Another Team Mulls a Name Change

The Cleveland Indians tweets about willingness to make a change
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 4, 2020 11:00 AM CDT
Another Team Mulls a Name Change
Jason Hackedorn looks into Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Indians baseball team, March 26, 2020, in Cleveland.   (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

The Cinders? The Castles? The Spiders? Whatever they choose, the Cleveland Indians organization said Friday it might just get a new team name, the New York Post reports. In light of "the recent social unrest in our community," the team tweeted, "committed to engaging our community and appropriate stakeholders to determine the best path forward with regard to our team name." The Athletic reports that the team plans to talk to Native American leaders, players, staff, alumni, and fans before any possible name change.

But a source in the organization tells Cleveland.com that no change is expected this year. Hardly a surprise, considering the Indians have resisted changing their name before. Team owner Paul Dolan told Cleveland.com in 2019 that he was "adamant about keeping the name" and said MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred "is similarly supportive of the name. Yes, some people will continue to make noise about that, but I'm not troubled by its use." After weeks of nationwide protests following the death of George Floyd, that's apparently changed. To see possible replacement names, visit CBS Sports or—for more lighthearted fare like "The Dumb Dolans"—check out Reddit. (Another team is also mulling a name change.)

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