Mr. Met goes rogue by giving fans the finger
Just when you thought the Mets season couldn’t get any weirder or go any lower, beloved mascot Mr. Met went rogue following Wednesday’s 7-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.
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As shown in the fan video below, the man portraying Mr. Met was caught flipping the middle finger at fans while still in costume as he exited down a Citi Field tunnel.
This season has already taken its toll on Mr. Met.
????: @adelucia35 pic.twitter.com/HJiYOsMCt9
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 1, 2017
The stunning video immediately created a stir on social media. Perhaps not to the level of President Donald Trump’s odd covfefe tweet, but enough for the Mets to release an immediate apology.
Statement from the New York Mets. pic.twitter.com/bRVvqZoqg8
— New York Mets (@Mets) June 1, 2017
The Associated Press is reporting the employee donning the costume will never do so again. In baseball terms, the employee has been designated for “reassignment,” which quite honestly is better than fired.
Keen observers are also pointing out Mr. Met’s glove is only for four fingers.
How can Mr. Met get in trouble for giving someone the middle finger IF HE DOESN'T HAVE ONE ???????????????????? pic.twitter.com/0QZd2GxQyz
— Hector Diaz (@iamHectorDiaz) June 1, 2017
Thus begins the debate over whether or not the thumb is actually a finger.
That aside, Mr. Met has been a ballpark staple since the franchise debuted in 1962. The character has survived 20 managers so far and has experienced every high and every low in the franchise’s history. When you take that into consideration, it’s actually surprising we didn’t see a similar meltdown sooner. But if it was going to happen, it makes sense for it to happen now.
The Mets have been overwhelmed by injuries and are now a disappointing 23-28 on the season. That’s after winning four of their last five coming into Wednesday.
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Among the notable Mets currently sidelined is Noah Syndergaard. As we all know, he’s been engaged into a long-running feud with the Mets mascot, and it’s possible he’s been a bad influence on him.
Whatever the case, the night Mr. Met went rogue is one we’ll be talking about for a long time. And if the Mets manage to turn things around moving forward, it might even be celebrated.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!