Cleveland Indians Will Be Changing Their Nickname After 2021 Season

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The Cleveland Indians baseball team announced on Dec. 14, 2020 that it will be dropping the team name after the upcoming season.  

A statement was released by the team at 1 p.m.  

Cleveland will continue to go by the nickname “Indians” for the 2021 season.  

The team decided to drop the name after having conversations with players, fans, local and national Native American groups, team sponsors and Native American researchers.  

Team owner Paul Dolan told the Associated Press in an interview that the name is “no longer acceptable in our world.” https://apnews.com/article/sports-mlb-cleveland-indians-cleveland-67590886b611649132ea48fb23a8cfc0 

Dolan wrote a letter to Cleveland fans regarding the decision to drop the name after the 2021 season.  

“As a fifth-generation Clevelander, I understand the historic impact and importance of this decision. Like many of you, I grew up with this name and have many great memories of past Indian teams: The World Series appearances, CY young winners, the longest win streak in MLB history and countless other unforgettable moments that brought our team, fans and community together. These memories will forever stay in our hearts, minds and record books and we will continue to recognize our ball club’s remarkable legacy. While I have often associated these unforgettable memories with the name Indians, I sincerely believe Cleveland is the most important part of our team name,” wrote Dolan.  

The rest of his letter to the fans can be found here

Milwaukee Brewers fan, Taylor Bagniefski commented on the changing of the name.  

“I feel it is respectable to make the change of names, many tribes truly find it offensive and a misrepresentation of who Native Americans really are,” said Bagniefski. “Especially with the mascots and their actions that some people feel is mocking their culture.”  

In 2019, the Chief Wahoo logo was removed from Cleveland hats and jerseys.  

Chief Wahoo merchandise continues to be sold, but the merchandise sales will go to causes that support Native American groups.  

The Cleveland ball club has gone by the nickname “Indians” since 1915.  

“I don’t think it changes the legacy of the organization, even with the fact that it has been their name for over 100 years, in the end they are still the same organization,” said Bagniefski.  

There has already been speculation of a new nickname, including the “Naps” or the “Spiders” but no name has been close to being decided upon yet.  

In early July, the team said that they would go through a “thorough review” of the team name and it seems that they have done so.  

The events that have taken place in our country over the last year including the death of George Floyd has brought attention to social justice and possible name changes in professional sports.  

In July, the previously named Washington Redskins changed their name to the Washington Football Team.  

President Donald Trump took to Twitter when the news came out, saying “Oh no! What is going on? This is not good news for ‘Indians’. Cancel culture at work!”  

President Trump also expressed his disapproval when the Washington Football Team changed their name in July, via Twitter.