While I don’t know this to be true, I’ll wager the Peoria Chiefs mascot/logo might have been something Native-American related back in the day. Whether that’s the case or not, this would be a clever way of keeping that name while changing to a new, striking design with a tailor-made mascot:
I happened across the Class-A Chiefs thanks to reading an MLB.com feature story on Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg taking over as manager of the team, “Sandberg educates a new generation”.
Here’s a team history on their website. Some big names have come through Peoria on their way to the bigs.