Cleveland's baseball team to drop 'Indians' nickname: report
Cleveland is reportedly expected to announce its plans sometime this week
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Cleveland’s baseball team appears to be headed in a different direction with its nickname.
The New York Times reported on Sunday that the Cleveland Indians have decided to change their team name. The newspaper cited three sources familiar with the decision, and the move is expected to come in light of the Washington Football Team changing its name back in July.
Cleveland is reportedly expected to announce its plans sometime this week.
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The Indians -- previously known as the Forest Citys, Spiders, Bluebirds, Bronchos, and Naps before adopting their current name in 1915 -- could keep their name and uniforms for the 2021 season, but the New York Times cited one source saying that they will “shift away from it as early as 2022.”
Another option that Cleveland could take is a similar approach to what the Washington Football Team did prior to the start of this NFL season. Then following the 2021 baseball season, Cleveland would develop a new name before announcing it to the public, the newspaper reported, citing another source.
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Back in July when Washington removed the “Redskins” moniker from its name, Cleveland said it was paying attention to changing times and it may change along with them.
“We have had ongoing discussions organizationally on these issues,” the Indians said at the time. “The recent social unrest in our community and our country has only underscored the need for us to keep improving as an organization on issues of social justice.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Indians said at the time that they were committed to “engaging our community and appropriate stakeholders to determine the best path forward with regard to our team name.”
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Previously, Indians owner Paul Dolan said he and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred preferred to keep the Indians name, Cleveland.com reported.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“While the focus of the baseball world shifts to the excitement of an unprecedented 2020 season, we recognize our unique place in the community and are committed to listening, learning, and acting in the manner that can best unite and inspire our city and all those who support our team," the team said.
Fox News' Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.