Report: Cleveland to Drop 'Indians' From Team Name

Cleveland reportedly plans to begin using a new team name and uniform as early as 2022.

Cleveland will change its team name from "Indians" to another mascot as early as 2022, according to the New York Times' David Waldstein and Michael Schmidt. 

The franchise is expected to announce the change this week, per Waldstein and Schmidt. A new nickname and logo has not been selected. Cleveland will reportedly keep its current mascot and the uniforms in 2021 before making a change ahead of the 2022 season. 

Cleveland announced in July it would consider changing the team's mascot. Its announcement came hours after the Washington Football Team announced it would undergo "a thorough review of the team's name."

“We are committed to making a positive impact in our community and embrace our responsibility to advocate social justice and equality," Cleveland's statement read in July. "Our organization fully recognizes our team name is among the most visible ways in which we connect with the community.”

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— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) July 4, 2020

Cleveland was one of the American League's first franchises after being founded in 1901. The team has used the "Indians" moniker since 1915. In 2019, Cleveland announced it would discontinue the use of the Chief Wahoo logo on its uniform. 

"Major League Baseball is committed to building a culture of diversity and inclusion throughout the game,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “Over the past year, we encouraged dialogue with the Indians organization about the club’s use of the Chief Wahoo logo. During our constructive conversations, [owner] Paul Dolan made clear that there are fans who have a longstanding attachment to the logo and its place in the history of the team."

Cleveland has been one of the American League's best teams in recent seasons. 2020 marked the franchise's fourth playoff appearance in the last five years, though Cleveland has not won the World Series since 1948.