President Donald Trump took to social media on Sunday morning, campaigning for the Washington Commanders and Cleveland Guardians to revert to their former staff names.
“The Washington ‘Whatevers’ ought to IMMEDIATELY change their identify again to the Washington Redskins Soccer Crew,” Trump wrote in a submit on Reality Social. “There’s a massive clamoring for this. Likewise, the Cleveland Indians, one of many six unique baseball groups, with a storied previous.”
There should not six unique Main League Baseball groups, and the Cleveland skilled baseball group had a number of nicknames earlier than the Indians moniker was adopted within the early 1900s.
Within the submit, Trump continued: “Our nice Indian folks, in large numbers, need this to occur.”
Guardians president Chris Antonetti shortly stomped out hypothesis sparked by Trump.
“I perceive there are very totally different views on the choice we made a number of years in the past, however it’s a call we made and we’ve gotten the chance to construct the model because the Guardians over the past 4 years, and we’re excited concerning the future that’s in entrance of us,” Antonetti mentioned.
He didn’t totally come out and say that the identify won’t ever change again, nevertheless. Cleveland baseball possession is anticipated to alter fingers inside a number of seasons, as David Blitzer is ready to grow to be the bulk stakeholder within the membership by 2028.
The Commanders didn’t launch an announcement.
The Redskins modified their identify to the Washington Soccer Crew in 2020 and 2021 earlier than adopting the Commanders in 2022.
After public strain, the Guardians dropped the controversial Chief Wahoo emblem in 2018. Cleveland was rewarded with the 2019 MLB All-Star Sport. It didn’t take lengthy for sweeping modifications to comply with, because the membership dropped the Indians identify altogether in 2021, rolling out Guardians uniforms, hats and stadium signage.
The Commanders, who had been offered by Dan Snyder and bought by Josh Harris in 2023, are within the midst of securing a location for his or her proposed $4 billion stadium on the previous RFK Stadium website.
The federal authorities has threatened to intervene in these negotiations, and on-line hypothesis has already percolated that Trump may maintain that website hostage, giving Harris an ultimatum to alter the identify again to the Redskins in trade for clearance to construct a brand new dome there.
It’s arduous to examine a world the place the Commanders and Guardians may attempt to put that toothpaste again within the tube. They ripped the Band-Aids off, upsetting older, conventional followers with their identify modifications throughout the social unrest of the worldwide pandemic. It might be tremendously tough to stroll these modifications again now.
