By JOHN DELCOS
The (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News

TAMPA, Fla. - David Wells thought apologizing to his teammates would make the mess swirling around him go away. Like many of his recent decisions, he was wrong.

Wells, a trouble magnet, could be the recipient of disciplinary action from the New York Yankees for tarnishing the club's image.

General manager Brian Cashman won't elaborate on his options until he reads the autobiography Wells has written, Perfect I'm Not! Boomer on Beer, Brawls, Backaches and Baseball, and one will be on his desk Monday morning.

"I can't rule out the possibility we will pursue some sort of disciplinary action," Cashman said. "I'm going to get a copy of the book, read it myself and then determine what course of action, if any, to take."

Cashman said part of his investigation could entail meeting with club attorneys to ascertain if Wells breached his contract, and if it gets that far the pitcher would have representation.

Cashman twice said he wasn't an attorney, not a normal response to questions about a player.

"I'm taking this seriously," Cashman said. "I take our image very seriously."

Wells apparently does not, based on his answer to the question of whether he thought pitching his perfect game "half-drunk" tarnished the Yankees' image.

"They can't control what we do," Wells said. "They can't baby-sit every individual. That was a one-man task, me doing something I shouldn't have done, going out the night before I pitched."

When the story broke last week that Wells had pitched his perfect game, "half-drunk, with blood-shot eyes, monster breath and a raging, skull-rattling hangover," it was gift-wrapped to The New York Post by his publisher in an arrangement that the newspaper would print excerpts from the book.

On Saturday, Wells backtracked and said he merely pitched with a headache. However, on Sunday he vehemently insisted: "I don't back off anything. Everything in the book is accurate."

Yet when questioned about his statement, "I'd estimate 25 to 40 percent of all major leaguers are juiced, but that number is fast rising," Wells changed course and said that number is a "much, much lower percentage of what I said."

If Wells stands by the accuracy of the book and plans no retractions, then why did he feel it necessary to apologize to Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens specifically, and his teammates in general?

Wells' response to that question was a belligerent, "you're just digging," to the writer, but it didn't alter the fact he addressed the team for roughly five to seven minutes shortly after 10 a.m.

"I got my point across (Sunday)," Wells said. "I feel a lot better. I told them what I needed to say."

Wells, in full view of reporters, approached Clemens at his locker for a brief 45-second exchange in which Clemens clearly looked uncomfortable, hanging up clothes as Wells talked into his left ear.

There was no handshake, no smile, and no pat on the back.

Clemens, who calls Wells "Ely," because "if a story goes over 30 seconds, he's lying," wouldn't comment on the talk, saying, "I'm pretty much done with it after yesterday."

Most players answered meeting questions with the response, "let David talk about it," but a curious listener was Derek Jeter, who drew heat from owner George Steinbrenner for being out at 3 a.m. one night in Manhattan.

"I'm done with that situation," Jeter said when questioned about the double standard. "You'd have to ask him that question. I always ask myself questions. I just keep it to myself."

Steinbrenner isn't saying much these days, and Sunday he blew off reporters with a curt, "I have a general manager and a manager and they'll take care of whatever needs to be taken care of."

Wells always claimed a friend in Steinbrenner, but that's now in doubt.

"If it did make an impact, I would feel bad," Wells said. "I haven't heard from him. I hope it doesn't compromise things. He's done some crazy things in his life, as a lot of people have."

Steinbrenner must be asking himself if bringing Wells back a second time is one of those crazy things.