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| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Sports equipment,textile |
| Founded | 1887; 138 years ago (1887) inSt. Louis, Missouri |
| Founder | George and Alfred Rawlings |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Baseball clothing and equipment,footwear, accessories |
Number of employees | 1,500 globally (200 in St. Louis) |
| Parent |
|
| Website | rawlings.com |
Rawlings Sporting Goods is an Americansports equipment manufacturing company based inMaryland Heights, Missouri. Founded in1887, Rawlings currently specializes inbaseball andsoftball clothing and equipment, producinggloves,bats,balls,protective gear,batting helmets,uniforms,bags.Footwear includessneakers, andsandals. The company also sells other accessories such asbelts,wallets, andsunglasses. Former products manufactured by Rawlings includedAmerican football,basketball,soccer, andvolleyball balls.
The Rawlings company was acquired by Seidler Equity Partners (SEP) andMLB Properties fromNewell Brands in June 2018 for $395 million.[1][2]
Rawlings was founded inSaint Louis in 1887, during the middle of theLong Depression, by George and Alfred Rawlings. The brothers set up a sporting goods store with its own catalog. They sold "Fishing Tackle, Guns, Baseball, Football, Golf, Polo, Tennis, Athletic and General Sporting Goods".[3] The company is credited with introducing football shoulder pads in 1902, and the first all-weather football.
TheHorween Leather Company has provided Rawlings with leather since 1929.[4] In 2003, Horween was providing leather for 3,000 Rawlingsbaseball gloves annually, and half of professional baseball players were using baseball gloves made from Horween leather.[5]
In 2003,K2 Inc. acquired Rawlings.[6] In 2005 Rawlings corporate headquarters were moved fromFenton, Missouri, toTown and Country, Missouri.[7] In 2007,Jarden acquired K2 Inc.[8] On December 14, 2015,Newell Rubbermaid announced that it would acquire Jarden for over $15 billion of cash and stock. The combined company was renamed Newell Brands.[9][10]
It was announced on June 5, 2018, that Rawlings was sold from Newell Brands to theLos Angeles-basedprivate equity firm, Seidler Equity Partners (SEP), run bySan Diego Padres ownerPeter Seidler, with MLB a co-investor in the $395 million deal. Rawlings employs 150 people in the St. Louis area, and 1,200 globally. The deal was completed on July 2, 2018.[11] Rawlings previously made some custom baseball gloves at its plant inWashington, Missouri, and still makes many baseball gloves in the United States, with the factory still open.[12]
Rawlings began providing the hometownSt. Louis Cardinals with gloves in 1906. In1920,Bill Doak, a pitcher for theSt. Louis Cardinals, suggested that a web be placed between the first finger and the thumb in order to create a pocket. This design soon became the standard for baseball gloves. Doak patented his design and sold it to Rawlings. His design became the precursor to modern gloves, and enabled Rawlings to become the preferred glove of professional players.[13]
In 1955,Spalding bought Rawlings, and began using it to manufacture baseballs. In 1957, the company introduced theGold Glove award, which became the major award for fielding in baseball. It also sponsors theMinor League Baseball (MiLB) "Rawlings Woman Executive of the Year" award. Thirteen years after acquiring it, anantitrust investigation forced Spalding to sell Rawlings again, but as it did so Spalding set up a contract that would have Rawlings manufacture baseballs to sell with the Spalding logo.
When this agreement ended in 1977, Rawlings began using its own logo, becoming the official supplier of the major leagues (producing separate balls for both theAmerican andNational Leagues from 1977 to 1999, and since 2000, a single ball for all of Major League Baseball), succeedingSpalding, which had been the supplier for a century. All the balls supplied to MLB teams are manufactured in Costa Rica.[14] Many major leaguers have endorsed Rawlings equipment over the years. There are five main series for the gloves: the Gold Glove Series, the Heritage Pro Series, the Heart of the Hide Series, the Pro Preferred Series, and the Gold Glove Collection Series.
As of 2013[update], Rawlings baseball gloves were the most often-chosen gloves of current MLB players.[15]
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Former products manufactured by Rawlings includedAmerican football,basketball,soccer, andvolleyball balls, as well asgolf clubs.
As of August 19, 2010, Rawlings signed a multi-year deal with theNational Football League for products such as tent canopies, grills, and chairs. This will also include non-exclusive tailgate products such as coolers, stadium seats, and footballs.[16]
Rawlings currently sponsors numerous collegiate baseball teams in theNCAA.
Rawlings sponsors the Rawlings Big Stick Award, which is presented to theAmerican Legion Baseball "player who accumulated the most total bases."[17]
