Take $50 off the price of a Louisville Pro Flare Select Series Baseball Glove

Happy Leap Day, everybody!

Let’s celebrate a once-every-four-years day with a once-every-four-years deal. For a limited time, you can take $50 off the listed price of a Louisville Pro Flare Select Series Baseball Glove.

Just pop the glove in your cart, and the discount will be applied at checkout.

The Pro Flare Select series is designed with a larger catching surface with a flat and deep pocket. Extra wide lace for added strength. These gloves combine unmatched durability and performance with ultra-quick break in.

Here are the available sizes:

Louisville Pro Flare Select Series 12 3/4 inch Baseball Glove

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Louisville Pro Flare Select Series 11 3/4 inch Baseball Glove

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Louisville Pro Flare Select Series 11 1/2 inch Baseball Glove

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Louisville Pro Flare Select Series 11 1/4 inch Baseball Glove

Get one for $99.99 at Baseball Express.

Related: Shop our entire selection of Louisville Slugger baseball gloves.

Footwear Friday: A closer look at Nike’s new Air Huarache 2K4 Low Metal Baseball Cleats

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We’re fans of an old Vince Lombardi quote. It goes, “Leaders aren’t born, they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work.”

Nobody starts at the top of the mountain. It takes hard work and a consistent dedication to self-improvement before you can call yourself the best.

That’s what Nike’s been up to in the last 20 or so years in making the Nike Air Huarache 2K4 Low Metal Baseball Cleats.

Nike introduced the Air Huarache line in the early 1990s as a basketball shoe for the University of Michigan’s Fab 5. They were immensely popular, but that didn’t stop the engineers at Nike from continuing to evolve and build on what they had.

They used the technology from the Air Huaraches to create a baseball cleat, which has been one of the most popular styles of cleats over the past few years. But they didn’t stop there.

The new Air Huarache 2K4 Low Metal Baseball Cleats are the next step in the evolution of Air Huaraches.

They feature full-length encapsulated air for unsurpassed comfort and a springy bounce in every step. That reduces the wear and tear on your leg muscles and joints, which allows you to play longer with less fatigue.

The TPU heel counter keeps these cleats durable, and Nike’s 9-cleat configuration is designed for performance. A good cleat should provide superb traction on both dirt and grass, and its grip should allow a player to push off and stop on a dime. Nike’s 9-cleat configuration accomplishes both.

Nike’s Air Huarache 2K4 Low Metal Baseball Cleats feature lightweight Nubuck construction in the upper, which drops its weight to 13.2 ounces per cleat.

They’re available in six different colors, perfect for matching to team colors.

Get a pair for $84.99 at Baseball Express.

Related: Shop our entire selection of Nike baseball cleats and training shoes.

Marucci’s 33-inch Cat 5 baseball bat has been banned by the NCAA and NFHS

UPDATED February 23 with more information.

The 33-inch model of the 2011 Marucci Cat 5 Adult Baseball Bat has been decertified by both the NCAA and NFHS, and it will not be legal this season in college or high school baseball.

The NCAA announced the decertification on Friday. The NFHS, the national governing body of high school sports, followed suit on Tuesday in an e-mail memo to state association athletic directors.

As a result, the 33-inch Marucci Cat 5 is considered a non-compliant bat in both leagues and leagues that follow NCAA or NFHS rules.

The decertification affects only the 33-inch model; all other Marucci bats, including the Marucci Black and other Cat 5 sizes are still legal.

The decertification is part of the NCAA’s ongoing process of field testing game-used bats. The 33-inch Marucci Cat 5 baseball bat was found to exceed the allowed exit speeds under the BBCOR performance standard.

Marucci has set up a process for customers to return their decertified baseball bats. You can find more information, including instructions on how to complete a return here. You can also contact Marucci at 1-888-768-8118.

Bats must be returned to Marucci by March 31, 2012 to receive a replacement.

Marucci has released a FAQ, which we’ve re-posted below. If you have any other questions, feel free to post them in the comments.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Will Marucci replace my 33×30 Cat52 BBCOR?
A: Yes. We stand behind our products and will replace your 33×30 Cat52 BBCOR with another Marucci bat.

Q: What are my options in replacing my bat?
A: You can find out more details on Marucci’s return program for the 33-inch CAT52 BBCOR bat at www.maruccisports.com/returns.

PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR BATS TO OUR STORES – THEY MUST BE RETURNED TO MARUCCI ACCORDING TO THE INSTRUCTIONS FOUND AT www.maruccisports.com/returns.

Q: When can I expect to receive my replacement bat?
A: Marucci will process returns in the order that they are received and anticipates sending out the first replacement bats in March. For those opting to upgrade to the Marucci Black or choosing the Professional-Cut Wood bats, Marucci will begin fulfilling returns immediately.

Related: Browse our entire selection of Marucci baseball bats.

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Footwear Friday: A closer look at New Balance’s Men’s 4040 Low Metal Baseball Cleats

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We’ve taken an informal poll around the office at Baseball Express HQ, asking some of our equipment experts the most important thing to keep in mind when buying new cleats.

The unanimous answer: Fit.

Without a good fit, even the most advanced cleats become useless. A poor fit will affect your running mechanics, hampering your performance as your cleats literally hurt you more than help you.

Long-term use of poor fitting cleats will cause more than just calluses and blisters. It can lead to Achilles tendinitis and Plantar fasciitis, both of which will require extensive recovery time. With younger athletes, poor fitting footwear can lead to development problems.

By finding well-fitted cleats, you can keep those problems from ever coming up.

New Balance makes that easy with its new Men’s 4040 Low Metal Baseball Cleats. Our selection of 4040s has the traditional sizes (from 7-16), but it also allows players to choose a size based on their foot width (narrow, medium or wide).

That takes the guesswork out of buying cleats. It means the end of buying a size or two too large in order to accommodate wide feet, or sacrificing toe space in order to get fitting shoes for narrow feet.

Every pair of New Balance 4040s comes with a custom, comfortable fit.

The New Balance 4040s also include a resilient engineered elastomer, designed to provide shock absorption. That makes for a responsive, comfortable ride.

They weigh 13.3 ounces apiece, so there will be no wasted energy on the basepaths and in the field, and most importantly, no injuries caused by your cleats.

They’re available in five different color combinations, including Dustin Pedroia’s camo.

Get a pair for $94.99 at Baseball Express.

Related: Shop our entire selection of New Balance baseball cleats and shoes.