Major League Baseball didn’t punish or fine any of the four Giants players who protested Pride Night earlier this month, according to a letter written by league commissioner Rob Manfred.
The news of the San Francisco scandal over Pride Night spread like wildfire throughout the country. Four Giants pitchers protested the team’s annual celebration of the LGBTQ+ community held on June 12.
Ryan Walker chose to wear the Giants standard baseball hat, rather than the custom one for the event which had a rainbow-colored Giants logo. JT Brubaker, Landen Roupp and Sam Hentges added a Bible verse to the side of their caps.
The four hurlers received much backlash from the public for their protest, including several high-profile figures in the San Francisco community. The players were also issued a warning by the league because of their violation of the uniform rules.
Senator Josh Hawley wrote a letter to MLB following the ordeal, demanding answers over the league’s handling of the four Christian players who protested Pride Night.
Hawley then took to social media to reveal the league provided a response, writing in a post on X: “.@MLB Commissioner writes to me and admits they were wrong to threaten the Giants players over Bible verses and promises never to fine or discipline these players – or any players for their religious beliefs”
Manfred had much to say over the matter and explained that it was a mistake on the Giants’ part. The team was supposed to make it clear to players that wearing the Pride Night hats wasn’t mandatory.
“MLB agreed to allow them to utilize the hats/uniforms with the emblems provided that no player or uniformed staff would be required to wear them, and that the team would speak to the players to make sure they were comfortable with the apparel,” Manfred wrote.
“Unfortunately, this year the Giants’ communication with players was inadequate and not clear. Some players apparently did not understand that they had the option to wear their normal uniform and elected to add messages to their hats bearing the pride logo as a result. The Giants players were allowed to wear the hats with the biblical references for the entire game. After the game had concluded, my office issued a routine oral warning about the uniform policy violation – unfortunately it was issued before we became aware of the Giants’ lapse in communication.
“The players were neither fined nor disciplined, nor will they ever be.”
While there appeared to be some confusion on MLB’s involvement in the Pride Night scandal, it’s now clear the league didn’t punish any of the Giants players for their uniform-change during the event.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
