Cleveland Indians: The Cleveland Squires an intriguing name choice?

Among the never ending supply of new team names, the Squires has popped up as one of the more intriguing choices for the Cleveland Indians.

It feels like we will never stop talking about potential name changes for the Cleveland Indians and today we got some interesting new watercooler material to add to the discussion about what it should or could be. This tweet from Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 the Fan regarding the Tribe’s dealings with some trademarks raises some interesting suggestions:

Most of the names here we’ve seen before, and even discussed on this page at different times, though a couple are newer and one in particular jumped out at me: the Cleveland Squires.

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I’m sure many will laugh that name away and it’s not hard to see why. A squire isn’t exactly something that seems intimidating. They are a knight’s apprentice, and come off as essentially a servant to the knight.

Now I’m sure many will point out the joke here, that the Cleveland Indians have are a farm team/servant to the bigger markets (ha ha ha), but I’m going to focus on why I think the name actually makes a good bit of sense for the future of Cleveland baseball.

The name of course will come from the medieval term Squire, as describe above being a knight’s apprentice, but like the name “Guardians” it has an interesting connection to the Cleveland area. The Guardians are of course a reference to the statues on the Hope Memorial Bridge just outside Progressive Field, which has drawn a strong interest from fans. Squires, similarly, is likely a nod to Squire’s Castle, which is located in one of the many Cleveland Metroparks.

For me Squire’s Castle is a better nod to the Cleveland Area, even if it’s not actually located in the city limits. I personally never knew about the Guardians even though I’ve lived in the Northeast Ohio area most of my life and even lived in downtown Cleveland for several years. I do, however, know about Squire’s Castle and have visited it a couple times. That’s not to say everyone is the same as me but I mean, my grandparents did have one of their first dates ever there so who am I to argue with the founding of the Bretz-clan.

But beyond the name itself is also the branding. There are a lot of names, but how many can lead to logos and imagery that makes sense and is marketable? Is the face of a guardian statue really that cool? A color like Blues? Squires give you so many things to work with. There’s so much to do with swords and castles and anything medieval English.

You even have the nod to T.H. White’s A Sword in the Stone/The Once and Future King stories about a young squire, who would go on to wield Excalibur (and become King Arthur), which could make for one cool logo. This would help eliminate the negative thoughts about a squire versus a knight.

Ultimately, is Squires my favorite name for the Cleveland Indians to change to? I don’t think so, but it may be pushing it’s way into my top five names. It’s unique enough but also grounded in the area to work. But what do you think? Terrible name? Like it? You’re still confused on what Squire’s Castle is? Let us know in the comments below.