Best Fastpitch Softball First Base Mitts (2026): 12" to 13" Picks

The best fastpitch first base mitt for most everyday first basemen is the Mizuno MVP Prime 13" (about $110): pro-feel leather and a deep, true first-base pocket that scoops, stretches and frames a big target. The Rawlings Shut Out 12" (about $71) is the value pick for youth and part-time first basemen, the 13" Easton Ghost NX is the pick for maximum reach, and the Rawlings Liberty Advanced 13" is the premium mitt for a high school or college regular.

First base is a position you cannot fake with the wrong glove. The throws come low, wide and in the dirt, and a real first base mitt is built to scoop them and give the rest of the infield a big, clean target. Below are 7 mitts worth buying, a size chart by age, how to pick the right hand orientation, and how to break one in so it plays by opening day.

Prices are Amazon at time of writing for the linked right-hand-throw listing unless noted.

Most 10U to 12U first basemen use about a 12" mitt, 12U to 14U players move to 12.5", and high school and older players use 12.5" to 13". First base mitts are sized bigger than infield gloves on purpose: the job is reach and a big target. The real question is how much mitt the player can control.

The test: she puts it on and opens and closes it with one hand, then squeezes a softball in the pocket. If she cannot close it around the ball, it is too big for her right now. A mitt that is too big to close is worse than a slightly smaller one she can work. Our glove size chart covers fielders' gloves by position.

A first base mitt has no individual fingers and a long, scoop-shaped pocket built to dig low throws out of the dirt and present a big target, and you cannot play first base well with a regular infield glove. A fielder's glove is built to catch and transfer quickly to the throwing hand. First base is the opposite job: the first baseman receives on nearly every infield play, so the mitt is a big, forgiving target that closes around an off-line throw and scoops short hops.

Try to play first with a standard glove and you feel it on every throw in the dirt: there is no scoop to work with, and the target is smaller for the player throwing to you.

A first base mitt is worn on the non-throwing hand, so a right-handed thrower buys "RHT" and wears the mitt on the left hand. The label describes the throwing hand, not the wearing hand.

Every link on this page opens the right-hand-throw version except the lefty Shut Out. Switch the hand on the Amazon listing if she throws left. Left-handed throwers are also a natural fit at first base, because the throw to second or third does not require turning the body.

1. Confirm she plays first regularly. Occasional first basemen can share a team mitt; regulars need their own.
2. Pick the size from the chart, and run the one-hand close test.
3. Pick the leather for her level. Youth and part-time: Shut Out. Regular 12U to 14U: SSK FP5 or R9. High school and up: Mizuno, Ghost NX, Wilson A1000 or Liberty Advanced.
4. Buy the right hand (RHT for right-handed throwers).
5. Buy in the off-season so there is time to break it in.

Playing the corner also means hard shots off the bat. Many first basemen wear a fastpitch fielding mask, and if she also plays the outfield, see our fastpitch outfield gloves.

A stiff leather mitt must be broken in to form its scoop: budget one to two weeks of catch, or use a break-in kit to speed it up. The premium leather mitts here (SSK FP5, Mizuno, R9, Ghost NX, A1000, Liberty Advanced) arrive stiff and need work before the pocket forms. Better leather means better long-term feel and a more deliberate break-in.

1. Work a thin coat of glove conditioner into the pocket and hinge. Less is more.
2. Play catch every day. Nothing forms a pocket like real throws, including short hops.
3. Between sessions, put a softball in the pocket and close the mitt with a wide band or glove wrap.
4. Flex the hinge by hand while watching TV.
5. Skip ovens, microwaves and hot water. They dry and crack leather.

A Rawlings glove break-in kit (about $11) covers the conditioner and wrap. Our glove break-in guide has the full routine.

Buy a fastpitch-specific first base mitt: the pocket is shaped for the larger 12" softball and the hand opening is sized for softball players. A softball is bigger than a baseball, so a fastpitch mitt's pocket and break are shaped to hold it. A baseball first base mitt may look similar, but the pocket and fit are wrong for the game. If you do need the baseball version for a brother, see our baseball first base mitt guide.

A youth player needs her own first base mitt when she plays the position regularly; if she rotates through occasionally, a shared team mitt is usually fine. Many youth teams keep one first base mitt in the equipment bag for whoever is at the bag that inning. The Rawlings Shut Out exists for the in-between case: a player at first often enough to want her own but not so committed that premium leather makes sense. Once first base is her everyday spot, a broken-in mitt that fits her hand pays off.