With baseball season starting up again, there’s a lot to get excited for. Spring games, long summer days on the field, and the excitement of championship series in the early fall. Baseball season is a glorious thing, and you should be well-equipped for when it starts.

One of the most important things a baseball player needs to have is a good pair of baseball pants. You want something that will hang in there when you slide into home for the game-winning point. Read on to learn about some of the best baseball pants on the market.

Top 10 Best Baseball Pants for 2021

Here are the Dugout Debate winners for best baseball pants 2021.

1. Under Armor Cleanup Series

Under Armor has a great reputation for creating high-quality sporting gear, a reputation they live up to with the Cleanup Series. These pants are made from moisture-wicking polyester that will keep you cool and dry through the bottom of the ninth. The pants have a longer inseam, and they have an open bottom to make sure you aren’t restricted. 

2. Rawling’s Semi-Relaxed 

As the name suggests, the Rawlings Semi-Relaxed pants strike the perfect balance between comfort and movability. They are the best baggy baseball pants that still allow you speed and agility. They’ll make sure you can make all the plays and stay comfortable for the whole game. The material is fairly thin, so if you’re playing ball somewhere cold, these may not be your best choice.

3. Mizuno Premier Short Piped

If you prefer a more old-school style, the Mizuno Premier Short Piped pants might be a great option for you. Unlike most other baseball pants, the Mizuno Premier Short Piped pants have elastic at the bottom to keep them snug on your legs as you play. The fabric is a little thicker than most baseball pants, but they don’t have the double-reinforced knee stitching. 

4. Easton Mako II Piped

Easton is another great name in sporting goods, and their Mako II Piped pants live up to that reputation with the best baseball pants for adults. Unlike many of the other products, these have Scotchguard included. This helps reduce stains, which will make washing out grass and dirt marks that much easier.

5. Nike Team Vapor Pro Piped High

If you’re looking for a high-cut pant, Nike has brought their usual high quality to the Vapor Pro Piped High pants. These have a vented rear knee that helps keep you comfortable even in the heat of summer. The Vapor Pro Piped High pants are tailored to make them fit well and stay flexible and have an elastic bottom that keeps everything where it’s supposed to be. 

6. Champro Triple Crown Open Bottom Piped

Champro is something of a lesser-known brand, but they have crafted classic, reliable baseball pants. Where these pants really stand out is in their inseam adjustment capability. The Triple Crown pants come with a longer inseam, but a Velcro hook-and-loop inseam adjuster allows you to make them whatever length you need.

7. Majestic Cool Base Piped HD

Based on the name alone, who doesn’t want to wear baseball pants called “Majestic Cool Base?” But these pants offer more than just fantastic branding. The waistband on these pants is engineered for comfort, and the piping will provide a cool, crisp look.

8. Rawlings Knee-High Series

If high pants are your style, Rawlings has a fantastic offering with their Knee-High Series. They are made from durable polyester that will take a beating, and they have flatlock stitchwork to make sure you don’t bust a seam at an inopportune time. As you may have gathered from the name, the pants have a sixteen-inch inseam that lands just below the knee.

9. Easton Deluxe Series

Easton has another great offering with their Deluxe Series, long pants that have elastic bottoms to ensure a close fit. The Deluxe Series features a Bio-Dry technology that wicks away moisture to keep you comfortable. And the polyester material is constructed with UV protection in mind to make sure your days in the sun are safe and happy.

10. Wilson Sporting Goods Series

The Wilson Sporting Goods Series are the baseball pants we all think of when we remember the classic players. White with black stripes and a close fit, these are the best baseball pants for style and function. They are a no-nonsense, no-frills sort of pant meant to protect your legs and stand up to a beating. 

What to Look for in the Best Baseball Pants

There are a few key factors all baseball pants come manufactured with. These are features that help the pants stand up to the amount of strain you’re going to be putting them under. After all, most pants don’t have to stand up to their wearers sliding all over a baseball field for 162 games a season.

Material

The material your baseball pants are made of is one of the most important factors you’ll want to keep an eye on.

• You want a high-quality material that will resist wear and tear during a season.
• Also, something that won’t stain too easily and that you can throw in the wash at the end of a game.
• Most baseball pants are made from 100 percent high-quality polyester. This provides the durability and washability you need, even though many companies make pants from double-knit fabric.
• You may want to check on the thickness as well if you play somewhere where it gets cold.

Length

There are two basic lengths baseball pants come in: long and short.

Many teams these days play with long pants for a variety of reasons. They provide more protection for your legs, and they’re better if you play in cold weather.

Having knee-high pants can offer a few different advantages.

1. For one, if you play somewhere hot, these pants can help you stay cooler during the summer months while offering enough warmth to keep you from freezing in the fall.
2. For another, they’re easier to clean since there isn’t as much leg to get stained or dirty.

Pockets

Most baseball pants on the market are going to come with two back pockets. These are where you’ll put your batting gloves when you get on base, so it’s important to have these. You may also need to store additional braces or wraps depending on any injuries you might have.

Ideally, you want your pockets to have some sort of closure—a button, snap, or similar. These will keep your gloves in place when you’re running and sliding around the baseline. Otherwise, you’re going to have to go back out and retrieve them, which isn’t a great look after you’ve just scored a run.

Reinforced Knees

Companies who make baseball pants know how much time you’re going to spend sliding around on your knees. Whether you’re diving to catch a grounder or sliding into home, the knees on your pants are going to see some wear. So many sports manufacturing companies will reinforce the knees on their baseball pants.

In some cases, companies will simply add another layer of stitching at the knees to help support the fabric. The best companies will weave the fabric double-thick there to offer the most protection. Check if the pants you’re planning to buy have a reinforced knee; if they don’t, you might want to find another pair.

Leg Openings

There are also a few options for the leg opening style on baseball pants. The first is an open style, where the pant leg hangs down like it would on a regular pair of street pants. This is good if you prefer more freedom of movement when you’re playing.

But if you’re worried about having extra fabric flapping around your ankles while you’re playing, you can also get closed pant legs. These have a band of elastic around the bottom to keep them snug around your leg. Although there are long pants that have this leg style, you see it more commonly with short pants where they gather at the knee.

Belt Loops

If you’ve seen Bull Durham, you may be familiar with the nightmare scene Nuke has on the bus. He dreams he’s standing up on the pitcher’s mound at a big game while everyone laughs at him for wearing ladies’ garters—and nothing else. (If you haven’t seen Bull Durham, you should stop right now and go watch it.)

Nobody wants to wind up in Nuke’s situation, which is why belt loops on baseball pants are so important. Some companies will actually provide a belt with the pants, but most don’t. In any case, be sure your pants do have belt loops included on them.

Closure

In a similar vein, the worst thing many players can imagine (short of an injury) is sliding into home plate, only to have the closure on their pants give out. No one wants to ruin a home run with an unplanned show. Baseball pant manufacturers know this, and they’ve put in measures to make sure it doesn’t happen.

Many baseball pants come equipped with double snap closures to make sure everything stays where it should. They all come with reinforced metal zippers as well. So you can enjoy your game-winning run, confident that nothing is going to wind up anywhere it shouldn’t as a result of a spectacular slide.