MLB wants Indians to transition away from Chief Wahoo logo

MLB wants the Cleveland Indians to transition from Chief Wahoo logo.

Major League Baseball has had discussions with the Cleveland Indians in hopes that the franchise move away from using the longtime Chief Wahoo logo.

The mascot, with features a smiling Native American, has been used in some capacity for the franchise since the 1947 season. The logo is still prevalent on the team's baseball caps and on its uniforms.

Pat Courtney, a Major League Baseball spokesman, in a statement to The New York Timessaid that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, in his talks with the Indians’ owners, has a “desire to transition away from the Chief Wahoo logo."

“We have specific steps in an identified process and are making progress," Courtney adds. “We are confident that a positive resolution will be reached that will be good for the game and the club."

Bob DiBiasio, the team's senior vice president for public affairs, said they are trying to find a way to resolve the issue.

“We certainly understand the sensitivities of the logo, those who find it insensitive and also those fans who have a longstanding attachment to its place in the history of the team,” DiBiasio said.

The logo created controversy during last season's American League Championship Series against the Toronto Blue Jays, when a Canadian judge ruled the “Chief Wahoo” mascot did not illegally discriminate against indigenous people under Canadian law.

The ruling allowed the Indians to keep the uniforms that displayed the logo while the team played in Toronto.

- Scooby Axson