Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos was benched for the first time since September 2023. The Phillies star broke his impressive streak of 236 consecutive starts. Despite Castellanos being one of the top hitters in their rotation, the team decided to keep him out.
Castellanos is known to be a passionate player and never hesitates to speak his mind when necessary. The All-Star always stands up for his team and what he feels is right. Recently, Castellanos opened up on something that got him benched against the Marlins.
Nick Castellanos Was Benched For An Inappropriate Comment With His Manager
It turns out that the slugger made an “inappropriate comment” to his manager, Rob Thomson, following a defensive substitution. Castellanos was shifted in the eighth inning by Johan Rojas, after Max Kepler shifted to right field during their game against the Marlins.
Nick Castellanos is not starting tonight after making an inappropriate comment to Rob Thomson last night when he was pulled from the game and "crossed a line."
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) June 17, 2025
via @charlottevarnes pic.twitter.com/wfGW346hx9
The slugger voiced his frustration directly to the manager after his substitution and things didn’t go well afterwards. While it’s clear that Castellanos said something, neither did the team, nor did Thompson reveal what he said.
Rob Thompson Praises Nick Castellanos Despite His Inappropriate Comment
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According to the Phillies manager, Castellanos is an emotional player and commented for the love he has for the game. However, Thompson felt that it was necessary to keep him out due to his unwanted comment.
“One of the many things about Nick that I love is that he’s very emotional. He loves to play, and he loves to play every inning of every game. I just thought last night he made an inappropriate comment after he came out, and so today, he’s not going to play. And I’m going to leave it at that,” Rob Thompson said via ESPN.
Nick Castellanos agreed that he was unhappy with what he said and was punished by staying out of the Marlins game. The slugger is having a slow start with a .278 batting average and seven home runs. Castellanos has 36 RBIs and 76 hits. He is still lagging behind in his performance. The Phillies are having a tough run as they dropped their position in the week 11 MLB power rankings.
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