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CLEARWATER, Fla. - Bobby Valentine does not know Yankees pitcher David Wells, so he did not understand why Wells ripped him during an online interview two years ago. Valentine, who was fired as Mets manager after last season, was similarly baffled when he found out Friday that Wells singled him out again in his coming autobiography.

Wells called Valentine a loser and used a vulgarity to describe him. On Friday, Valentine, who was fired as the New York Mets' manager after their disappointing season last year, responded with equally strong language.

"Constantly diving into the spotlight, Valentine's got a rep as being arrogant and obnoxious and conniving and a backstabber," Wells wrote. "A lot of players hate him. A lot of his fellow managers hate him. Valentine's easily the least-liked manager in the game. Trust me, the list of former Mets who hate this guy is longer than your arm."

Wells takes aim at Valentine in the context of the 1999 game at Shea Stadium in which Valentine, then the Mets' manager, was ejected but returned to the Mets' dugout in disguise. Wells, then with Toronto, said he was pitching when Valentine was ejected, but Valentine noted that Wells had left the game by then.

"I can say he's a liar, because he wasn't on the mound when I was thrown out of the game," Valentine said in a telephone interview. "I always thought he looked real embarrassing just because of his appearance, but he was blessed with an absolutely fabulous left arm. That's his redeeming quality, obviously."

Valentine said Wells' attacks were nothing new; he has heard the same things about himself for years. But Valentine said Wells needed to be held responsible for his claims that up to 40 percent of players use steroids, and that he pitched his perfect game while suffering a hangover.

"In our community, he's going to get a free pass, because that's just Boomer and he's a Yankee," Valentine said. "I don't think he should get a free pass. He should be held responsible by his peers."

Valentine, who will start his new job as an analyst for ESPN's Baseball Tonight in mid-March, said Wells deserves severe criticism.

"I think it's disgraceful that he would paint them all with the same brush by saying 40 percent were doing steroids," he said. "If he had any guts at all, he'd name names of people who have been doing amphetamines and steroids. Then let the innocent be innocent and let the others wear the scarlet letter. But responsibility is obviously something he knows nothing about.

"Another 'R' word that comes to mind is a word Joe Torre used when I played for him with the Mets, and that's respect. It's obvious he doesn't respect the game, respect his teammates or the team playing against him. I don't think he respects himself, either.

"Those are two pretty key words, respect and responsibility. Another is reality. If this guy thinks that his reality is showing up drunk when he's pitching for the greatest franchise in the history of baseball, he should wake up or sober up."

When Wells brags about pitching a perfect game with a hangover, Valentine said, he sends a bad message to young players.

"What about the high school kid who got bombed his last time out when he got his rest, then decides the next time out he's going to stay up until 5 a.m. puking his guts out so he can pitch better?" Valentine said. "That's the message that's out there, and it's totally unacceptable."

ICHIRO ON BASEBALL: Ichiro Suzuki told the Yomiuri Shimbum, a Japanese newspaper, that the major leagues are "about scoring" and put too little emphasis on fielding skills.

"There are areas where Japanese baseball gets the better of the majors," Suzuki said. "What surprised me most when I first arrived was that the major leaguers don't practice relays and hitting the cutoff man. As a result, you see lots of errors during the season."

He faulted management for rewarding hitting while tolerating poor fundamental play.

"If the coach decides, the players have to follow his decision," Suzuki said. "If one team does it, it would become much stronger and better organized than any other team."

WHISPERS: Don't take Bartolo Colon's listed age of 29 to the bank. His younger brother, Jose, a minor-league reliever for Montreal, had his age adjusted upward from 25 to 28 during the crackdown over visas. ... Star players somehow remain a step ahead of the age police. ... Shawon Dunston hopes to play, but only for the Cubs, Cardinals or Diamondbacks. If he doesn't hear from those clubs soon, he'll call it quits. He could be a terrific big-league manager if he wanted to put in a couple years learning that job. Bruce Bochy hasn't managed a team without Trevor Hoffman as his closer since 1992, when he was in Double-A. With Hoffman out until at least July, the Padres are exploring trades, with Colorado's Todd Jones and the Reds' Scott Sullivan among the options. ... Kevin Brown, who reported late, is throwing pain-free for the Dodgers. ... The Astros will move Craig Biggio back into the leadoff spot. ... The Pirates might be the best option for unsigned center fielder Kenny Lofton.

Mark your calendar

March 2-11: Teams can renew contracts of unsigned players.

March 25-26: Opening series, Oakland vs. Seattle, Tokyo.

March 30: Opening day for other teams. Active rosters reduced to 25 players.

March 31: Reds Opening Day.

July 15: All-Star Game, Chicago.

July 27: Hall of Fame inductions, Cooperstown, N.Y.