"There's a lot of ugly if you allow it to get to you" - Phillies' Max Kepler opens up on fans booing, says it must be their “love language"

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Max Kepler shed light on the dark side of baseball after being relentlessly booed throughout the season. Philadelphia is one of the toughest cities for a sports figure because the fans there are highly emotional and expect nothing less than excellence.

Kepler, who is playing in front of the same crowd for the first time, has struggled. The former Twins star has only hit .204 and 12 home runs. Though it's an average performance, fans have been after him all season long.

In Tuesday's 5-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles, Kepler hit his first home run since June 22. After the game, he expressed his satisfaction that he contributed to the Phillies' win and got the love from the fans.

“Sometimes I think the boos are their love language,” he told NBC Sports Philadelphia.

However, with it, Kepler also used this opportunity to throw indirect shade at the Phillies fans while explaining how ugly baseball can be for players.

"But you know, I see a bunch of guys here doing that all year, you know? And it's baseball, people just have to grind through it," Kepler said. "And yeah, that's why baseball is a game of adversity. And it's a beautiful thing. It's a beautiful thing. But you know, there's a lot of ugly to it too, if you allow it to get to you.

"But I'm just happy to still be here and watch these guys ball. And at the end of the day, we got a W, and I think the Mets just lost, so good day. I love that the fans come out here every day."

Max Kepler not happy with his role in Philadelphia

When Max Kepler signed a one-year, $10 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason, the veteran outfielder expected to play left field regularly.

But as the season has progressed, the Phillies haven't fulfilled that promise as they have played Kepler inconsistently. That inconsistent playing time seems to have affected his hitting as well.

“The biggest challenge for me is not playing routinely,” Kepler told the Athletic’s Matt Gelb. “That’s the biggest challenge. I was told I was going to be the starting left fielder.”

Kepler has played 98 of the Phillies' 114 games this season. However, he has made the starting lineup rarely when the opposing starting pitcher is a left-hander. Despite Kepler's underwhelming performances, the Phillies have managed to surpass the New York Mets and build a healthy 2.5 game lead to stay on top of the NL East.