While Chinese state media outlets are attacking “effeminate” male idols, their stardom has gained global attention.

Wang Yuan of TFBoys will throw the honorary first pitch at the New York Mets game on Sept. 28, the team said Wednesday local time. Beloved by millions at home and abroad, the 17-year-old’s stardom has transcended his singing career. Last year, the United Nations Children’s Fund appointed him as a special advocate for education, while Time listed him in the magazine’s “30 Most Influential Teens of 2017” list.

In China, Wang is part of a league of young, handsome, and sometimes androgynous men who are referred as “little fresh meat.” Last week, Xinhua slammed them, saying: “This sick culture is having an inestimably adverse impact on teenagers.” (Image: VCG)