the mid-19th century. According to The New York Times, George Pierce invented the original baseball cleats, while working for Spalding, and also helped in the production of football apparel.
The Beginning
The history of baseball cleats dates back to the invention of the game in the 1840s. The earliest shoes worn by the professional baseball players were made out of canvas and had flat soles. These were, however, not very durable. Therefore, leather was used to make cleats. To improve traction, the players also installed sharp metal pins on the soles--thus the name spikes.
Major Changes
In 1870, some refinement took place with heel-and-toe cleat plates on the baseball shoes. These metal plates were three-cornered and a cheaper option than the original spikes. Soon, these became standard equipment for the ballplayers. This also led to a controversial factor that players used the sharp metal spikes to slide into a base. Subsequently, a rule was introduced banning the metal spikes in amateur games. Major Leaguers were allowed rounded off and blunted spikes. For about 100 years, the conservative black or dark brown color was used for the cleats. Charles O. Finley, owner of the Kansas City Athletics, introduced a new look to the game in 1967 with brightly colored uniforms and white baseball shoes. This trend was soon adopted by other ballplayers that began to sport cleats in assorted pastel shades. Another change was the introduction of rubber cleats. This came about due to a high number of baseball injuries because of the metal spikes.
Plastic Cleats
Metal spikes, though very durable, had trouble mixing well with the artificial turf that was becoming more popular in sporting fields in the 1960s. This gave birth to another innovative change in the metal cleats. Now, plastic cleats or knobs were installed on the soles to prevent the damage caused to the artificial grass. Another innovation was detachable cleats with shorter or longer spikes to be used for both natural and artificial turf.
New Style
Soft leather was always a preferred style for the baseball cleats. This is because of the flexibility this material offers but these were rather uncomfortable and lacked a supportive arch. Technological advancements have improved the quality with air-cushioned soles.
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