Former MLB star Steve Garvey enters California Senate race as Republican

Former Major League Baseball player Steve Garvey announced his bid for California’s Senate seat in 2024 on Tuesday, entering the crowded field as a Republican.

In a video announcement highlighting his 19-season career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres, Garvey said he is running “a commonsense campaign.”

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“I never played for Democrats or Republicans or independents. I played for all of you,” Garvey, 74, said.

Vying to replace the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the longest-serving female senator who recently died at the age of 90, Garvey is considered a long-shot candidate as California has not elected a Republican to the Senate in over three decades.

Garvey won the National League MVP while he was with the Dodgers in 1974, playing 14 seasons with the Los Angeles team before signing with the Padres in 1983. He retired from baseball in 1988 at 39 years old. Garvey continues to hold the National League record for the most consecutive games played (1,207), which ended for him when he dislocated his left thumb against the Atlanta Braves in 1983.

“I’m running for the U.S. Senate in California. A state that I believe at one time was the heartbeat of America. And now it’s just a murmur,” Garvey said. “It’s time to get off the bench. It’s time to put the uniform on. It’s time to get back in the game.”

Garvey’s candidacy is likely to be an uphill battle as he sets foot in a packed race of high-profile Democrats: Reps. Katie Porter (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Barbara Lee (D-CA). Former tech executive Lexi Reese launched her candidacy in June.

“I have a new Republican opponent — Steve Garvey. Before he was a multi-millionaire Republican celebrity, he was a first baseman. Based on his announcement, it sounds like he’s ready to take up the fight for everyone born on third base — thinking they hit a triple. Go figure,” Schiff said on X, the social media outlet previously called Twitter, in response to Garvey’s Senate bid.

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On the GOP side, Garvey is joined by Republican attorney and businessman Eric Early, who unsuccessfully ran for attorney general in 2022 and 2018. Several other Democratic and Republican candidates with limited statewide name recognition have filed for candidacy as well.

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) selected Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-CA), a former adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris and president of EMILY’s List, to fill Feinstein’s seat, and she was sworn in as California’s newest senator last week. Butler has not said whether she will run next year.