New York Mets players have decided to fight back against fans who are understandably fed up with the team’s recent performance, and Marcus Stroman is blaming media for a controversy his teammates created.
Mets players have been using a “thumbs down” gesture to celebrate some of their big hits and other plays recently. After Sunday’s 9-4 win over the Washington Nationals, Javier Baez admitted that the thumbs down celebration is a way for him and his teammates to boo the fans back.
“We’re not machines, we’re going to struggle. It just feels bad when I strikeout and I get booed,” Baez said. “We’re going to do the same thing to let them know how it feels. … They’re going to get booed when we get success.”
Kevin Pillar, who made the thumbs down gesture after a big hit on Sunday, said the celebration has nothing to do with booing fans. He wrote on Twitter that he has “felt nothing but love in NYC.” Stroman agreed and said the story is nothing but a media fabrication. You can see his reply below, which was edited by LBS for profanity.
“FACTS! Media always searching for anything to cause controversy. Stop playing into these narratives,” Stroman wrote. “It’s all fake bulls—. We won today. That’s all that matters. On to the next not dwelling in the past … same mindset we’ve had all year! Thankful for this squad!”
Baez, who is hitting just over .200 with the Mets since they acquired him at the trade deadline, lectured the fans in his postgame press conference.
Obviously, some Mets players did not want Baez letting the secret out. His comments even led to the team being publicly scolded by a Mets executive.
The Mets are 8-19 in the month of August and have fallen out of playoff contention. If they’re tired of being booed, they should play better. Blaming the media for the controversy they created has only made them look worse.
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