Photos and videos of the Astros star quickly went viral as he appeared to scowl as he stood behind President Donald Trump.
MORE: Jose Altuve stares blankly, steals show as Astros visit Trump
Altuve took to Twitter to deliver the perfect response to the accusations of his angry facial expression:
He also explained the situation to reporters on Tuesday.
“The president was talking," said Altuve. “What do you want me to do? I was just standing there listening. It was an honor to be there. If I didn’t want to go, I just wouldn’t go.”
Last season’s American League MVP said he’d been standing elsewhere on the podium and was directed to a more central location behind the president.
“I’m [standing] behind the president, probably one of the most important guys in the world. I can’t be laughing or doing stupid things while he’s talking. I need to listen,” said Altuve.
Astros manager A.J. Hinch also addressed the controversy.
“Well, I’ll put it this way,” Hinch said. “I think context is a very difficult thing for people to understand and you can create your own narrative, which unfortunately in this day and age can be easily done with screen shots and assumptions. I think it’s unfortunate that it ever got to a point where we automatically assume the negative without giving one of the best human beings on our team the benefit of the doubt.”
