MLB Commissioner Responds to Giants’ Pride Night Hat Controversy
Commissioner of Major League Baseball, Rob Manfred, informed Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) that the San Francisco Giants pitchers who added Bible verses to their Pride Night hats would not be fined or face any disciplinary action. Manfred defended the league’s uniform policy amid this situation.
On Monday, Hawley shared a letter from Manfred dated June 19, where the commissioner noted that the MLB office had issued a “periodic verbal warning” after a Giants pitcher wrote a Bible verse on his hat, which also displayed the team’s Pride logo. However, Manfred acknowledged that the warning was given before the league was aware that the Giants hadn’t communicated clearly that players could opt for regular hats instead.
“The players were not fined or disciplined and will not be fined in the future,” Manfred stated.
.@MLB The commissioner wrote to me admitting that he was wrong to threaten Giants players over Bible verses and promising that he would not fine or discipline these players or any other players for their religious beliefs. pic.twitter.com/rnPy2F7fyR
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 22, 2026
Interestingly, it was noted that at least one Giants player, relief pitcher Sam Henges, chose to wear the team’s regular cap instead of the Pride Night edition.
This situation reflects Hawley’s claim that MLB acted incorrectly by threatening the Giants players over their Bible verses. In a letter dated June 16, he questioned the league’s decision to issue warnings to pitchers expressing their Christian faith during the event in San Francisco.
In the aftermath of this exchange, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon mentioned that the Justice Department had referred the matter to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, raising concerns about potential religious discrimination in MLB’s actions.
