Former Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres first baseman Steve Garvey announced Tuesday that he will run for California’s U.S. Senate seat which is up for grabs in 2024.

As a Republican, Garvey will face an uphill battle running for a seat in a blue state that had been held by Democrat Dianne Feinstein since 1992.

Feinstein, who was 90, died at her home in Washington D.C. of natural causes on Sept. 29.

Garvey joins an already-crowded race featuring several strong Democratic candidates, including Congress members Adam Schiff of Burbank, Katie Porter of Irvine and Barbara Lee of Oakland.

Garvey’s campaign will be focused on family issues, crime, education and inflation.

If elected, the 74-year-old says he will bring change and conservativism to the U.S. Senate.

Laphonza Butler, who was named by Gov. Gavin Newsom to fill Feinstein’s vacant seat, has not announced whether she plans to run.

Garvey’s baseball career spanned nearly 20 years during which he won a World Series in 1981, made 10 all-star appearances and was named the 1974 National League Most Valuable Player.

In a Berkeley IGS Poll from early September, when he had yet to join the race, he garnered around 7% of respondents’ votes, as much as James P. Bradley, another Republican candidate, and Rep. Barbara Lee, one of three leading Democratic candidates for the seat. 

Veronica Catlin contributed to this report.