Puig doesn't miss Dodgers: Reds teammates always support me

Yasiel Puig isn't missing his time with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Heading into his first series in Chavez Ravine since being traded to the Cincinnati Reds, the eccentric outfielder took a thinly veiled swipe at his former team.

"My teammates are always supporting me. That's one of the more beautiful things I have with my new team," Puig told Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times.

"It isn't just about winning or playing well. There is support. We eat every day and we're talking to each other every day in the locker room, on the bus, on the flight. On the field, off the field, we're always in good communication and that's what makes me not feel as much nostalgia as you would think I'm feeling about not playing for the Dodgers."

The 28-year-old - who arrived 70 minutes late for his pregame press conference - gave specific examples of new teammates he's developed friendships with, including Reds first baseman Joey Votto.

"(Votto is) the best guy I've ever met in my life," Puig said, according to Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer. "He's having dinner with me every day, talk(ing) to me every day, text(ing) me."

While Puig may not feel much nostalgia for his old club, he still has an affinity for its fans. Puig said he "might cry" if the Dodgers faithful chant his name prior to his first at-bat back in L.A., according to Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.

"I haven't seen the games," Puig said of the Dodgers' home contests thus far, per Gonzalez. "I don't know how many people, how many fans, have been coming here. But I'm sure that when I played here there were more fans."

Over six seasons with the Dodgers during which the club made the postseason every year, Puig hit .279/.353/.478 with 108 home runs and 60 stolen bases. With one year remaining on his contract and a logjam in the outfield, the Dodgers shipped the polarizing former All-Star to Cincinnati along with Matt Kemp and Alex Wood in a salary dump.

In 12 games with the Reds so far, Puig is 7-for-43 with one homer and one steal.

"When he's motivated, incentivized, he's a very good player," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts offered prior to Monday's contest. "This is as much motivation as can be in front of him."