The New York Mets fired General Manager Jared Porter Tuesday morning, hours after a report surfaced that he had sent graphic, uninvited text messages and images to a female reporter in 2016 when he was working for the Chicago Cubs.
Porter sent dozens of texts to the woman, concluding with a picture of "an erect, naked penis," ESPN reported Monday night. ESPN said it obtained a copy of the text history.
"We have terminated Jared Porter this morning. In my initial press conference I spoke about the importance of integrity and I meant it. There should be zero tolerance for this type of behavior," Mets owner Steve Cohen tweeted.
New York hired the 41-year-old Porter last month. He agreed to a four-year contract after spending the past four seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks as senior vice president and assistant general manager.
“I have spoken directly with Jared Porter regarding events that took place in 2016 of which we were made aware tonight for the first time. Jared has acknowledged to me his serious error in judgment, has taken responsibility for his conduct, has expressed remorse, and has previously apologized for his actions," Mets president Sandy Alderson said in a statement Monday night.
"The Mets take these matters seriously, expect professional and ethical behavior from all of our employees, and certainly do not condone the conduct described in (the ESPN) story. We will follow up as we review the facts regarding this serious issue.”
Chicago Baseball
The woman was not identified in the report. ESPN said she chose to come forward recently only on condition of anonymity because she is afraid of backlash in her home country.
ESPN said the woman was a foreign correspondent who had moved to the United States to cover Major League Baseball. She met Porter in a Yankee Stadium elevator in June 2016, and she said they spoke briefly about international baseball and exchanged business cards. She told ESPN that was the only time they ever spoke.
After text exchanges that began casually, Porter began complimenting her appearance, inviting her to meet him in different cities and asking why she was ignoring him, ESPN said.
After he sent her a lewd picture, the woman ignored more than 60 messages from Porter before he sent the last vulgar photo, according to ESPN. The woman told ESPN she intentionally tried to avoid him at a couple of big league ballparks and the texts from Porter ultimately contributed to her decision to leave the journalism industry and return to her home country.
Porter texted an apology to the woman in 2016 after she saw the naked picture and wrote that his messages were “extremely inappropriate, very offensive, and getting out of line,” ESPN reported.
ESPN said it contacted Porter on Monday evening, and he acknowledged texting with the woman. At first, he said he hadn't sent any pictures of himself, but when informed the exchanges show he sent selfies and other pictures, he said “the more explicit ones are not of me. Those are like, kinda like joke-stock images,” ESPN reported.
After asking whether the outlet intended to run a story, Porter requested more time before later declining further comment, ESPN said.
It’s another embarrassing development for the Mets, who have energized fans by acquiring star shortstop Francisco Lindor and several other notable players since new owner Steve Cohen purchased the club from the Wilpon and Katz families for $2.42 billion in early November.
ESPN’s report was posted online 37 days after Porter was introduced as GM of the Mets, a role he called his “dream job."
Before his Diamondbacks tenure, Porter worked under Theo Epstein with the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, winning three World Series championships in Boston’s front office and another with the Cubs. ESPN said he was the Cubs’ director of professional scouting when he sent the messages to the woman.
Not fully familiar with the English language and American culture, the woman received help from an interpreter in constructing a message to Porter telling him to stop sending her “offensive photos” that were “extremely inappropriate” and “getting out of line.” He apologized by text, ESPN said.
She eventually told her bosses and was connected in 2016 with a lawyer and a Cubs employee from her home country, ESPN reported. The woman didn't want to identify the employee publicly because she feared retribution, according to ESPN.
She said the Cubs employee told her Porter wanted to apologize in person but she didn't want to see him. She said the employee pressed her repeatedly on whether she planned to file a lawsuit against Porter and months later got angry when she saw the employee at spring training in 2017 and said she was still considering it, ESPN reported.
ESPN said the employee confirmed Monday he discussed the situation with Porter and the woman, but denied getting angry. The woman did not pursue legal action and told ESPN she doesn't plan to.
“This story came to our attention tonight and we are not aware of this incident ever being reported to the organization,” the Cubs said in a statement released to ESPN late Monday.
“Had we been notified, we would have taken swift action as the alleged behavior is in violation of our code of conduct,” the club said. “While these two individuals are no longer with the organization, we take issues of sexual harassment seriously and plan to investigate the matter.”
AP Sports Writer Jake Seiner contributed
