The New York Mets left baseball fans furious on Friday night after showing a Pride flag on their big screen during a rendition of the US national anthem.
Prior to their game against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Mets controversially displayed the LGBTQ+ symbol instead of the American flag as the Star Spangled Banner played out at Citi Field.
Despite a number of teams getting involved in the annual ‘Pride Month’ tradition in recent weeks, fans are threatening to boycott MLB over the divisive stunt that took place in New York.
One user posted on X along with a video of the Pride flag being shown at Citi Field during the anthem: ‘The Mets showed a pride flag instead of the American flag during our National Anthem. Boycott the MLB.’
‘That’s disgusting, @Mets,’ said another.
‘Think the @mlb is looking to be boycotted,’ wrote a third.
A fourth put: ‘F***ing Disgrace!!!’
The Mets have left MLB fans furious after showing a Pride flag during the national anthem
Citi Field was the latest baseball stadium to stage a special Pride Night event this month
A fifth posted: ‘So disrespectful. This needs to stop.’
While another simply put: ‘Shameful’.
DailyMail.com has contacted the New York Mets for comment.
MLB teams traditionally hold Pride-themed events in June, with the Boston Red Sox also sparking controversy by staging a pre-game drag show earlier this week.
Los Angeles Dodgers players also wore baseball caps with colors of the Pride flag mixed into the team’s logo on Saturday, although pitcher Clayton Kershaw made a slight tweak to his hat.
Kershaw, who is a devout Christian, inscribed next to the LGBTQ+-inspired logo ‘Gen 9:12-16’ – which is a passage from the Bible that claims the rainbow was not created by God to represent that demographic.
Instead, the passage reads: ‘And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”‘
That extract from the Bible, which comes just after the story of Noah and his family surviving a worldwide flood on an arc, suggests the rainbow is actually the sign of a covenant God made to never destroy the earth with a flood again.
Kershaw’s religious statement has gone viral on social media, with a number of users of the same faith commending him for reminding people of the rainbow’s meaning.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw referenced a passage from the Bible on his Pride-themed hat
The Boston Red Sox sparked controversy by putting on a pregame drag show earlier this week
One wrote: ‘Classy move by Kershaw. The rainbow he supports has nothing to do with pride month.’
‘Courage to stand up for truth,’ said another.
While another fan put: ‘That’s a clever counter!’
Others, however, were critical of the baseball player for doctoring a hat designed to raise awareness for equality.
‘The rainbow can have multiple meanings,’ one argued. ‘Why cant the rainbow mean both?’
‘What a disappointment,’ concluded another.
While one simply posted: ‘he should stick to sports’.
