The Cleveland Guardians changed their name prior to the 2022 MLB season after 106 years of being known as the Indians.
This change was reignited on Sunday when President Donald Trump publicly called for the Guardians and Washington Commanders to change their names back to what they used to be, though one Guardians executive made the right move by immediately shutting this all down.
Guardians President Chris Antonetti spoke on the topic Sunday afternoon and said that it will not be happening.
“I understand there are very different perspectives on the decision we made a few years ago, but it’s a decision we made and we’ve gotten the opportunity to build the brand as the Guardians over the last four years and we’re excited about the future that’s in front of us.”
Guardians president Chris Antonetti, on the team name: pic.twitter.com/M69ei9dm3t
— Zack Meisel (@ZackMeisel) July 20, 2025
This is the exact right response in the proper amount of time, as the team was wise to get out ahead of this and shut it down before it became a bigger topic of discussion.
It was never going to be an easy decision to change a team name that existed for 106 years, but it’s exciting for the team and the city to build a new culture and begin a new history under a new name.
Winning solves everything, and if this team can win a World Series and break the longest active championship drought in the sport sometime soon, any remaining doubters about the Guardians’ name and branding will surely come around.
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