The Philadelphia Phillies enter their NLDS tilt against the Atlanta Braves with so much motivation to prove their naysayers wrong. Now it's Nick Castellanos' turn to play with an added fire in his eyes following an impressive Game 1 performance which saw him go 3-5 from the plate with 3 runs batted in.

Castellanos scuffled during the 2022 season after signing a five-year, $100 million deal with the Phillies in the offseason. His batting contributions deteriorated to the tune of a .263/.305/.389 slash line. And when taking into account his poor defensive metrics, it meant that the Phillies were disappointedly paying an inordinate amount of money only to receive a net negative performance.

But surely enough, Nick Castellanos is using all the doubt cast upon him as fuel to perform better under the bright lights of October. Like Michael Jordan.

“I will say, I’m somebody who doesn’t forget anything. I’m also somebody who takes everything personally,” Castellanos said after their 7-6 Game 1 victory, per The Athletic (subscription required). “I’m not going to say that’s a good thing. It could be a flaw of mine. … Sure, there have been certain weighted issues that I felt I’ve carried with me longer than I should have.”

This kind of self-awareness should only bode well for Nick Castellanos, who, despite struggling all year long, still has retained the belief of his teammates and his coaches.

Phillies fans will remember the mini-saga back in August when Castellanos had a bit of a heated exchange with beat reporter Jim Salisbury after Salisbury asked Castellanos how he felt about the crowd's boos during a loss to the Chicago Cubs. Castellanos then called Salisbury's question a ‘stupid' one, drawing even more jeers from the Phillies faithful.

However, the right fielder is rightfully irked because the entirety of the interview was not shown, which made him come across as unprofessional. In addition, Nick Castellanos had his home address revealed by a local radio station without his consent, which made his debut season with the Phillies all the more difficult.

But now, there is no better time for Castellanos to show what made him worthy of a huge contract in the first place. In 2021, he slashed an impressive .309/.362/.576 to go along with 34 home runs and 100 runs batted in with the Cincinnati Reds.

If Nick Castellanos can regain his 2021 form in the postseason, then the Phillies, who only squeaked into the postseason by the skin of their teeth, could make more noise in October than initially expected.