Mets second baseman Javier Baez is greeted in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run in the fourth inning against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field.? Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Javier Baez calls out Mets fans with thumbs down celebration

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated 8/29/21

The struggling New York Mets have been hearing it from their fans for much of the month, and Javier Baez has had enough of it.

Baez and the Mets have been celebrating key hits by giving a thumbs down signal recently. Several Mets players could be seen making the gesture after getting big hits on Sunday, including Francisco Lindor and Kevin Pillar. After the game, Baez revealed it was a response to the fans who have been booing. Baez added that he feels the fans have to be better, and the players want to let the fans know how it feels to get that sort of response.

Javy Báez said the Mets' new thumbs down celebration is a response to fans booing the team.

"We're not machines, we're going to struggle. … It just feels bad when I strikeout and I get booed. … We're going to do the same thing to let them know how it feels," he said. pic.twitter.com/CYkHVpE2KH

— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) August 29, 2021

Javier Baez said Mets' thumbs-down celebration after big hits is a message to fans, who have booed him & others.

"In my case, they (the fans) gotta be better," Baez said. "It’s just how I feel. I love the fans I like playing for the fans, but we can’t have our fans against us."

— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) August 29, 2021

Javier Baez on booing Mets fans back: "To let them know that when we don’t get success, we’re going to get booed. So they’re going to get booed when we get success."

— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) August 29, 2021

There’s no way this is going to go over well. The Mets have been struggling immensely, posting an 8-19 record so far in August and falling well out of first place. Things have been so bad that even the Mets' owner openly called them out on social media.

Baez has been part of the issue. Coming into Sunday, he was hitting just .207 since the Mets made him their big trade-deadline acquisition, striking out 20 times in 62 plate appearances. This will come across as a player who hasn’t been performing criticizing unhappy fans. Rightly or wrongly, that is going to go over very poorly in New York.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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