Mikolas calls crotch grab 'good-natured' after mocking Soto

St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas decided to give Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto a little taste of his own medicine after a big at-bat in Game 1 of the NLCS on Friday.

After getting Soto to ground out with the bases loaded to end the top of the fifth, Mikolas waited for Soto to look back at him near the first-base line before grabbing his crotch.

The gesture was in response to Soto's crotch grab earlier in the at-bat, which is apparently a part of his routine between pitches that's been dubbed the "Soto Shuffle."

"He has a routine where he shuffles around the box and adjusts his cup or whatnot, and I was just having fun out there, just kind of giving it back to him in a good-natured, ribbing kind of way," Mikolas said postgame, according to David Schoenfield of ESPN. "There was no intent to be mean or start anything out there."

"I wanted to wait for him to see me do it," he added. "Kind of poking the bear a little bit. Again, just having fun with it. It's one of those things he does. Hitters do all their stuff, so it's fun as a pitcher to give it back to a hitter every once in a while."

Soto offered a slightly different perspective on the exchange after the Nationals' big win.

"For me, it's not good," the 20-year-old said, according to MASN. "If he react, it don't matter because he (got) me out. I don't care, he can do whatever he want. I'm just gonna laugh about it. We gonna keep going and we gonna face him again."

The Cardinals haven't shied away from confronting their opponents during these playoffs. Closer Carlos Martinez openly criticized the way Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr. celebrated a home run during the NLDS. Also during that series, catcher Yadier Molina made a throat-slashing gesture after a walk-off win. And after his club won the series, manager Mike Shildt tore into the Braves for starting "some shit."