Mr. Met
Mr. Met was fired after he gave the "middle" finger after the New York Mets lost 7-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at Citi Field May 30, 2017. Getty Images

Mr. Met, the longtime mascot for the New York Mets, is apparently out of a job after the figure was caught giving an obscene gesture to fans toward the end of the Mets’ 7-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at Citi Field on Wednesday. The mascot, known for its over-sized head, lifted its “middle” finger to a fan. The incident was captured on video and posted to Twitter. It soon went viral.

The team quickly took to Twitter to issue an apology. “We apologize for the inappropriate action of this employee,” the team’s statement read. “We do not condone this type of behavior. We are dealing with this matter internally.”

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They did not say what type of disciplinary action the mascot would face, though many on Twitter said Mr. Met should be fired.

Each year, one person stands in to portray Mr. Met for the season. The person who was inside the Mr. Met costume Wednesday was fired, a Mets official told the Associated Press. The person spoke anonymously to the AP because the statement the Mets released on Twitter was their only authorized comment.

Officially, Mr. Met doesn’t have a middle finger. He’s one of the most recognized mascots in the legal and only has four digits—a thumb and three fingers.

The team did not release the name of the person inside the costume. While Mr. Met will be at Thursday’s game, a different person will be inside the suit.

Many people played Mr. Met since the mascot joined the team in 1964. The first person to do so was Dan Reilly. He even wrote a book about it, called, “The Original Mr. Met Remembers.” Others who played the figure were fantasy sports writer for ESPN AJ Mass and Matt Golden.

The Mets shared the story of Mr. Met on their homepage.

The description reads:

“On the first spring morning of '63, with the dew still dampening Coogan's Bluff, Casey Stengel, the old skipper of the young Mets, saw a figure in the distance. Deep in the Polo Grounds' center field stood a fan like no other -- a fan clearly born to root for the New York Mets. Casey so took to the big guy, he invited him to join the Amazin's the next year at their new park, Shea Stadium. Mr. Met was home. Mr. Met moved along with the team into a new home, Citi Field, in 2009 continuing to cheer on his favorite team.”

For fun facts about the mascots, the team says he cannot speak but he can gesture in 12 different languages. He was named America’s Favorite Mascot in 2012 and joined Twitter in 2014.

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He doesn’t just appear in ballparks. He’s also available for birthdays, christenings, weddings and more.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Met didn’t issue a statement about his gaffe on Twitter.

Follow me on Twitter @mariamzzarella

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