Report: Cleveland Indians Announce Name Change Coming in 2022

The Cleveland Indians are the latest professional sports franchise to agree to a name change due to outside pressure, according to an article from the New York Times. Many consider the name "Indians" a racial slur.

The Washington Football Team moved on from the "Redskins" name earlier this year for the same reason.

People have been coming after a lot of franchises lately. Why? Because public and corporate pressure is so strong that it's not worth fighting -- or that's how some ownership groups feel, at least.

Now, Cleveland's baseball franchise will be the next to join in on the shift.

It's unknown what the new team name will be, but we do know it isn't supposed to go into effect until 2022. The current name and uniforms will be used throughout the 2021 season.

There are still a few professional sports teams holding on to a Native American identity, however. Those teams include the Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Blackhawks.

If those franchises face the kind of pressure Washington did from major sponsors like Nike, Pepsi and FedEx, there is no guarantee those teams will stay the course.

Follow Clint Lamb on Twitter @ClintRLamb.