MLB

Collins: Valdespin’s tirade upset Mets teammates

Terry Collins said yesterday Jordany Valdespin didn’t call him a vulgar name after the Mets shipped the disgruntled utility man to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday. But the manager admitted Valdespin’s English isn’t perfect.

“It could have been ‘cockroach,’ for all I know,” Collins quipped.

Either way, Collins said Valdespin was indeed mad upon getting sent down. Collins even had to summon him for another discussion.

“He wasn’t happy. When he left the office, he was angry,” Collins said. “The easiest way to put it is I went to the clubhouse to calm [Valdespin] down. It was not accepted very well by the other 24 guys, I can tell you that.”

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Asked about the second chat, Collins said, “They’re always fine. They’re always OK. The second time.”

The manager pointed out the 25-year-old Valdespin committed a further gaffe because general manager Sandy Alderson was present for both meetings.

* Collins explained a bit yesterday about how the Mets will limit Matt Harvey’s innings this year. Harvey, who had his last start skipped, has logged 130 innings through the Mets’ 91 games, putting him on track for 231. The second-year righty will be held to approximately 210, which would be a jump of just over 40 from last season’s 169 1/3.

Collins said Harvey is “gonna get skipped again in the second half.” The Mets also will limit his innings during starts.

“There’s gonna be games where he’s gonna have his A-game, he’s gonna pitch,” Collins said. “The game after that, he probably won’t pitch as much.”

* David Wright on Collins saying the third baseman’s foot has been hurting the last two days: “I’m fine. It’s good. It hasn’t been really any problems. It’s going to be nice to get a few days off. … It’s nothing that prohibited me from doing anything.”

* Collins, who is an All-Star coach for the National League team, said he and Giants manager Bruce Bochy, the NL manager, commiserated a bit over watching their frontline pitchers — Johan Santana last June and Tim Lincecum on Saturday — throw a ton of pitches for a no-hitter. Santana fired 134, Lincecum 148.

“We just talked about who was sicker,” Collins said. “I don’t have Johan this year, so probably it was me.”

* Justin Turner began his rehab assignment with Double-A Binghamton and went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs.

Additional reporting by Fred Kerber