Anyone who has gone on social media in the past month knows who Haliey Welch is. Maybe not by that name, but rather by her nickname derived from her catchphrase/reason for momentary fame: Hawk Tuah girl. Haliey is currently in the middle of enjoying her 15 minutes which started after a video of her talking about… well actually you can just simply google her if you really don’t know. Anyway, being the viral sensation she currently is, the New York Mets felt she would be a great candidate to throw out a ceremonial first pitch. This has led to a lot of backlash and internet outrage as Mets fans are angry about Hawk Tuah girl.
Haliey Welch’s Sudden Celebrity Status
I will assume we all know by now why Haliey Welch has reached sudden celebrity status. Unlike most people you see while aimlessly scrolling social media, she has been able to capitalize on her soundbite. You can’t blame her, as the clip was being endlessly used by everyone in memes and videos online for their own personal likes, clicks and attention. Rather than just be used as internet fodder, Haliey started selling merchandise with her catchphrase, making thousands of dollars in very little time. She created her own “personal brand”, albeit based off something that’s not entirely PC. So while that brand is currently at it’s peak, she has been enjoying the ride.
Haliey has been interviewed by a number of celebrity podcasts, joined Zach Bryan on stage in concert, and made a ton of (paid) public appearances. Simply put: Hawk Tuah Girl is raking in the money and enjoying her 15 minutes. As it continues, she’s going to obviously take any opportunity she gets to keep it going.
Where the Mets fans anger comes from
With all of her recent press, social media presence, and increased following, it made sense a professional sports team would want to get her involved. The New York Mets just happen to be the ones who were able to snag the ol “Hawk Tuah” girl first. Asking her to throw out their first pitch during a day game against the A’s wouldn’t really seem like it would have caused so much backlash on paper. However, this is the New York Mets we’re talking about, who seemingly never do anything right. So this decision has led to their fans feigning anger online, mostly for 1 of 3 reasons.
She’s not “family friendly”
As we know, her reason for sudden viral-fame is due to talking about non-family friendly subject matter. WFANs Peter Schwartz called it (in a since-deleted tweet) “tone deaf” because it was summer camp day at the park. However, the Mets wisely introduced her as a “viral sensation” when she came out, not acknowledging her nickname. As someone who went to a million Mets games as a kid, I can safely say almost none of them were paying attention to who was throwing out the first pitch. They were more likely face deep in a helmet cup of soft serve ice-cream.
As usual though, many people online need to complain, so they’ve decided to be angry their kids *might* want to know who Welch is. Even though the likelihood their kids ask anything is miniscule, it’s easily explained with “some internet person” or simply, “I don’t know.” As there were three hours of baseball about to happen, chances are the kids would’ve quickly moved on to something else and forgotten all about it.
Welch Represents the Problem with Social Media and “Fame”
For those who didn’t want to have a “think of the children” moment with their anger, many were mad that this is representative of current pop culture standards. While most didn’t outright say that, many implied it, such as once popular Deadspin, tweeting “Hawk Tuah girl just threw out the first pitch at the Mets game. Society is doomed.” This is ironic because Deadspin doesn’t seem to realize society moved on from them years ago. Someone else wrote “What a morally bankrupt, depraved culture we have become.” Sadly, that last account is not satire. Believe me: I had to double check. There are a number of other accounts who echoed the same sentiment.
The Mets need to focus on Baseball
The last reason is basically the Mets aren’t doing very good this year, so these outside distractions are making it worse. Another WFAN personality, Sal Licata went on a wanna-be Chris Russo style rant about how the Yankees are breaking records while the Mets are trotting out Hawk Tuah girl.
.@sal_licata absolutely loses it after seeing the "Hawk Tuah girl" throw out the Mets ceremonial first pitch 😂 pic.twitter.com/yiqo7zVfOz
— WFAN Sports Radio (@WFAN660) August 15, 2024
Had she been throwing out the actual first pitch of the game, this may make sense. In reality, every MLB club has some “gimmick” for who is throwing out their ceremonial pitch before the game starts. The two have nothing to do with one another, and this is simply a case of another sports reporter trying to make a name for themselves by overreacting and having a temper tantrum on-air. In his defense, this is how most of the mainstream sports journalists have been able to make their living. I’m looking at you, Skip Bayless.
Mets Fans anger is Unnecessary and Hypocritical
While Sal seemingly almost started crying during his rant, even he knows what he’s saying is unrelated to The Mets. During his rambling he acknowledges that Welch has nothing to do with the on-field product, showing he knows he’s being disingenuous with his anger. It was simply a current viral star getting to spend a few minutes on the field and throwing out a meaningless pitch. It had no effect on the actual game, though for some reason Mets fans were more focused on it afterwards instead of a game the Mets lost at home by 1 run.
Those complaining about how they’ll have to respond to their kids are even more hypocritical. Take Brandon Tierney from WFAN (I see a theme here), who tweeted:
"Hey Dad, who's that throwing out the first pitch? Is that one of the '86 Mets daughters?"
— Brandon Tierney (@BrandonTierney) August 15, 2024
"No son, it's Hawk Tuah. Give me a few years, I'll explain."
🤣🤣🤣
Come on, Mets. Pathetic.
Brandon has no problem invoking the ’86 Mets, which shows his hypocrisy. Mets fans love to talk nostalgically about ’86, telling their kids about that dream season and its place in their hearts. What they usually gloss over is how the Mets clubhouse looked like a scene from Scarface with the amount of cocaine laying around. Don’t forget the booze and rampant amphetamines. Plus the bar fights, arrests and sexual assault allegations. Or the… never mind, you get the point. In the grand scheme of things, the dark side of the Mets most famous team is probably a lot worse than some girl who got famous for saying “hawk tuah on that thang.” Yet they have no problem talking about them when highlights of that season are playing on the big screen during a game. I hope their kids don’t ask them who Lenny Dykstra or Doc Gooden are.
These guys also must ear-muffs their kids the entire game, since New York isn’t the kindest of fans.
Let Hawk Tuah Be
Most internet celebrities do nothing but try to capitalize on their fame for their own personal gain. Lost in the internet shuffle of anger was how Welch was at Citi Field to spread awareness for a program that pairs dogs with war veterans. She’s actually using her 15 minutes to do some good, while also living life as a 22-year-old who has catapulted to fame out of nowhere. I don’t think a single person can say they wouldn’t do the same thing. A lot of this anger seems to be stemming from misguided jealousy.
Mets fans should focus on their team right now, not who threw a pitch out that probably wasn’t seen by many in person. All this does is bring more attention to her, which does the opposite for those so against her as a whole. Let her “hawk tuah” in peace. Chances are she’s on minute 14 with about 27 seconds remaining. Absolutely no reason she shouldn’t try to extend her time if she can, while making money if people are willing to give it to her. Besides, it’s not like she threw a spitball.
Thanks for reading! For more sports content, visit Belly Up Sports and follow me on X, @RyanCapalbo and feel free to send beer recommendations!
