"Clayton Kershaw is a clown" - Dodgers fans call out pitcher for adding controversial message to Pride cap
Clayton Kershaw had a message during the Los Angeles Dodgers Pride Night celebration on Friday when they played the San Francisco Giants. All Dodgers players wore a special rainbow-themed logo cap and Kershaw had a little inscription beside it.
Clayton Kershaw had inscribed 'GEN 9:12-16' on his cap which made a reference to the Bible Verse, 'Genesis 9:12-16'. The passage follows after Noah and his family survived the floods on the ark he had built with God's help.
As per the text, God vows to never flood the earth again and gives the rainbow, following the heavy rains, as a covenant to keep his word.
This sparked outrage among the Dodgers fans, with many disappointed with the veteran ace's message.
"This is so succinct and exactly to the point. He is a clown and can’t get off this team soon enough. Bigotry in all forms is unacceptable, especially from someone that fans will want a statue of..," a fan opined.
"Crazy how fandom will make anyone see the (fake) positive spin of something," another fan commented.
"His Christian beliefs make him brave enough to undermine LGBTQ advocacy but not speak out about the civil and human rights violations occurring right outside the stadium," a fan said about the political unrest in Los Angeles.
"Ah, there he is. Always seems to let me down," another fan said.
There were some polarizing comments as well.
"Because he's a Christian fundamentalist and if you want to stay a fan of his don't look into his personal or political views," a fan said.
"I’m not saying I agree with Kershaw. But he’s a conservative Christian. He’s being forced by his job to wear something that he feels is against his religion. And he has the clout within the organization to “act out.” I disagree with him but I can understand why he would be frustrated or annoyed by it," another fan commented.
Clayton Kershaw's history with Dodgers Pride Night events
This isn't the first time there has been discussion surrounding Clayton Kershaw's beliefs during Dodgers Pride Night events. Two years ago, the 37-year-old voiced against the team inviting the charity group, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
He had asked the team to balance it with the announcement of 'Christian Faith and Family Day.'
"I don’t agree with making fun of other people’s religions," Kershaw had said. "It has nothing to do with anything other than that. I just don’t think that, no matter what religion you are, you should make fun of somebody else’s religion. So, that’s something that I definitely don’t agree with."
Kershaw is yet to comment on his gesture. The former Cy Young winner pitched seven scoreless innings in an 11-5 victory on Saturday against the Giants.