Indianapolis Indians to have new look but old name in 2026

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Indians have played minor league baseball in this city since 1902 and at Victory Field since 1996.

2026 will be the year to refresh that brand and remember that history.

”People understand that we’ve been here a really long time. They can’t remember when we weren’t here,” said Indians Chairman & CEO Bruce Schumacher. ”We decided it was time to lean into our history. These marks are very attractive in the present time but they also harken back to a time that gives us a chance to talk about the major league teams we’ve worked with, the championships we’ve won, the ballparks we’ve played in.”

Gone will be the logo that served the team for more than 30 years, a depiction of a southwestern U.S. Native American image, traded instead for a more contemporary look that celebrates Indianapolis and not necessarily the team’s nickname.

It was in 2023, just as the Cleveland Indians and Washington Redskins were changing their team names, that Schumacher entered into conversations with the Miami Nation of Indiana about whether the Indianapolis Indians should follow suit.

”The Indians have been very welcoming in everything that we have suggested to them,” said Miami Chief Brian Buchanan. “The majority of the tribe is all for keeping that name. There’s nothing that the Indians organization does that disrespects us in any way, so there’s no reason for society to try to shoot bullet holes in that. It’s just not true.”

Buchanan said the Indians have committed to unveiling specially designed Heritage uniforms during a game next year, as well as continuing with the team’s Native American Day and sponsoring college scholarships for graduating high school seniors.

”We have a very trusting and respectful relationship with the Indianapolis Indians and the same goes for them to us,” said Buchanan.

”Everything that we have done we run by them and let them look at it. And we look for an authenticity and a chance to educate,” said Schumacher. ”I think when we sat down with the Miamis and they said, ‘We’d like to work with you to educate and continue to tell the story of Native Americans living in Indiana,’ I think that pretty much settled that for us.”

Buchanan said the team’s name contributes to Hoosier awareness of the tribe’s existence and ongoing campaign to receive federal recognition, which was mistakenly stripped away in the 1890s.

“We have approximately 2,000 members of the Indiana Miami Tribe,” said the chief. ”I, myself and our council members have received payments from the federal government in a lawsuit that was settled. We got payments back in the 70s and 80s. We are as individuals recognized, but as a tribe we are not because of the petition process, which they have now rewritten, so hopefully they’ll get that straightened out.”

Buchanan describes himself as both a Native American and an Indians fan.

”I used to go down to Bush Stadium as a child off of 16^th Street there, I grew up there in Speedway, so it’s a part of my history, so it’s pretty close to my heart to see the Indians prosper.”