<P> Batting gloves are a component in Bat - and - ball games sportswear . Typically consisting of a leather palm and back made of nylon or another synthetic fabric, the glove covers one or both hands of a batter, providing comfort, prevention of blisters, warmth, improved grip, and shock absorption when hitting the ball . The use of gloves is not obligatory in any level of the game, but they are considered an essential part of Cricket clothing and equipment . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article possibly contains unsourced predictions, speculative material, or accounts of events that might not occur . Information must be verifiable and based on reliable published sources . Please help improve it by removing unsourced speculative content . (September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article possibly contains unsourced predictions, speculative material, or accounts of events that might not occur . Information must be verifiable and based on reliable published sources . Please help improve it by removing unsourced speculative content . (September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> Some claim the first player to wear a batting glove was Bobby Thomson of the Giants, who wore golf gloves during spring training in 1949 . Others say that Ted Williams was the first to wear a golf glove in batting practice during the summer of 1953, after he returned to the Red Sox from Korea . According to David Cataneo, the veteran sportswriter who wrote I Remember Williams: Anecdotes and Memories of Baseball's Splendid Splinter, Williams' manager, Fred Corcoran, who also managed Sam Snead and Babe Zaharias at that time, was with Williams one day while he was taking an extra batting practice to get back in shape . Corcoran saw the blisters on Williams' hand and pulled out a golf glove and gave it to him to try . Soon, everyone was wearing a golf glove while batting . </P>

Who was the first baseball player to wear batting gloves