MILWAUKEE -- In a Milwaukee Brewers clubhouse filled with oversized personalities, the first shot at the rival St. Louis Cardinals going into Game 1 of the NL championship series came from a surprising source: Starting pitcher Zack Greinke, whose bout with social anxiety disorder typically makes him one of the least likely players to pop off.

Speaking to reporters at Miller Park on Saturday, Greinke said some of his Brewers teammates don't like Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter when he shouts at batters from the mound.

"They think his presence, his attitude out there sometimes is like a phony attitude," Greinke said. "And then he yells at people. He just stares people down and stuff. And most pitchers just don't do that. And when guys do, I guess some hitters get mad. Some hitters do it to pitchers. But when you do that some people will get mad.

"There's other pitchers in the league that do it, but, I don't know," Greinke said, "a lot of guys on our team don't like Carpenter."

The NL Central champion Brewers send Greinke to the mound for the series opener against the wild-card Cardinals and lefty Jaime Garcia on Sunday. With a World Series trip on the line in a rematch of the 1982 Series, an already-simmering rivalry could reach a new level of intensity.

Cardinals manager Tony La Russa vigorously defended Carpenter, saying he was "very disappointed" with Greinke. La Russa said any team in the league, including the Brewers, would be happy to have Carpenter on their staff.

"That's a bad comment to make unless you know Chris Carpenter," La Russa said. "Our attitude is we look at ourselves and we grade ourselves. And even if we don't like what's happening on the other side, we don't make a -- it's not our business, unless somebody crosses the line. So I think the Brewers should take care of their players."

While it was surprising to hear Greinke talk openly about his teammates' disdain for Carpenter on the eve of one of the biggest weeks in Brewers history, the sentiment itself isn't shocking.

Milwaukee's rabble-rousing center fielder, Nyjer Morgan, got in a heated confrontation with Carpenter late in the regular season.