MLB

PEDRO LIVID OVER POSADA DISS

WASHINGTON – Jorge Posada dredged up the past yesterday, and Pedro Martinez didn’t appreciate it one bit.

Told that Posada had accused him of having “no class” for his actions in the notorious Yankees-Red Sox brawl during Game 3 of the 2003 ALCS, Martinez unleashed a vicious tirade on the Yankees catcher last night.

Posada, during an interview with Michael Kay for the YES Network program “Center Stage,” criticized the way the then-Red Sox pitcher handled himself in the brawl, which featured Martinez slamming then-Yankees coach Don Zimmer to the field.

“I thought he was going to hit me in the head with a bat after we had the fight and he pushed Don Zimmer,” Posada said. “It was ridiculous. I mean, he throws at Karim Garcia because he’s losing the game. I mean, there’s no class.”

When Posada’s comments were relayed to Martinez after his start here last night in the Mets’ 7-2 loss to the Nationals, Martinez delivered a blistering response that accused Posada of cursing Martinez’s mother.

“When I pointed to the head, it wasn’t precisely to tell him that I wanted to hit him in the head,” Martinez said. “Nah. He’s a human being, he has a family, and I’m a professional. [The pointing to the head] was because he cursed my mom. I was telling him, ‘I’ll remember that.’ ”

Martinez said Posada should have known better than to insult a fellow Latin’s mother.

“He knows – he’s Latin, as much as he pretends to be American, he’s Latin – that cursing your mom in Latin America will get you into a fight,” Martinez said. “That’s something I would never do to his mom, because she doesn’t play. She’s not on the field. She’s someone you admire and respect, and I didn’t like that.”

Martinez also denied that he was intentionally throwing at Garcia’s head in the fourth inning at Fenway Park that night. That incident precipitated the brawl.

“I had two guys on at the time, and I think it was [at] second and third,” Martinez said. “I don’t see how you’re trying in such a critical game to hit somebody just because I’m losing the game. Like I never lost a game before.”