Sportswear group Asics Corp is planning to close its baseball equipment division and refocus resources on its core athletic footwear business. The company will stop selling baseball gloves, bats, and other gear from late September next year, though it will continue to offer cleats. This decision follows an assessment of the domestic product portfolio, which revealed that investments in baseball equipment were limited compared to other sports. Asics’ baseball equipment division had relied on sponsorship deals with baseball players. In Asics’ recent financial report, the performance of the apparel and equipment segment was the weakest among all categories, with sales growing in Europe but remaining weak in Japan.