What’s With All the Name Calling?

  You may have heard about how the Cleveland Indians Baseball franchise is removing the longtime mascot Chief Wahoo from its logo. For some, the caricature was a racist stab at Native Americans. Some wonder if it won’t be long till the club changes its nickname as well since some view it as an offensive term. They might have ground since it started that way.

 The story begins with a player Louis ‘Sock” Sockalexis.[i] He was a teenage phenome from Old Town, Maine. He was a member of the Bear Clan where his grandfather was a chief. He was recruited to play baseball at Holy Cross College and then Notre Dame until he was stolen away by a scout to play for Cleveland. His legend preceded him in Cleveland. Many, even to this day, argue he was one of the best to ever play the game. He added to the legend on his first game when the opposing pitcher flatly stated he was going to “strike out the Indian”, Sock rather slapped the pitcher’s first curveball over the fence. He ended his first season, only playing half of it, with a remarkable .338 batting average.

  It, however, wasn’t enough for the fans.

  At home the Cleveland fans expected him to go yard at every at bat and voiced their displeasure when he didn’t. On the road, fans mock his native heritage. Sportswriters expected to him to be the team, calling the club the Indians. (That name would stick so well it evenly replaced the Spiders as the official nickname.) The expectations were too much for the young man and he turned to the bottle, eventual drinking himself to death. The possibly best ever never finished a full season of baseball[ii].

  Expectations can be funny things. People can love and hate you in an instant. When we speak of judging, we think of looking down on a person but it can also be holding them to too high of a standard. We are quick to lash out when a person we claim to hold in high regard doesn’t do everything exactly the way we think is right. It’s sad how many good people have been ground to dust simply because they were not good enough in other eyes.

Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Romans 14:4

 Let’s never forget the only person we have to live up to is our Lord. And He is faithful and just and forgiving (1^st John 1:9). Instead of picking other people apart, let's leave a little room for kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness (Ephesians 4:32).

  Before we start with the name-calling, let remind ourselves whose name we are supposed to be living up too.   

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[i] Ironically he hated the nickname “Sock”

[ii] Source: That’s Not In My History Book by Thomas Ayers