Nick Castellanos Takes Major Shot at Nolan Arenado and Cardinals Fans

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

It's no secret that athletes love the sound of getting cheered. After all, there's nothing like the support from a crowd that provides momentum to make a big play. However, some athletes don't mind getting booed. In fact, some openly embrace it, including Cincinnati Reds right fielder Nick Castellanos.

Castellanos appeared on The Chris Rose Rotation on Thursday and spoke about what it's like being booed any time he visits a specific NL Central rival: the St. Louis Cardinals. The 29-year-old outfielder said that he loves the boos in St. Louis, especially because the fans jeer him louder than they cheer for one of their star players.

"They're [Cardinals fans] booing louder for me than they're cheering for [Nolan] Arenado," Castellanos told Rose. The Reds player's comments were clearly a shot at the fanbase. After all, fans should definitely be cheering for their home team players louder than they boo the opposition. At the same time, you can understand where Cardinals fans are coming from. Castellanos plays for a divisional rival. Plus, it was just about two months ago when he started a bench-clearing brawl between the two teams.

Fortunately for Castellanos, he'll have a lot of opportunities to hear boos from the Cardinals fanbase this week. The rivals start a four-game series in St. Louis on Thursday night and it could end up having big implications. The Cardinals trail the Chicago Cubs by 1.5 games for the NL Central Lead. Meanwhile, the Reds are 7.0 games back of the top spot in the division and need to start winning before their playoff hopes are too unrealistic.

The Cardinals currently have the 2nd-best odds to win the NL Central at +165, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. On the other hand, the Reds' +1700 odds are the 2nd-worst in the division.