CLEVELAND — Editor's note: the video in the player above is from Dec. 15, 2020.
In what may very well be the final season that the Cleveland Indians keep their name, fans will no longer be permitted to wear Native American headdresses or face paint at Progressive Field.
"Abusive or inappropriate language or conduct deemed disorderly, unruly or disruptive including inappropriate dress may constitute grounds for ejection or refusal of admission," the team said in a release announcing its new ballpark policy on Wednesday. "This includes headdresses and face paint styled in a way that references or appropriates American Indian cultures and traditions.
"Inappropriate or offensive images, words, dress or face paint must be covered or removed, and failure to do so may constitute grounds for ejection or refusal of admission."
Last December, the Indians announced that they would begin the process of finding a new name. Until they do, however, they will keep their current one, with team owner Paul Dolan stating that it may not happen in time for the start of the 2022 season.
“The timeline remains the same,” Dolan said at the Akron Roundtable earlier this month. "Just to be clear we said no sooner than 2022. Our target is still 2022, but it is a difficult process. Trying to find a name that works, that we can clear, and ultimately in a tight time frame. By tight I mean we can’t just show up in Spring Training [in 2022] and say, 'here’s the new name.' We have to have it buttoned up long before that.
“It could be sometime in the middle of this year whether we know we’ve got it down where we can do it for 2022. If not we’d have to push it to 2023. We’re working hard to get it done by then, but there’s no certainty in that.”