Selection of Materials
Baseballs are made from several materials, including rubber, yarn and cowhide. The core is made of rubber, a material that improves the resiliency of the ball when hit with a bat or caught with a glove. Yarn makes up the middle of ball. The yarn is a mix of four-ply gray woolen yarn, three-ply white woolen yarn, three-ply gray wooden yarn and a white poly-cotton finishing yarn. The cover is made from No. 1 grade alum-tanned full-grained cowhide that has been tested for 17 potential deficiencies.
Successive Layering
The core is made from two shells of black rubber molded together with a thin layer of red rubber on the outside. A layer of cement is applied to the rubber core and the first layer of yarn is applied. The first layer of yarn is the four-ply gray yarn, followed by the three-ply white yarn and then the three-ply gray yarn. The layers' lengths are 121 yards, 45 yards, and 53 yards, respectively. Finishing yarn, which measures 150 yards, is applied last.
Sewing the Hide
The cowhide cover is cut into two figure-eight pieces and placed around the ball and stapled together. There are 88 inches of waxed red thread that is sewn into the cowhide for a total of 108 stitches. After the stitches are completed, the staples are removed and raised stitches are reduced with a rolling machine.
Finishing the Process
Each ball is inspected for measurements, weight and overall grade. The ball must weigh between 5 and 5-1/4 oz. and measure between 9 and 9-1/2 inches in circumference. An overall grade is given based on appearance and stamped for the appropriate organization.
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