M.L.B. Commissioner Can’t Hear Native Voices Over Atlanta’s Chop

By BY KURT STREETER from NYT Sports Asked about the Atlanta team’s longstanding use of a faux war chant, Rob Manfred claimed Native Americans in the area are “wholly supportive” of it. That’s not what our columnist found.https://nyti.ms/3GAtwpt

Sod Poodles, Yard Goats and Trash Pandas, Oh My

By BY MARCUS GILMER from NYT Sports As Brandiose worked to create memorable mascots for minor league baseball teams, it found a tried and true recipe for success.https://nyti.ms/3xAcBh6

Valparaiso U. Drops Crusader as Mascot, Citing Ties to Hate Groups

By BY NEIL VIGDOR from NYT Sports The private university in Indiana, which is affiliated with the Lutheran Church, said the Crusader name could be associated with “aggressive religious oppression and violence.”https://nyti.ms/3qke6xm

It’s 2020. Indigenous Team Names in Sports Have to Go.

By BY KURT STREETER from NYT Sports The Chiefs, Braves, Blackhawks and Seminoles need to follow the Cleveland baseball team in dropping their offensive names.https://nyti.ms/3avq95R

For Opponents of Native American Nicknames, 2020 Has Brought Hope

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports Leaders in the movement to rid sports of such nicknames and the logos that accompany them saw a domino effect building in public schools after two major professional teams made changes. But there are staunch holdouts.https://nyti.ms/3r8w1Yp

For Opponents of Native American Nicknames, 2020 Brought Hope

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports Leaders in the movement to rid sports of such nicknames and the logos that accompany them saw a domino effect building in public schools after two major professional teams made changes. But there are staunch holdouts.https://nyti.ms/3gZbSzj

Cleveland Makes Name Removal Official, Saying It Is ‘Moving Forward’

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports The baseball team’s process is being lauded by many rights groups for its thoughtful reconsideration of the name “Indians.”https://nyti.ms/37jpguV

Cleveland’s Baseball Team Will Drop Its Indians Team Name

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN AND MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT from NYT Sports The decision comes amid a wider push for sports teams to stop using Native American names and imagery as team names and mascots.https://nyti.ms/37d0IUy

Arsenal Laid Off Its ‘Gunnersaurus’ Mascot. A Player Offered to Pay His Salary.

By BY HEATHER MURPHY AND TARIQ PANJA from NYT Sports Mesut Ozil, one of soccer’s highest-paid stars, has offered to save the club’s beloved dinosaur mascot, who has been delighting supporters and players for 27 years.https://nyti.ms/33DpefQ

Why One Team Named the Indians Won’t Be Changing Its Name

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports A minor league team in Spokane, Wash., has steadfastly stood by its nickname with the support of the local Native American community.https://nyti.ms/39WYMPF

For Native American Activists, Washington Name Change Was ‘a Long Time Coming’

By BY KEVIN DRAPER AND GILLIAN R. BRASSIL from NYT Sports The Washington N.F.L. team has long been a target of protests but now that its owner has budged, activists are pushing for other teams to follow suit.https://nyti.ms/2BZQF8F

Redskins to Drop Name, Yielding to Pressure From Sponsors and Activists

By BY KEN BELSON AND KEVIN DRAPER from NYT Sports The N.F.L. team in Washington was expected to announce the move Monday and will continue its search for a new name and logo.https://nyti.ms/32b9O1M

In Campaign Against Racism, Team Names Get New Scrutiny

By BY GILLIAN R. BRASSIL, GIULIA MCDONNELL NIETO DEL RIO, BILLY WITZ AND DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports It is not just the N.F.L.’s Washington team that could get a name change. A number of schools are also reconsidering nicknames, though some are resisting any switch.https://nyti.ms/2OffHmE

Amid Pressure, Chicago N.H.L. Team Says It Won’t Change Its Name

By BY DAVID WALDSTEIN from NYT Sports After teams in other leagues said they would reconsider their names, the club defended its name by saying it was meant to honor a historic figure.https://nyti.ms/2Cd8S23

Washington and the N.F.L. Might Change the Redskins Name. Why Now?

By BY KEVIN DRAPER from NYT Sports The move toward changing a mascot name after decades of complaints underscores how America’s most popular sport has scrambled to keep up with shifts in public opinion.https://nyti.ms/2ZAUo4c

The Succession of Butler’s Bulldog Mascot

By BY ALAN BLINDER from NYT Sports Butler, a powerhouse of Big East basketball, is getting a new bulldog. By the time Blue takes over in May, the process will have stretched more than a year.https://nyti.ms/2vYQiIp

Celebrating the Kansas City Chiefs, the Chop Divides

By BY JOHN ELIGON from NYT Sports Chiefs fans have relished doing the tomahawk chop since the early 1990s. But to many Native Americans and others, the gesture is an offensive mockery of the nation’s first people.https://nyti.ms/2RB3CKZ

Gritty, the Philadelphia Flyers Mascot, Is Accused of Punching a Boy in the Back

By BY DANIELLE ALLENTUCK from NYT Sports The police are investigating.https://nyti.ms/2RKS6eZ

Gritty’s First Month: The Heroic Ascendance of a ‘Ghastly Empty-Eyed Muppet’

By ALAN YUHAS from NYT Sports The Philadelphia Flyers’ new mascot has been called a “fuzzy eldritch horror,” but he has inspired joy, Halloween costumes and calls for leftist revolution.https://nyti.ms/2zlM6jz