What Will Be The New Name Of The Cleveland Indians? Top Choices For Baseball Team's New Moniker

The Cleveland Indians are ready to change their name.

The New York Times first reported the move Sunday, sparking immediate questions about a new name. The Major League Baseball team hasn't officially announced the change and isn’t expected to unveil a new name this week.

The team, which has been around since 1894, has used the name Indians since 1915.

There is no shortage of options for a new moniker and bettors can even wager on the new nickname at an online sportsbook. Oddsmakers have essentially made some names more likely than others.

The favorite is the Spiders at +250 odds, according to BetOnline. The Cleveland Spiders were a National League team that existed more than a century ago and had its last major-league season in 1899.

The Guardians are the second favorite with +500 odds. The name comes from the city’s “Guardians of Traffic” statues that stand near the Hope Memorial Bridge.

The Indians were the Cleveland Naps from 1903-1914 before changing their name ahead of the 1915 season. Second baseman Napolean Lajoie was such a big star that the team was named after him. “Naps” has +700 odds to replace Indians.

How about the Cleveland Wild Things? Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn was Cleveland’s star pitcher in the iconic film “Major League.” Oddsmakers put the chances of Wild Things, named after the fictional character portrayed by Charlie Sheen, at +800.

Maybe Cleveland will follow in the footsteps of Boston and Chicago and go with the Blue Sox? The team was briefly named the Blues and the Bluebirds before becoming the Naps in 1903. Blue Sox has +900 odds.

The Crows, Dobys and Rocks all have +1,000 odds. Larry Doby broke the color barrier in the American League with the Indians in 1947 after Jackie Robinson was the first Black player in the National League.

The Buckeyes have +1,200 odds to be chosen. The Cleveland Baseball Team is a possibility at +1,600.

The Washington Redskins became the Washington Football Team for the 2020 NFL season, though the team is expected to select a new nickname at some point.

Long shots for the Cleveland baseball franchise include the Cuyahogas (+2,000) Rockers (+2,000) and Bullfrogs (+2,500).