CLEVELAND — It's official: The Cleveland Guardians are here.
On Friday, Cleveland's Major League Baseball franchise officially adopted its new name as new merchandise went on sale for the first time at the Progressive Field Team Store.
Additionally, the franchise formerly known as the Cleveland Indians unveiled its new social media accounts, including on Twitter @CLEGuardians. The team officially announced its name switch at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday morning with a video featuring Tom Hamilton's final call of the 2021 season, in which he said goodbye the Indians era in Cleveland and hello to the Guardians.
The Progressive Field Team Shop will be open with new Guardians gear from 9 a.m.-7 p.m. on Friday. New Guardians gear will be made available at other retailers beginning on Tuesday, Nov. 23.
The Indians' official transition to the Guardians' name comes more than a year after the franchise first announced that it was exploring a potential name change. After announcing last December that it would, in fact, be changing its name, the team announced in July 2021 that it would be adopting the Guardians' name following the conclusion of the 2021 season.
The Indians' transition to Guardians hit a roadblock when the franchise was sued by the city's professional roller derby team, which is also known as the Cleveland Guardians. Earlier this week, both the baseball franchise and roller derby team announced that they have reached a settlement that will allow both entities to use the name moving forward.