Right-handed pitcher Andrew Church — one of the many minor leaguers the Mets released on Thursday — didn’t hold anything back on his way out.
The former 2013 second-round draft pick ripped into the Mets, calling the organization “toxic” and full of “snakes and bottom feeders.” Church said he was taken advantage of when battling a torn UCL and also threw a former “celebrity” teammate under the bus — Tim Tebow — and said he and his peers were treated like “pawns in their chess games.”
Church and Tebow played together for Class-A St. Lucie in 2017.
“They made a mockery of our team by putting a celebrity on it to sell more tickets,” Church wrote in an Instagram post Thursday night. “I saw players lose their jobs because of it. We weren’t playing to win, we were playing to make everyone else money. Not the players. We never saw a cut. Well, allegedly that one player did.”
The Mets signed Tebow to a minor-league contract in September 2016, less than a month after his agents said the former NFL quarterback would pursue a career in baseball. Tebow has struggled to make an impact after three years in the minors after being sidelined with injuries and recording his worst season in 2019 — when he hit just .163 over 77 games for Triple-A Syracuse.
Then GM Sandy Alderson made no secret of why Tebow was a Met farmhand.
“Look, we signed him because he is a good guy, partly because of his celebrity, partly because this is an entertainment business. My attitude is, ‘Why not?'” Alderson said of Tebow at the at the 47th annual SABR Convention at Citi Field in 2017. “I actually think it’s been great for baseball. It’s been unbelievable for the South Atlantic League in terms of interest and entertainment. We’ll see how far he goes.”
Church echoed the sentiments of many fans who believe Tebow’s signing took away opportunities for young prospects. But the 25-year-old was most irked by his criticism of how the Mets “took advantage” of his competitive nature.
He briefly retired in 2018 and returned to play for Double-A Binghamton last June. Church said he retired to keep himself from expressing how he felt about the Mets.
“I was bitter, frustrated and angry at the Mets organization,” he said. “I felt my competitive nature was being taken advantage of. They knew I would never say no to competing and would fly me around to fill in for anyone that got injured.
“I realized this wasn’t in my best interest when my delayed flight finally landed in the 3rd inning, and I was on the mound in a AAA baseball game for the first time, without any warm up throws. My UCL originally tore that night.”
Church is referring to his outing on Aug. 30, 2016 for Triple-A Las Vegas. He gave up three earned runs on seven hits over four innings and took the loss in his first-career Triple-A appearance. Church alleged that he asked to see doctors for his torn UCL, and the team denied him the opportunity to do so. Three days later he was assigned to Class-A St. Lucie to pitch in the playoffs, but he didn’t appear in a single game.
“When I told them I couldn’t [pitch] I was made out to be the bad guy,” Church said.
The righty said he was again asked to fill-in for an injured player when he returned from retirement in 2019 — despite not having played in a competitive game for a year. He coughed up five earned runs on 10 hits over 3.1 innings for Triple-A Syracuse on June 6, his first start on the mound last year. Church said the team held no regard for his well-being.
Church struggled in four more games (three starts) in 2019 — recording 5.57 ERA over 21 innings for Double-A Binghamton.
“I honestly think they are making strides to be a better organization, but the culture that has been built for decades within that organization is toxic,” Church said. “Filled with snakes and bottom feeders trying to elevate their professional careers at the expense of players, with no remorse.
“I lost my drive to perform for an organization who continuously treats us like pawns in their chess games. Especially when the ones doing it, don’t know what it takes to be a baseball player.”
Hundreds of players were cut on Thursday amid the inevitably of the cancelled 2020 minor-league season due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Mets were one of several teams to execute those cuts.
The Mets did not immediately respond when asked about Church’s comments.
