Padres’ Nick Castellanos Calls Out Reporter for ‘Rude’ Question

Nick Castellanos is coming off the biggest swing of his tenure with the San Diego Padres.

In the ninth inning of Sunday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, with the Padres down to their last out, Castellanos hit a game-tying home run to send the game into extras.

BATTLED IT OUT pic.twitter.com/W4YrV3S2JU
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 10, 2026

The All-Star wasn’t using his bat, but instead borrowed Fernando Tatis Jr.‘s after his own bat broke during the plate appearance. Tatis hasn't hit a home run in 2026, and it's been an ongoing topic of discussion this season.

Following the Padres’ 3-2 victory over the Cardinals, Castellanos spoke to the media about his heroics and using Tatis’ bat to hit the two-run blast.

One reporter tried to make a joke involving Tatis’ ongoing home run drought.

“Are you gonna let him hear the end of it that you hit a home run with his bat before he did?” the reporter asked Castellanos.

Castellanos didn’t take kindly to the question, responding with a simple two-word message: “That’s rude.”

"That's rude" 💀pic.twitter.com/BdDjAHT5j8 https://t.co/vZYgEgJzfA
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 11, 2026

The All-Star has never been one to shy away from voicing his opinions.

The former Philadelphia Phillies outfielder infamously made headlines for taking a beer into the dugout after being taken out of the game by manager Rob Thomson. Castellanos took to social media to address what he called the "Miami incident."

“As a veteran of the game of baseball, there are rules, and I broke one in Miami,” Castellanos posted on Instagram last June. “After being taken out of a close ball game in front of my friends and family, I brought a presedente [sic] into the dugout. I then sat right next to Rob and let him know that too much slack in some areas and too tight of restrictions in others are not conducive to us winning. Shoutout to my teammates and Howie [Kendrick, assistant GM, who was in the dugout] for taking the beer out of my hands before I could take a sip.”

While his outspokenness hasn’t always served Castellanos well, his former manager praised his passion for the game.

“One of the many things about Nick that I love is that he’s very emotional,” Thomson said last season. “He’s very emotional. He loves to play, and he loves to play every inning of every game.”

Castellanos has fully embraced his new role with the Padres, one that consists of limited playing time and coming off the bench for big at-bats. When president of baseball operations A.J. Preller signed the veteran to the league minimum salary, Castellanos was fully prepared to take on a new position with another NL powerhouse.

While he initially struggled with the limited at-bats, Castellanos’ big swing on Sunday proved the deal has been quite the bargain for the Padres.

In May, Castellanos is hitting .278 with a .763 OPS. The Padres will need the All-Star to continue to produce as the team finds ways to remain an elite team in the division with baseball’s back-to-back reigning champions.

As for Tatis, the Padres star will hope to have gotten some luck from Castellanos’ home run with his bat.

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