How to Clean Baseball & Softball Cleats: Easy-to-Follow Process

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Baseball and softball cleats can get dirty very quickly due to the dynamic nature of the sport. This means it is important to clean them.

Cleaning keeps your gear in top shape and prevents any further gradual wear and tear as you play more.

There are several ways you can do to keep your shoes squeaky clean and smelling good.

Here are some easy steps that will help you to clean up any mess left behind while you play on the field.

Why Do You Need to Clean Your Baseball Cleats?

After researching for hours, you purchase a great pair of baseball cleats. You can also find baseball cleats for flat feet and wide feet. The last thing you want is to look bad in them with bad performance.

Cleaning your cleats is an essential thing for every player who wants to ensure long-term play with them. You should take a look at professionals; you should observe that their cleats are clean whenever they enter the field for the first time.

During the game, the cleats can get submerged in a lot of mud, grass, dirt, or debris. It is really recommended and important to clean it after every use. You will save yourself from a lot of frustration later while cleaning them. So, you should clean the cleats after every time to get the best results.

After discussing the need to clean the baseball cleats, various precautions that you should take before cleaning the cleats are discussed below.

Precautions Before Cleaning Your Cleats

Before cleaning, you should take proper care of the cleats.

Some of the things which you should keep in mind while taking care of the cleats are:

  • You should keep your cleats in the dugout and should wear them only while playing. This will help you in preventing them from the hard surfaces in the field. It will also allow for controlling wear and tear.
  • Don’t leave the cleats in any of the areas which are exposed to extreme temperatures.
  • You can buy at least two pairs of cleats. It will help in rotating them in the games or your practice.
  • Individual spikes of the metal cleats should be checked to prevent broken or missing spikes. It is crucial to remember this whenever you wash your metal cleats.

These are some of the precautions which can be taken in order to get the best results from the cleats.

Now, let’s further discuss how can you clean your baseball and softball cleats.

How to Clean Your Baseball Cleats

Watch this short video to learn how to clean your baseball cleats specifically the cleats or spikes found on the outsole of the shoes.

The cleats should be cleaned outside or in any other place where you can mess. The bottoms and the sides are the essential areas where you need to clean the most, which should also include the area around the spike.

They are the areas that make contact with the field. This will hence provide you with excellent traction to perform well.

One of the methods which can be used in order to clean the shoes are:

Step 1: Clap the cleats: You need to tap the cleats together in order to remove the excessive mud and dirt.

Step 2: Brush off the dirt: You should now brush off the areas where your hands can’t easily reach. So, brush all the unreached areas with a brush.

Step 3: Hose down cleats: You should quickly and powerfully hose down the cleats.

Step 4: If you think the results aren’t as per your expectations. Soak and keep your cleats in lukewarm water for 4 to 6 minutes. This will provide proper cleaning to them.

Step 5: You should now wipe each of the spikes with the dishrag.

Step 6: Use Spray: You can use any spray to clean, which is meant to clean the cleats. Spray it on the metal cleats and then keep it for 1 minute.

Step 7: After performing all the steps, keep the cleats in the fresh air or in room temperature.

There is no absolute answer on how to clean your baseball cleats correctly; however, it’s always safe for you to use a tried-and-tested method so that it doesn’t ruin your pair.

The above-mentioned techniques are some of the most adopted methods that can give you back your spotless and white baseball cleats. It will also provide you with the best traction during the games.

You can also clean your soccer cleats with this method. But, do not wear soccer cleats in baseball game, for that, you should buy specific cleats for the sport.

Can You Wash Baseball Cleats in the Washing Machine?

Washing cleats in the washing machine

The simplest and the most straightforward answer to this question is NO.

Never wash your baseball or softball cleats in a washing machine or never dry them in a dryer. If you do so, you might end up permanently damaging them.

Hence, it’s imperative that you stick to the above-mentioned methods.

Final Words

In the end, it can be concluded that you should definitely clean your cleats. And if the cleats aren’t clean, you won’t be able to get the proper traction that you require while playing.

dirty baseball cleats during game

The importance of cleaning the shoes and the various precautions which can be taken in order to take the best care of the cleats are also discussed. One of the best methods to clean your cleats is also mentioned.

Even if you have the most comfortable cleats for playing baseball, if they’re not clean, it’ll affect your performance and confidence.

It is highly recommended to clean your shoes after every use.

You can also check if you can use Football Cleats for Baseball or not.

So, at last, it can be said that cleaning the cleats is an essential and beneficial thing for the player. It will provide the player with the best traction and proper comfort during the game.

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Author

James Arnold
I'm James, and I live in Stanislaus County, California. I'm playing Baseball for many years, and I love this sport so much that I also encourage my kids (Danny and Sara) to play Baseball & Softball.

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