--- ---  # New York Mets Apologize After Mr. Met Gives Fan the Finger  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Jun 1, 2017 2:11 PM UTC  Mr. Met on Opening Day between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves on April 3, 2017, at Citi Field in Flushing, New York. Mr. Met on Opening Day between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves on April 3, 2017, at Citi Field in Flushing, New York.Rich Graessle—Icon Sportswire/Getty Images  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Jun 1, 2017 2:11 PM UTC The New York Mets apologized late Wednesday after the team’s mascot was [caught on video](https://twitter.com/adelucia35/status/870092668084375552) making an obscene hand gesture at a fan as the team was getting pummeled by the Milwaukee Brewers. Footage shows the mascot, Mr. Met, whipping around to give the baseball fan in the stands the middle finger and then turning and walking away. The 3-second clip was posted on Twitter, where it has been shared nearly 2,000 times. The Mets condemned the incident in a [statement](https://twitter.com/Mets/status/870117113477910529), saying it does “not condone” the mascot’s behavior. “We apologize for the inappropriate action of this employee,” the statement said. “We are dealing with this matter internally.” > [](https://twitter.com/Mets/status/870117113477910529) There is more than one employee who represents Mr. Met. The worker who donned the costume Wednesday will not reprise the role, [according to the Associated Press](http://abc7ny.com/sports/mr-met-flips-off-fan-at-citi-field-game-gets-fired/2060176/), which cited an anonymous Mets official. It’s unclear what prompted the reaction from Mr. Met, who is known for his baseball-shaped head. Fans in the stand, apparently amused by the mascot’s unexpected gesture, can be heard erupting in laughter. The Mets ended up [losing](http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/rough-night-for-jacob-degrom-as-mets-lose-to-brewers-1.13698428) 7-1 to the Brewers at Citi Field. New York Mets Say Sorry After Mr. Met Gives Fan the Finger ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4801044/mets-mr-met-mascot-middle-finger-video/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4801044/mets-mr-met-mascot-middle-finger-video/"},"headline":"New York Mets Apologize After Mr. Met Gives Fan the Finger","datePublished":"2017-06-01T14:11:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T11:00:37.763Z","description":"“We apologize for the inappropriate action of this employee\"","url":"https://time.com/4801044/mets-mr-met-mascot-middle-finger-video/","keywords":["Baseball","New York","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta30f4139461cd862/6988cfb4196cf4a82a040616/170601_mr-met.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta30f4139461cd862/6988cfb4196cf4a82a040616/170601_mr-met.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"170601_Mr. Met","caption":"MLB: APR 03 Braves at Mets","creditText":"Rich Graessle—Icon Sportswire/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/baseball/","name":"Baseball"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4801044/mets-mr-met-mascot-middle-finger-video/","name":"New York Mets Apologize After Mr. Met Gives Fan the Finger"}}]}] ```