Where Are Rawlings Baseballs Made?

Rawlings baseballs are the official baseball of Major League Baseball. They’ve been handcrafted in Costa Rica since 1955.

Rawlings Manufacturing Locations

Rawlings has plants in Costa Rica, China, and the Dominican Republic. In the United States, there are two Rawlings plants. One is in Florida and the other is in Missouri.

USA

Rawlings has two primary manufacturing locations in the United States, one in Costa Rica, and one in China. The baseballs used in Major League Baseball are made at the company’s plant in Juarez, Mexico.

Rawlings has a long history of manufacturing baseballs in the United States. The company was founded in 1887 by George Rawlings and his son, John Rawlings, in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1905, Rawlings moved its manufacturing operations to a plant in Costa Rica. The company returned to the United States in 1987, when it opened a plant in Juarez, Mexico.

Costa Rica

In Costa Rica, Rawlings has a factory in Turrialba where it produces both major league and minor league baseballs. The company has been in Costa Rica since 1986, and employs around 200 people at its Turrialba facility.

China

Rawlings has had a manufacturing presence in China since 1987, when it opened its first factory in the city of Dongguan. By 2001, Rawlings had three factories in China, and the company’s total workforce in the country numbered more than 1,200 employees. In 2003, Rawlings relocated its Asia-Pacific regional headquarters from Hong Kong to Dongguan.

Rawlings’ Chinese manufacturing facilities produce a variety of products, including baseballs, softballs, gloves, and other sporting equipment. Rawlings is one of the largest employers in Dongguan, and the company’s presence has helped to spur economic development in the city.

Rawlings Raw Materials

Rawlings Baseballs are made from the finest materials available. The leather is hand selected from the top five percent of American steer hides. The laces are made of 100% virgin wool, and the stitching is the strongest available.

Rubber

Rawlings sources its rubber from a supplier in Thailand. The company has been working with this supplier for many years and has developed a strong relationship. Rawlings visits the supplier’s facility on a regular basis to ensure that the rubber meets its high standards.

Cork

Cork is used in the center of the baseball. It is usually black, but sometimes red or tan. The cork has a hole in the center where a rubber or limestone core is placed. The core is what the baseball is wound around with yarn.

Leather

Rawlings baseballs are made from top-quality handcrafted leather. They use only the finest big-league ready hides, which undergo a strict tanning process. This process is what ultimately provides every ball with its outstanding durability, feel, and performance.

Rawlings’ leather is tanned by J.W. Hulme Co., a leader in the American tanning industry since 1883. J.W. Hulme’s Horween Leather Company is the exclusive tanner of Rawlings’ big league-quality hides. Founded in 1905, Horween is one of the oldest continuously operatingtanneries in the United States, and their craftsmanship is unmatched.

Rawlings Quality Control

Rawlings baseballs are handcrafted in Costa Rica from the finest materials available. Each baseball is hand-stitched, ensuring that every ball meets Rawlings’ high standards for quality and durability. Rawlings is committed to ensuring that every baseball they produce is of the highest quality.

ISO 9001 Certification

Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc. is proud to announce that its baseball division has achieved certification to the ISO 9001:2008 standard. The certification was completed following an extensive audit of our manufacturing process by SRI Quality System Registrar, Inc.

The ISO 9001:2008 standard is the most recognized quality management standard in the world and is used by organizations to demonstrate their commitment to quality and customer satisfaction. To achieve certification, Rawlings had to establish and document a comprehensive quality management system covering all aspects of baseball production, from customer order through final delivery. In addition, we had to demonstrate our ability to consistently produce products that meet customer and regulatory requirements.

The completion of this certification is a testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone at Rawlings Baseball. It is also a reflection of our commitment to manufacturing the highest quality products in the industry. We are confident that this certification will help us continue to provide our customers with the best possible products and service.

Testing Procedures

Rawlings employs state-of-the-art technology to test its baseballs before they ever reach the professional level. Major League Baseball® Approved
All Rawlings baseballs used by Major League Baseball® teams are handmade in Costa Rica and tested to the most stringent specifications. The leather is first graded for color, grain quality and feel. The cover is then hand-cut and the stitching is done by hand using tough, 16 oz red thread.

After the baseballs are assembled, they are rigorously tested for roundness, weight distribution and size. Once they’ve passed these tests, the baseballs are sent to MLB for final approval before being used in games.

Rawlings History

Rawlings has a long and storied history, dating back to 1887. The company has been through a lot of changes over the years, but one thing has remained the same: Rawlings is still one of the premier manufacturers of baseballs. Let’s take a look at the company’s history and how it has become the go-to choice for many Major League Baseball teams.

George Rawlings

George Rawlings was born in Brooklyn, New York on October 9, 1858. He was the eldest son of John and Margaret Rawlings. His father died when he was only four years old and his mother died when he was eleven. He was then raised by his maternal grandparents, George and Martha Washington. George Rawlings worked in a grocery store as a boy and then became a clerk in a hardware store. He did not finish high school but he was a bright young man and he taught himself shorthand and typing.

Rawlings Family

The Rawlings family has a long history in the baseball industry. The company was founded in 1887 by George Rawlings, who began making baseballs in his home in St. Louis, Missouri. His son, John, took over the business in 1910 and moved the family to Haiti, where he began mass-producing baseballs. The company remained in Haiti until 1985, when it moved production to Costa Rica. Rawlings is currently owned by Newell Brands.

Rawlings and Major League Baseball

Rawlings is the official baseball provider for Major League Baseball, and has been since 2013. Rawlings has a long history with baseball dating back to 1887. The company is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, and has manufacturing facilities in Costa Rica and China.

Rawlings as the Official Baseball of MLB

Rawlings has been the official baseball of Major League Baseball (MLB) since 1997, when it replaced Spalding as the official league baseball supplier. Rawlings itself is a subsidiary of the Newell Brands company.

In addition to supplying game balls for every MLB game, Rawlings also manufactures balls for Minor League Baseball, the NCAA, and international competitions such as the World Baseball Classic. The company also supplies balls for training use; these balls are often slightly cheaper than the game balls and have lower quality control standards, as they are not intended for official use.

Rawlings manufactures its baseballs at plants in Costa Rica and China. The Costa Rican factory produces around 2.4 million balls per year, while the Chinese facility produces around 1.5 million balls per year. Each ball is hand-stitched by workers at these factories; in China, that task is typically performed by women.

MLB Players Who Use Rawlings

Did you know that Rawlings has been the official baseball of Major League Baseball for over 20 years? Rawlings is also the official provider of baseballs for the Minor Leagues, so if you’re a fan of minor league baseball, you’re likely watching games played with Rawlings balls as well. But where are Rawlings baseballs made?

Rawlings has a long and storied history dating back to 1887, when the company was founded in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1909, Rawlings produced the first official MLB baseball, and they’ve been supplying MLB with balls ever since. Today, Rawlings operates out of three facilities in Costa Rica, where they employ over 1,000 people.

Here are just a few of the MLB stars who use Rawlings baseballs:
-Bryce Harper
-Clayton Kershaw
-Mookie Betts
-Mike Trout