Few teams have captured the baseball world’s attention in early 2025 quite like the New York Mets. After years of heartbreak and rebuilding, the Mets have stormed out of the gate with a blistering 19-8 record, seizing first place in the NL East and reigniting hope among their loyal fans in Queens. With eight wins in their last ten games, the energy around Citi Field is electric, and the chatter about a potential postseason run is growing louder by the day. But just as optimism is reaching a fever pitch, a familiar critic has emerged to douse the excitement with a cold dose of controversy.

As the Mets ride their hottest start in years, former MLB outfielder Jayson Werth has stepped forward with some searing words, reminding everyone that, in baseball, rivalries and grudges never truly fade away. On a recent episode of the “BSBLR Show” podcast, Werth didn’t hold back about New York fandom: “If you live in New York, you have a choice. You have an obvious choice,” he reportedly began. He then compared the city’s two teams. “You can either be a fan of one of the most storied franchises… or the Mets.” But he didn’t stop there!

Werth closed with a straight shot: “I have no respect for people that pick the Mets.” Ouch!

You have to know Werth’s history to get some sense of where that might have come from. His time with the Philadelphia Phillies placed him in the thick of the rivalry. He was an integral part of the Phillies team that overtook the Mets after their historic 2007 collapse. Werth even claimed his Phillies “ripped the heart out” of those Mets back then. Winning a World Series ring in 2008 while the Mets sputtered likely shaped his perspective significantly.

The plot thickened when Werth moved to another division rival, signing a huge $126 million contract with the Washington Nationals. That contract alone made him a target for fans and even drew a sly remark from the Mets’ GM at the time. Then-Mets GM Sandy Alderson wryly commented, “It makes some of our contracts look pretty good. I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington.” On the field, Werth battled the Mets constantly as a Nat. Consider the controversial slide-rule incident of 2016 that may have cost Washington a victory. Or recall the tense benches-clearing moment after he was hit by a pitch from Mets reliever Frank Francisco in 2013.

Werth had already expressed his feelings about the Mets organization even before the podcast appearance. Back in 2018, while discussing his free agency journey on the Howard Eskin Podcast, he dropped a telling admission. Werth mentioned contacting every single MLB team looking for an opportunity—except one. He stated point-blank, “I wouldn’t play for the Mets.”

This reveals his recent quote isn’t just out-of-the-blue trash talk; there’s always been a bit of history behind it. His recent Mets comments fit a broader pattern of Werth’s willingness to speak his mind, often at the expense of former teams.

Outspoken Jayson Werth keeps baseball talking

And what’s more interesting? Werth’s record is rife with provocative comments, not all of them aimed at the Mets. Not long after he had joined the Nats, he echoed his GM’s profane dislike for his former team. “I hate the Phillies, too,” Werth was quoted back in 2011. This happened mere months after winning a championship with Philadelphia. It was evidence of his willingness to play the villain and use charged language in public. This kind of boldness left his most recent comments about the Mets looking downright predictable.

This combative approach, of course, made plenty of enemies in opposing stadiums. Phillies fans especially turned on him after he left, as well as after subsequent comments. The situation grew ugly when Werth claimed Philly fans actually cheered when he suffered a severe wrist injury in 2012. His fiery response, vowing payback, showed how deeply he absorbed these exchanges. Werth operates with an intensity that meets fan hostility head-on, rarely backing down.

Beyond stirring up rivalries, Werth has also cast himself as a critic of baseball’s contemporary fashions. He’s openly scoffed at the rise of analytics in baseball front offices. In that same 2018 podcast, he dismissed data experts as “super nerds” who were “killing the game.” He felt analytics turned players into “robots,” eliminating the human element from the sport. This demonstrates how his criticism frequently cuts to the bone, not just against the Mets.

But why do comments from a retired player still generate such buzz? Werth’s words carry extra weight because of his substantial fifteen-year MLB career. He wasn’t just a role player; he was a World Series champion with the 2008 Phillies and an All-Star in 2009. He earned that massive contract with the Nationals and finished with 229 career home runs. Coming from a baseball family, he lived the game intensely. This background gives his opinions, however controversial, a certain gravity. Do player legacies make their post-career takes more impactful, even when they’re intentionally provocative? What do you think?