The merchandise launch for the Cleveland Guardians has been put on hold against the backdrop of a naming rights lawsuit filed by the Cleveland Guardians roller derby team.
The team had originally announced that new jerseys and other Major League Baseball merchandise would go on sale at 9 a.m. on Monday, but according to Cleveland.com, those plans were delayed. The team did not issue any statements explaining the reasons for the postponement and a new date was not set.
Back in June, the Cleveland Indians announced they were jettisoning their more than 100-year-old team name in favor of “The Cleveland Guardians,” after years of woke attacks on the team’s Native American name and mascots.
Together, we are all… pic.twitter.com/R5FnT4kv1I
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) July 23, 2021
However, only days after the baseball team’s announcement, the Cleveland Guardians roller derby team took exception to having their name duplicated without even a by your leave.
“There cannot be two ‘Cleveland Guardians’ teams in Cleveland, and, to be blunt, Plaintiff was here first,” the roller derby team said in its lawsuit.
The women’s team also noted that they had offered the Indians their name for a “four figure” settlement, but the MLB team rebuffed the offer.
(The Guardians of Traffic in Cleveland are four 32-foot sandstone pylons at the east and west entrances of the Hope Memorial Bridge. Getty Images)
Regardless, the baseball team insisted that they are “confident” that they have free and clear rights to the new name.
“We have been and continue to be confident in our position to become the Guardians,” the pro ball team said in a statement after the lawsuit was filed. “We believe there is no conflict between the parties and their ability to operate in their respective business areas.”
The roller derby team first began using its name in 2013.
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