State Attorney General Puts MLB On Notice Over Warning About Displaying Bible Verses

When a trio of San Francisco Giants players took the field in the team’s rainbow-themed “Pride” uniforms, they had a little something extra added to their hats.

While the athletes said their inclusion of a Bible reference was a reflection of their faith, many LGBT activists cried foul and the MLB issued a warning against any such behavior in the future.

That decision sparked a wave of backlash in return, even though the league insisted it was a violation of a broader rule and not a crackdown on expressions of faith in particular.

As The Hill reported, that explanation wasn’t satisfactory for Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway:

In a letter posted to the social platform X on Wednesday morning addressed to Commissioner of Major League Baseball Rob Manfred, Hanaway wrote that “it has come to my attention that MLB is considering disciplining members of the San Francisco Giants who expressed their dissent from wearing ‘Pride Night’ hats—by either writing Bible verses on those hats or wearing the regular Giants cap.”

“In response to these actions, MLB said, ‘The writing on the cap violates our rules, and consistent with normal practice, we have warned the players about future violations,’” she added. “Missouri will not tolerate any threat to punish a player for exercising his sincerely held religious or moral beliefs. Doing so is both illegal and un-American.”

Three Giants players, pitchers Landen Roupp, JT Brubaker and Ryan Walker wore Pride Night hats featuring Bible verses written on them when the team played against the Chicago Cubs last Friday, a game they lost 1-5.

The pitchers were issued a warning about league rules restricting players from displaying messages on playing equipment and uniforms.

Her letter received an outpouring of support:

You're awesome. Thank you for looking into this. The LBGTQ whatever needs to prove their case.

— johnadiaz (@Jad67Jd) June 17, 2026

I’m starting to like you more and more just because of your tenacity to make things right. However, MLB players have the ability to opt out of the LGBTQ insignias on their uniform which means they are not forced. But If you can change MLB’s rules, then I’m all about it!

— Silver Surfer (@Sassypants1948) June 17, 2026

Get them Catherine! End the anti-Trust exemption if they don't back off this debaucherous forced speech!

— ExistenceExists (@IamSvented) June 17, 2026

Here’s some additional coverage of the response, per The Heartlander:

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, fired off a letter Tuesday to MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred demanding answers for what he called a pattern of discrimination against Christian players.

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“The league’s claim that it merely forbids ‘writing of any kind’ on its uniforms does not survive a cursory review of the league’s recent history,” Hawley wrote.

He recalled how MLB previously authorized jersey patches and pitching mound stencils for political movements such as Black Lives Matter.

“The league went beyond tolerating speech – it designed speech, promoted speech, and shoehorned social and political messages into the game broadcast to millions of Americans,” Hawley wrote. “Yet when three players added a handful of characters citing the Book of Genesis to their caps, the league reached for its rulebook.”

Hawley highlighted an undercover investigation exposing an executive with the Washington Nationals who allegedly excluded a Catholic player from promotional materials due to his faith in God.

“The freedom to live out one’s faith does not end at the ballpark gate,” Hawley wrote. “Americans of every creed are entitled to confidence that the institutions of our national pastime will not single out religious expression for punishment while celebrating messages of the league’s own choosing.”

The senator wants the league to provide full copies of uniform regulations and any internal directives regarding player participation in themed events by Friday.

Meanwhile, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway is threatening a full state investigation into the league’s actions. She sent a formal letter telling Manfred the Show-Me State won’t tolerate threats against players who exercise their sincerely held religious or moral beliefs. The league has teams in the state: the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals.