Cleveland Indians fans have now had the weekend to settle in and ruminate on the new Guardians name.
But it is clear based on the initial reaction that plenty of fans are not happy with the upcoming change.
That is the nature of change in general.
Something was the same for so long and no matter what the change actually entails, many aren’t going to like it.
Yet that won’t stop the team from becoming the Guardians and it is up to the organization to make the rebrand feel special in 2022.
Here are a few things the team can do to spice things up a bit after a brief, forgettable press conference announcing the change.
Why Guardians?
Our fans spoke and we listened. pic.twitter.com/QV5NSwk4Ez
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) July 24, 2021
3. Add A New Mascot
Slider isn’t going anywhere, but that doesn’t mean a new mascot can’t join the mix.
Slider is one of the more generic, or confusing, mascots in all professional sports.
Now that the team has a name like the Guardians, a new mascot based off the nearby bridge sculptures makes too much sense.
The acceptable possibilities were obviously limited with the Indians name.
That is no longer the case and this should be a top priority for the entertainment and fan experience team.
2. Make Themed Areas Within Progressive Field
Progressive Field is already a fun ballpark to be in given the open atmosphere and the amount of food and drink options all over the stadium.
It is hard to rival the Corner Bar out in right field.
But the possibilities are now endless with this new name.
Want to go with a mythical Guardian theme?
Add in some themed areas, or just change up the name on some current ones.
Those in the kids club can be the “Young Guard” or anything of that variety.
They just need something to make fans feel connected to the new name, as opposed to it feeling like a corporate change and nothing else.
1. Design Some Better Logos
The initial Guardians logo received quite the polarizing reaction.
The name Guardians is whatever. But are they serious with this logo? It looks like a stock avatar for Yahoo fantasy football in 2004. pic.twitter.com/0vO90aHeO9
— Brandon Walker (@BWalkerSEC) July 23, 2021
Now the artists within the organization can use that feedback and focus on designing some more logos.
Also, the team could add to the uniforms because as of right now, not much is going to look different in 2022.
The inspiration for the logo should be the bridge Guardians that sit right outside the stadium.
That made much more sense than the letter “G” with wings holding a baseball.
There are plenty of fans on Twitter coming out with better designs.
This does not mean the team needs to choose an amateur design, however, they can see the fact other options are better.
This is a big change for everyone and starting with some better artwork would be nice.
Leave a Reply