As the Washington Redskins weigh whether or not to change their name in the NFL, the Cleveland Indians face the same decision before the MLB season. If the choice was up to manager Terry Francona, though, the team would already have a new name.
Terry Francona: “I think it’s time to move forward” by changing Cleveland Indians name
Since taking over as the Cleveland Indians manager in 2013, Terry Francona has answered plenty of questions about the team’s name. Now with the spotlight focused on creating more change in sports and addressing derogatory team names and traditions, Francona is ready for his club to be part of the movement.
The team ditched its Chief Wahoo logo from its uniforms before the 2019 season. While the move was met with some anger from fans, the organization showed it was committed to making real changes to its brand and message.
As Francona noted, the tone and sentiment towards certain team names and logos are changing. Everyone has become more aware of the meanings and history behind certain terms, which is now sparking a change.
”Even at my age, you don’t want to be too old to learn or to realize that, maybe I’ve been ignorant of some things, and to be ashamed of it, and to try to be better,” Francona said. ”I’m glad that we’re going to be open to listening, because I think that’s probably the most important thing right now, is being willing to listen, not necessarily just talk.”
Cleveland obviously only has a few weeks to decide if it wants a new team name before Opening Day. However, much like with Washington’s NFL team, it seems likely sweeping changes will be made before the year is over.