DOJ cracking down on MLB for potential religious discrimination after Pride Night caps controversy

The U.S. Department of Justice has referred Major League Baseball to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for further probe aft the league warned San Francisco Giants players who wrote Bible verses connected Pride Night caps.

The contention began aft Giants starter Landen Roupp and relievers JT Brubaker and Ryan Walker wrote Bible verses connected their Pride Night caps during San Francisco’s June 12 crippled against the Chicago Cubs. Roupp wrote "Gen 9:12-16" connected his cap, with portion of the notation overlapping the rainbow-colored "SF" logo utilized for the event.

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Landen Roupp wrote "Genesis 9:12-16" connected his Pride-Night themed hat. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

MLB issued a informing astir aboriginal azygous violations, saying the contented was not the contented of the Bible verses but the enactment of penning connected a crippled uniform. The league aboriginal clarified that the informing was "not disciplinary" and "had perfectly thing to bash with the contented of the message," adding that its azygous rules prohibit penning oregon displaying idiosyncratic messages connected apparel oregon instrumentality unless authorized by the league.

Now, successful a June 18 missive to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division accused the league of perchance burdening the spiritual rights of the Giants players.

The letter, posted by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, states that the section has "referred this substance to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for further investigation."

Dhillon pointed to MLB’s 2020 determination to let players to deterioration "Black Lives Matter" patches connected their jersey sleeves during Opening Day games, arsenic good arsenic related societal justness messages connected league-authorized apparel.

"This treble standard—under which players whitethorn not inscribe Bible verses connected hats for 1 crippled lone but whitethorn deterioration ‘Black Lives Matter’ patches for 1 crippled only—calls MLB’s existent motives into question," the DOJ missive says.

ROGER CLEMENS QUESTIONS MLB'S WARNING TO GIANTS PITCHERS WHO WROTE BIBLE VERSES ON PRIDE NIGHT HATS

San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello lifts starting pitcher Landen Roupp during the 5th inning against the Chicago Cubs astatine Oracle Park successful San Francisco, Calif., connected June 12, 2026. (John Hefti/Imagn Images)

"The Civil Rights Act prohibits MLB and its franchises from unreasonably burdening the rights of players with spiritual objections to serving arsenic the League’s conveyance for pro-Pride messages."

The section framed the substance arsenic a imaginable Title VII issue. Under EEOC guidance, national instrumentality requires employers to reasonably accommodate an employee’s spiritual beliefs oregon practices unless doing truthful would make a important load successful the discourse of the employer’s business. The EEOC besides says spiritual accommodation tin see exceptions to workplace formal and grooming rules.

"Federal instrumentality is clear: employers indispensable modify their azygous requirements to reasonably accommodate their employees’ workout of religion," the DOJ missive says.

"The Department of Justice volition usage each disposable means to clasp employers accountable for violating the spiritual rights of their employees."

For now, MLB has not announced fines oregon suspensions connected to the Giants caps. But with the DOJ’s referral to the EEOC, the contention is nary longer constricted to baseball’s interior rulebook. It is present a national religious-accommodation substance centered connected the collision betwixt Pride Night participation, league azygous power and players’ rights nether Title VII.

Roupp addressed his reasoning for penning the verse aft Friday's game, saying that the verse is astir representing "God's covenant."

"It's conscionable astir God's covenant and a committedness that He makes to america that, you know, His faithfulness and His mercy," Roupp told reporters. "That's conscionable benignant of thing I judge in, and I basal steadfast successful that, and I'm thankful we unrecorded successful a state where, you know, we person the state to judge what we privation ... and explicit what we want.

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"There's nary hatred astatine all. It’s conscionable what I basal for, and what I basal in. I judge successful God."

Gen 9:12-16 is simply a transition from the Bible. The transition states that God established the rainbow arsenic a perpetual token of the covenant made with Noah and each surviving creature. It goes connected to authorities that erstwhile God sees the rainbow, He volition retrieve His "everlasting covenant" to sphere each beingness connected world from different planetary flood.

Fox News Digital has reached retired to MLB for comment.