Although the Red Sox have embraced the moniker in the past, David Wells did not mean it as a compliment when he call manager Terry Francona an "idiot."
The pitcher, who has already asked for a trade and changed his mind this spring, talked to Francona earlier in the week about the rotation, asking why Josh Beckett isn't the No. 1 starter, then was upset when the manager revealed details of their conversation.
"What went on in that office should have stayed there in that office and it shouldn't have come out to you guys," Wells told The Hartford Courant in Saturday's edition. "So he's the idiot for saying that like that, not me, because I didn't interpret it like that."
Wells said Thursday that he felt "pretty good" after his first outing of spring training. The Red Sox left-hander wasn't thrilled, though, that his first outing of the regular season might be delayed.
With two days off in the first eight days of the season, Boston won't need a fifth starter until mid-April. Wells, who was set back by offseason surgery on his right knee, would be the likely candidate to be held back although he said his knee feels fine.
"I'd have a problem with that," he said Thursday. "I know they've got an abundance of pitching. That's one thing they don't lack."
Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield and Beckett are penciled in as the first three starters with Matt Clement likely the fourth.
"I don't see why Clement should sit out. He's having [an outstanding] spring," Wells said, but "I'm not the type of guy that's going to sit around for two weeks before my first outing. It's not right."
Wells said Boston should start with a five-man rotation, but manager Terry Francona prefers keeping his top four pitchers on their regular four days' rest, which would preclude an early five-man rotation.
Wells "might give you headaches. But he's a pretty good kid," Francona said. "In general, there are going to be times when I have to tell people things that they don't exactly want to hear. David's a good example.
"Sometimes you've got to be a little flexible. For the most part, it's hard to get players to look at the big picture also. I understand that. They're looking at their next start or their next at-bat," Francona said.
The 42-year-old Wells reported to camp hoping to be traded close to his home in San Diego. But early in spring training, he said he preferred to stay with Boston so he wouldn't have to worry about the issue while he worked his way back from surgery.
He said the knee felt fine Thursday when he threw 53 pitches to Red Sox minor-leaguers in an intrasquad game. He threw 34 strikes in three innings and allowed two runs on five hits with no walks and one strikeout.
Wells said he only needs to throw 15 to 20 innings in spring training, even if some of those are in minor-league games. What if he does that well and remains healthy and the Red Sox still hold him back until mid-April?
"It's too early to really speculate on that," Wells said. "If they still feel the same way after a few more outings then we're definitely going to have to sit down and talk.
"I don't see myself sitting until April 15 to wait to pitch," he said. "I just don't see it at all."