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The Cleveland Guardians changed their name right after the 2021 season after more than 100 years of their prior name, the “Indians.”
Calls to change the name had swirled but grew rampant amid controversy around Native American monikers – the Washington Commanders went from the Redskins to the Washington Football Team before settling on their current name.
Terry Francona was the manager of Cleveland at the time of the name change, but he remains happy about the change, amid President Donald Trump’s calls for the organization to change it back.
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Cleveland Guardians manager Terry Francona, #77, walks off the field during the fifth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. (Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)
“I wasn’t the one that had to kind of have the (fortitude) to do it – (owner) Paul Dolan ultimately was the one that had to pull the trigger,” the current Cincinnati Reds manager said this week. “I was really proud of him, because I don’t think it was real popular with a segment of probably the older fans that kind of, I guess like Trump, ‘Why can’t it be like it used to be?’”
“And I guess my retort would be, ‘There’s probably a lot of people in this country who don’t want it like it used to be.’ And if you’re White, (you’re) probably just fine.’ That’s not how it’s supposed to work. Like, I didn’t even care what they made the name in Cleveland. I really didn’t. I just know how I was in on those conversations, and we were trying to be respectful. And for that, I gave those guys a lot of credit.”
Workers begin to remove the Cleveland Indians sign from above the scoreboard at Progressive Field on Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021 in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)
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“Not everybody’s gonna be happy. That’s never gonna be the case,” Francona added. “But I think as long as what you’re trying to do is respectful, you can go ahead and let people complain.”
Trump posted on social media earlier this week that he wanted the Guardians and Commanders to revert to their former Native American nicknames.
“The Owner of the Cleveland Baseball Team, Matt Dolan, who is very political, has lost three Elections in a row because of that ridiculous name change,” Trump said. “What he doesn’t understand is that if he changed the name back to the Cleveland Indians, he might actually win an Election. Indians are being treated very unfairly. MAKE INDIANS GREAT AGAIN (MIGA)!”
Trump also called the Commanders the “Washington ‘Whatever’s'” and threatened to halt the team’s plans to build a new stadium in the nation’s capital if they didn’t bring back the old name.
Guardians President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti dismissed Trump’s comments, saying he was not “paying a lot of attention to” it.
A Cleveland Indians fan holds up a sign during a baseball game between the Kansas City Royals and the Cleveland Indians on Monday, Sept. 27, 2021 in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
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“We’ve gotten the opportunity to build the brand as the Guardians over the last four years and are excited about the future,” Antonetti said.
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