The Mets’ problems with sexual harassment seem to be getting worse.
The Athletic reported on Wednesday that three women who worked or had worked for the Mets reported troubling exchanges between themselves and the hitting performance coordinator Ryan Ellis in the summer of 2018 with Aubrey Wechsler, the team’s manager at the time.
An employee told Weschler that Ellis said to her, “I’m staring at your butt all the time. If only I could be alone with you for 15 minutes. “
Ellis remained in service with the Mets until he was quietly released following GM Jared Porter’s resignation in January, after Porter admitted sending inappropriate texts to a reporter while working for the Cubs.
“On Jan. 19 this year, following the termination of Jared Porter, we received new information about the disciplined employee’s behavior over the period 2017-2018,” the Mets said in a statement to The Athletic.
“We immediately initiated a new investigation and fired the employee on January 22 for violating company policy and failing to meet Mets’ standards of professionalism and personal conduct.”
It is unclear what new information came in in January or why the team decided not to take stricter action against the earlier allegations. The initial investigation into Ellis came about the same time that the Mets were investigating an earlier charge against Mickey Callaway and then the Mets manager.
The seriousness of the allegations against Callaway – now Angels’ pitching coach – was recently revealed in a separate report from The Athletic. Callaway is currently suspended while MLB and the Angels continue to investigate.
Ellis spent most of his tenure with the Mets, who started in 2006, at the minor league level. He was promoted to the Major League-staff last season when hitting coach Chili Davis withdrew due to concerns about COVID-19.
The first prosecutor, who kept a diary documenting the allegations, said Weschler had told her – who still works for the team – that she needed more evidence to back up her charges. She reached out to the two other women she knew who had previously had problems with Ellis.
One woman, who had a brief sexual relationship with Ellis, said he kept sending her unwanted messages after their relationship ended. The third prosecutor said Ellis would make sexually suggestive comments to her and other employees, calling her late at night to ask if her boyfriend was home.
According to the first prosecutor, the Mets contacted two weeks later and said the investigation was completed.
“At that point in July 2018, a complaint about inappropriate behavior by a Mets employee was brought to the attention of Mets management,” the team told The Athletic. “The organization launched an investigation and as a result the employee was subject to disciplinary action, probation status and was ordered counseling. We had not received any previous or subsequent complaints about this employee. “
The second prosecutor said she didn’t hear from the team until January, when the “new information” appeared.
They asked about the relationship part. They weren’t really interested in the harassment. It was about catching him in a lie, ”the woman told The Athletic.