“Who would want to play in St. Louis? Boring. So boring. I always get asked, ‘Where would you like to play? Where would you not like to play?’ St. Louis is on the list of places I don’t like to play. It’s rough.”

When Chicago Cubs star third baseman Kris Bryant said these words on a comedy talk show at the 2019 Cubs Convention, he did not plan on infuriating an entire city. But, in a rivalry as historic and bitter as the one between the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals, no comments go unnoticed, even if they appear on “Friday Night with Ryan Dempster.”

Ever since the late 1800s, when the Cardinals and Cubs battled it out as the St. Louis Browns and the Chicago White Stockings, the two teams and their fans have loathed each other. Some attribute this to the economic rivalry between the two cities during the time of their formation, as Chicago grew exponentially after the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 and overtook St. Louis in population. The two cities’ geographic locations also tie them together, as they both lie in the Midwest on the historic Route 66.

While the Cubs lead the all-time series 1230-1171, this record is misleading, as the Cardinals have had the upper leg for most of the franchises’ histories. Since 1926, the Cardinals have won 11 World Series, compared to the Cubs three championships. Throughout the Cubs’ 108-year World Series drought — which spanned from 1908 to 2016 — several events have polarized fans of each team. Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire beat out Cubs star Sammy Sosa in the 1998 home run race by setting the single-season record at 70 (until it was broken by Barry Bonds with 73 in 2001). In 2005, Albert Pujols’ MVP win frustrated many Cubs faithful who thought their first baseman and NL batting title winner Derrek Lee deserved the prestigious award. After some divisional distractions between the Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds during the first half of this decade, today the classic rivalry is back in full swing. The Cubs finally won a championship in 2016, and are now consistent postseason contenders.

Although Bryant has since said that his comments were taken out of context, Cardinals players quickly unleashed a tirade on the former MVP. Some of the most striking comments came from long-time Cardinals catcher and future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina, who fiercely defended his city in an Instagram post directed at Bryant.

“All stars, elite players and leaders of their teams do not speak bad about any city, “ Molina’s caption read. “There should be respect and you should play and compete with respect…only stupid players and losers make comments like the ones made by Bryant and Dempster.”

When the Cardinals first host the Cubs this year on May 31, the reaction from Cardinal Nation will certainly be something to look out for. With another season in the competitive NL Central on the way, the Route 66 rivalry looks to get even stronger on and off the field.