The Cleveland Indians are set for a name change.
Now the question becomes when that change will actually take place.
News dropped this week that the team is now going over a final list of names.
Next up comes the fun legal process of making sure the trademarks are all good to go.
So what names are being considered?
#Indians said 1,198 potential names were aggregated during their research. Team is now narrowing a final list and vetting the name for legal purposes.
— Tom Withers (@twithersAP) June 3, 2021
The Likely List Of Options
The news release explained how the Indians started with nearly 1,200 names to choose from.
It would appear that the likes of Guardians, Municipals, Buckeyes, Avengers, and Spiders are among the finalists.
However, fans should not equate social media chatter with what ownership is actually thinking.
Several individuals pushing a name like Spiders on Twitter does not mean it is even a finalist.
The same is true for any of the names on the list.
But it is still notable that we are even able to come up with favorites.
Indians ownership is not exactly the most popular bunch in town and may want to appease fans for what is going to be a controversial move.
Ultimately, the only stressor for ownership is doing all the legal stuff.
They may not truly care about the name of the team as long as they are making money.
And based on their quotes, we are not going to get any hints.
#Indians release some research findings in process to change name. Following group discussions, team said new name must "connect" with the city, "preserve" history and "unite" community.
Team putting potential names through vetting process.
No timeline for name change.
— Tom Withers (@twithersAP) June 3, 2021
Not having a timeline leaves this discussion right where it was before this news was reported.
So What Will Change?
There has been plenty of chatter about how some fans are not happy with this name change.
But the product on the field won’t change and having a rebrand during a painfully long World Series drought may not be the worst thing.
The Indians can’t seem to win it all, so maybe the next iteration of Cleveland’s baseball team can.
Changing any team name is a situation where the controversy will dissipate with time.
And after a certain amount of time, younger fans will only know the team for its new name.
This is the same thing as some fans still calling it “Jacobs Field.”
The best move for ownership is to expedite this process and not let it linger much longer.
Yes, the legal process has to play out.
But they should have a favorite name by now after having so much time to pick one.
It is highly doubtful they seriously considered around 1,200 names.
The “Indians” will be no more in the near future, but the memories fans have with the team will never go away.
Fresh starts are never bad and, who knows, maybe a new name will lead to a title right away.
That would be some vintage Cleveland luck right there.
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