President Donald Trump took to social media on Sunday morning, campaigning for the Washington Commanders and Cleveland Guardians to revert to their former group names.
“The Washington ‘Whatevers’ ought to IMMEDIATELY change their identify again to the Washington Redskins Soccer Crew,” Trump wrote in a submit on Fact Social. “There’s a large clamoring for this. Likewise, the Cleveland Indians, one of many six unique baseball groups, with a storied previous.”
There are usually 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 individuals, in huge numbers, need this to occur.”
Guardians president Chris Antonetti shortly stomped out hypothesis sparked by Trump.
“I perceive there are very completely different views on the choice we made a number of years in the past, nevertheless it’s a call we made and we’ve gotten the chance to construct the model because the Guardians during the last 4 years, and we’re excited in regards to the future that’s in entrance of us,” Antonetti mentioned.
He didn’t absolutely come out and say that the identify won’t ever change again, nevertheless. Cleveland baseball possession is predicted to vary arms inside a number of seasons, as David Blitzer is ready to develop into 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 Recreation. 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 bought by Dan Snyder and purchased by Josh Harris in 2023, are within the midst of securing a location for his or her proposed $4 billion stadium on the outdated RFK Stadium website.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 vary the identify again to the Redskins in trade for clearance to construct a brand new dome there.
It’s onerous 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 in the course of the social unrest of the worldwide pandemic. It could be tremendously troublesome to stroll these modifications again now.