T E X A R K A N A M A G A Z I N E
A BASEBALL MOM’S SECRET BY TRACEY SMITH My oldest son is now 18, and he began playing tee-ball at three, which means I’ve been in the baseball-pants-cleaning-business for a solid 15 years. What started with one son playing baseball eventually became three sons playing, which transformed my laundry room into nothing short of mass chaos. Between games and practices for three boys, baseball pants (and FILTHY ones at that) quickly took over my life, and I was desperate for info on how to get them perfectly white. After all, no self-respecting baseball mom can proudly send her son onto the field in stained pants! ... Over the years, I have definitely relaxed my thinking and gotten a lot smarter about how to do their baseball laundry! Trust me when I tell you I have tried
ALL the tricks—including using plain old bleach, only to learn that it turned their white polyester baseball pants yellow! So, I’ve invested in many products through the years, as proudly suggested by every veteran baseball mom before me. These nuggets of info included everything from using the coveted Zote Soap to scrubbing stains with a toothbrush and the latest and greatest stain remover. I can even vividly remember several occasions (when hotel washing machines were broken or unavailable) having to utilize sprayers at car washes to wash out Dawn-soaked pants. However, after these years of using this or that, and trying the latest and greatest method discussed in the bleachers among all the moms who were also taking mental notes, I finally settled on MY tried-and-true method.... or shall I say “Grandma’s Secret.”
I use the following steps, which are (almost) too easy, to remove red baseball dirt from baseball clothing:
3. Throw the uniform into the washing machine and use hot water. 4. Hang up uniform to dry, but don’t kick yourself if you are in a time crunch and need to throw it into the dryer! Another reason this is my go-to product is because it does not contain bleach, so it can be used on ALL colors—which is important, since now and then, a coach will have the great idea to NOT pick white for their team’s uniform color. But with Grandma’s Secret, I can throw them all in the wash together and not have to worry about bleaching the other colors. Every baseball mom has their own tips, but I have found “Grandma’s Secret” to be among the best-kept secrets in my family’s crazy baseball-filled world!
1. If the baseball jersey or pants
don’t have to be ready ASAP, pre- soak the uniform in a hot bucket of water mixed with a scoop of Oxy Clean or whatever detergent is available. Ideally, this should be done overnight, but a couple of hours is better than nothing. If this step doesn’t happen, it’s not the end of the world!
2. Spray “Grandma’s Secret Spot Remover Laundry Spray” directly onto stains.
Allow the spray to soak into the stains for at least ten minutes.
SCAN HERE TO VIEW OUR VIDEO ON HOW TO CLEAN BASEBALL PANTS
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