Two iconic American baseball equipment companies are now owned by a Chinese company associated with the CCP

It's the American pastime. It's as American as apple pie.

For nearly 200 years, from 20 years before the Civil War, baseball has been associated with the United States. One of our first unique sports, that's been so beloved since its inception that still, even in the modern era, it overwhelmingly leads all domestic sports leagues in total attendance.

Baseball has been a unifying force since its inception, leading to some of the most iconic moments in U.S. sports history. Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier and helping pave the way for other integration in domestic sports competitions. Willie Mays' catch in center field at the Polo Grounds. "called shot," which became a national legend starting in 1932.

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Star baseball players like Ted Williams left the sport in the middle of their careers to join the armed forces in World War II. Lou Gehrig's iconic speech to the Yankee Stadium crowd regarding his ALS diagnosis, "Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth."

Yes, the NFL has become the most popular sports league in the country, but nothing inspires the level of regional fan dedication like baseball. Little League is something of a rite of passage for young boys, and virtually every town in America has a baseball field.

It'd be reasonable to assume, then, that the iconic companies who supply baseball equipment at both the youth and professional level would be, well, American. It'd be reasonable, yes, but unfortunately, it'd also be inaccurate. And that reality is an unfortunate symptom of a much bigger and broader problem.

Two of the most prolific baseball equipment manufacturers, known for over 100 years of making gloves and bats, are Wilson and Louisville Slugger. While many competitors have entered the space in recent years, a look across any baseball field, with children or adults playing, and you'll find Wilson gloves and equipment, and hitters using Louisville Slugger bats.

A number of star players, including Ronald Acuna Jr., Kyle Schwarber, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Will Smith, use Louisville Slugger bats. Clayton Kershaw famously used a Wilson glove his entire career.

Louisville Slugger was founded in the 1880s, Wilson sporting goods just before the start of World War I. They're American companies, making sporting equipment for the most American of sports. Or at least, they were. Now? Both are owned by a company with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party. Seriously.

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For most of the company's existence, Louisville Slugger was owned and operated by the Hillerich & Bradsby Company, founded in the 1800s to make baseball equipment. In 2015 though, the family-owned business, still in the Hillerich family, was essentially forced to sell.

CEO John A. Hillerich IV said at the time that he had effectively no choice because they weren't able to compete with mega, multinational companies that had entered the equipment space with much larger resources. They sold to Wilson, another company that started as a family business before being sold to an international conglomerate.

As far back as 1989, Wilson was sold to Amer Sports, a Finnish mult