Rawlings Sporting Goods has produced many ROMLB-level baseballs for its own promotional and internal purposes. These are not technically MLB baseballs. There are MLB baseball-affiliated partner companies and organizations that don’t fall directly under the MLB umbrella. The Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and Rawlings Gold Glove Awards are key examples of baseballs in this segment. For all of those Rawlings balls that are not MLB-owned, but have a tie-in, here’s their dedicated Gallery.
The most pristine, flawless leather baseballs I have ever seen were not made for game-use. They were (and still are) Rawlings Gold Glove Award Ceremony Balls from 2011 to 2013. The 2012 was signed on the sweet spot by GGA Ceremony event host, Jerry Seinfeld. They’re pictured below, but you’ll have to take my word for it. Pictures do not do these justice.
Rawlings Gold Glove Award Dinner Presentation & Ceremony Baseballs
1991, 1992, and 1993 Rawlings Gold Glove Award Dinner and Presentation, New York City, NY (gifts for invited guests & VIPs). Rawlings Gold Glove Award Ceremony: 2011, 2011 AL/NL Winners Edition, 2011 GGA Ceremony Prototype 1, 2011 GGA Ceremony Prototype 2, 2012 GGA Ceremony, 2013 GGA Ceremony, 2014 GGA Ceremony, 2015 GGA Ceremony, 2016 GGA Ceremony, 2017 GGA 60th Anniversary (event & common retail), 2018 GGA Ceremony, 2019 GGA Ceremony Gold, 2019 GGA Black (common retail), 2022 GGA Ceremony, 2022 PROTOTYPE GGA Ceremony 24-Karat Gold 65th, 2022 GGA Ceremony 24-Karat Gold 65th Anniversary (Limited Retail), 2023 GGA Ceremony, 2024 GGA Ceremony. 2025 Rawlings Gold Glove Award Ceremony Baseball: needed! (2020–2021 Canceled)
Rawlings Standard & Miscellaneous Gold Glove Award Baseballs
Rawlings has produced a variety of Gold Glove Award standard baseballs for retail sales and signings. These are mostly very common and are updated each time the company’s presidency changes hands. Then there are a few miscellaneous—and extremely rare—Rawlings corporate, staff, executive and dealer partner exclusives.
1990s Standard GGA. 2000s Standard GGA Version 1 (No president). 2000s Standard GGA 2 (Pres. Howard B. Keene). 2000s Unknown/Prototype GGA 3 or Corporate Exclusive (Pres. Robert Parish). 2007 Gold Glove Award 50th Anniversary (Limited, Possibly Prototype or a Company-Exclusive. Parish). 2007 GGA 50th K2 Merchandising Team (Corporate/Employee-only, signed by Pres. Parish). 2011 Negro Leagues GGA (Limited, for signings). 2015–Current Standard GGA (Pres. Michael Zlaket). 2019 Gold Glove Club Japan.
There are plenty of cool, obscure and random Rawlings high-grade leather game-style baseballs are out there to be discovered. We’re only chasing the best of this potentially broad category – those with some connection to the Majors or MLB players and/or Rawlings Corporate. Many of these are considered to be promotional in nature, but most are true top-grade leather baseballs—not souvenirs or synthetic/vinyl. So please don’t discredit these just because if they don’t have an MLB league stamp with commissioner’s signature. They’re all winners and they have a place in the Museum of Baseballs.
Rawlings Corporate Promotional, Partners, & Miscellaneous
Rawlings Promotional, Partners, and Miscellaneous Corporate Baseballs (image captions coming soon). Old Timers’ Classic. Seasons Greetings. MLB Baseball Winter Meetings. Hall of Fame Signature Baseballs (Black Haiti, Red Costa Rica, Red no country, Blue no country, Multicolor Logo). K2/Rawlings Merger. Cy Young Award. Presidential Seal / White House Exclusive Baseballs. MLB Standard variations.
Miscellaneous Rawlings Test Print Baseballs
Just a quick sub-gallery with a few Easter eggs if you’ve scrolled far enough. These are miscellaneous Rawlings baseballs used for test stamping and perhaps some execs or employees goofing around with ink colors and the stamping machines at Rawlings corporate headquarters in St. Louis. No prototypes here; none of these were intended to be seen.
