MLB's Mark Teixeira political donation preceded Pride Night dispute

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The Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball PAC donated $5,000 to former All-Star Mark Teixeira's congressional campaign on June 8, 2026, according to Federal Election Commission filings USA TODAY Sports reviewed. Teixeira's campaign confirmed receipt on June 12. That evening, the San Francisco Giants hosted a Pride Night event, which Teixeira forcefully condemned in the following weeks.

Teixeira, running as a Republican in Texas' 21st District, criticized a warning MLB sent to some Giants players who protested the evening by writing bible verses on their Pride Night hats. MLB said the players violated league uniform policies. Teixeira called the warning an attempt to "silence" Christian athletes.

"I played in the major leagues for 14 years," Teixeira told Fox News on June 30. "We play 162 games a year, we don't have these conversations. We don't take political stances. It's a hard job playing baseball and bringing something like a pride night and forcing players to wear a cap. Whether that was the rule or not, that's what it looked like."

MLB did not respond to USA TODAY Sports' request for comment.

The league has a long history of political contributions and has previously requested candidates return donations. In 2018, MLB requested the return of $5,000 it gave to the campaign of Mississippi republican Cindy Hyde-Smith . That request came two weeks after she appeared in a video joking about attending "public hangings."

After the controversy, Manfred said the league office would review all donations before "any checks are cut."

"It's hard when you have an organization as large as ours, with as many issues that are impacted by the political process, to be completely out," Manfred said after the Hyde-Smith donation. "We are very cognizant, however, that in today's world, those kind of donations run the risk of being controversial with segments of our society."

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