Indians remove Chief Wahoo from sleeve for series in Toronto
TORONTO » The Cleveland Indians removed the Chief Wahoo logo from the sleeve of their uniforms for a fourgame series in Toronto.
The decision to nix the logo was partially driven by a failed legal challenge against the team when it played in Toronto during the 2016 AL Championship Series. While Cleveland played the Blue Jays, a lawsuit was filed to have the logo and team name banned from Canadian TV. A judge dismissed the case.
The Indians have said they will permanently remove the logo from their uniforms next season. The move came after decades of protests and complaints that the grinning, red-faced caricature that dates to 1947 is racist. Cleveland will host the All-Star Game next season.
In recent years, the team has slowly moved away from the cartoonish image of a big-toothed American Indian with a scarlet face and a single feather in his headdress. The Indians now use a “C” as their primary logo and have removed signs depicting Chief Wahoo from their home stadium.
The Indians will return to their regular uniforms when they play at Tampa Bay next week.
INDIANS 9, BLUE JAYS 4 » Francisco Lindor had two solo homers and four RBIs, rookie Shane Bieber pitched into the seventh inning to remain unbeaten in nine road starts and Cleveland beat Toronto for the Indians’ third straight win.
Cleveland trimmed its magic number to seven for clinching a third consecutive AL Central championship.
Lindor connected on Sam Gaviglio’s third pitch for his 10th career leadoff homer and seventh this season. He went deep to right off Gaviglio again in the third for his eighth career multihomer game.
PADRES 6, REDS 2 » Francisco Mejia hit a solo homer and a three-run shot during his first start as the Padres’ upand-coming catcher, leading San Diego over Cincinnati.
Mejia connected on his first two swings against Luis Castillo (8-12) for his first homers in the majors. The 22-year-old was called up Tuesday as the Padres get him ready for a bigger role next season.