Cleveland’s MLB team is now the Guardians

Cleveland's Major League Baseball team announced its official name change in a big way Friday — one that included a moving video featuring the voice of Tom Hanks that debuted on social media.

The Cleveland Indians, who have had that name since 1915, will become the Cleveland Guardians.

"We hold tight to our roots and set our sights on tomorrow," Hanks says. "And this is our team that has stood with our city for more than a century. From old municipal to the corner of Carnegie. A team that has seen its own progress and prosperity. Its history flows like the river through the heart of this city."

The new name is drenched in history and a tribute to guardian statues that tower along the Hope Memorial Bridge, CNN reported.

Over the past year, the franchise has been narrowing a long list of names. Recently, team owner Paul Dolan said "last summer's social unrest, touched off by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, spurred his intention to change the club's name," ESPN reported.

The name change will occur after the 2021 season.

Cleveland (48-46) sits in second place in the American League Central, nine games behind the Chicago White Sox entering Friday's action.

This story was originally published July 23, 2021 at 11:14 AM with the headline "Cleveland’s MLB team is now the Guardians."