Sports mascots are always getting into shenanigans of some sort, and usually it's entirely of their own doing. However, back in 1997, Mr. Met was hit with some rather strong words of advice during a Bill Clinton visit to Shea Stadium. Mr. Met, who was played by current ESPN writer A.J. Mass during the mid 1990s, recently talked about the time Clinton came to Queens for the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the MLB color barrier. And apparently, he was given a very direct order from the secret service.
According to Mass, an agent approached him during Clinton's visit and told him, "Like I said, do whatever it is you normally do. Nobody will bother you. But approach the president, and we go for the kill shot. Are we clear?"
Whoa! If we were Mr. Met, we'd say we were crystal clear. Like, if Clinton is by home plate, we'd be in the bullpen. Anyone else catch a little jab before the threat, too? "Do whatever it is you normally do." As in, do your carney routine as usual? Maybe we're just reading too deeply into it, but the threat of death by sniper round will make you think a little.
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[via The Big Lead]