Retired MLB player Clayton Kershaw is no longer pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but some of his past actions on the field are still causing controversy.
Last month, three San Francisco Giants players added a bible verse to their required rainbow-themed hats on the league’s Pride Night, receiving backlash from some fans who considered the action to be anti-LGBTQ+ in nature. (The MLB also issued formal warnings to the player who violated the uniform rules.)
Kershaw, 38, for his part, previously added the same Genesis 9:12-16 quote on his league-issued Pride hat one year prior — but insists he wasn’t intentionally trying to ruffle any feathers.
“It wasn’t meant to discriminate or marginalize anybody,” Kershaw explained on the Saturday, July 25, episode of My View With Lara Trump on Fox News. “The rainbow means a lot of different things to different people.”
The three-time Cy Young winner noted that while he was playing, he chose to lead with his faith and how he perceives the rainbow tying into his beliefs — not how the image is often used to advocate for gay and trans peoples’ rights.
“So for me, the rainbow represents God’s covenant with his people. That’s what I wanted to represent,” Kershaw said. “As a man of faith, as a man that believes in Jesus that’s what the rainbow represents to me. I thought that was the best way to do that in a somewhat difficult situation.”
The bible verse in question reads: “God places the rainbow in the clouds as the sign of His covenant with Noah, promising never to flood the earth and destroy all life again.”
Kershaw noted on Saturday’s broadcast that the love of God was all he was trying to put forward by adding the handwritten verse on his cap one year prior.
“Once again, it wasn’t meant to discriminate or, you know, put anybody in a bad spot. It was just what I believed in,” he concluded. “It wasn’t an easy decision, but I still stand by it. I think it was the right thing to do.”
Although Kershaw retired from the MLB following the Dodgers’ 2025 World Series Win — the third in his career — he remains involved in the team. Kershaw, who played professional baseball 18 seasons, currently works as a special assistant for baseball operations for the Dodgers.
He was also on hand earlier this month when the World Series team went to Washington, D.C. to meet President Donald Trump — which sparked another controversy.
While every player who won that coveted baseball title in 2025 was invited to the White House, several players, including Kiké Hernández and Mookie Betts declined the offer. (Hernández, 34, has been vocal about his issues with the Trump administration.)
“I think it’s a personal decision,” Kershaw told Lara Trump during his interview after being asked if the honor of visiting the White House after a big sports win has been “usurped by politics.”
He added, “I’m thankful that the Dodgers are here. I’m thankful that I get to be at the White House. It’s a really special place.”
