As if the Mets don't have enough detractors, Yankees GM Brian Cashman got in line Saturday, ripping them over their use of Pedro Feliciano. "He was abused," Cashman said of the lefty reliever who led the majors in appearances the last three years.

That didn't stop the Yankees - desperate for a lefty bullpen arm - from signing him over the winter, but Feliciano is starting the season on the DL with a rotator-cuff strain. Cashman said the injury may not be related to overuse, but that did not stop him from taking a pointed shot at the beleaguered Mets, who are reeling from woes on and off the field.

"The concern is based on the MRI, not necessarily the use pattern, which was abusive," Cashman said about Feliciano's injury. "The MRI itself obviously shows what he's got and that leads us to believe all of this is resolvable and not a major issue. It's just a timing issue."Feliciano made 266 appearances and pitched 1771/3 innings for the Mets over the last three years. He made 92 appearances last year alone.

Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen said the Yankees should have known better than to sign a pitcher the Mets might have worn out. "He volunteered for the baseball every day. He was asked if he was able to pitch. He said yes every day, and wanted to pitch more than we even pitched him," Warthen said. "I feel badly that someone feels that way, but that's part of the reason we decided not to re-sign him, because we knew we had used him 270-some times in the last three years."

Feliciano would not blame his former club for his injury. He said he is feeling better and is looking to be cleared by doctors to begin long-toss on Wednesday or Thursday. Cashman said late April to early May is the best estimate for his return.

"It's the muscle strain (behind the shoulder), it just feels weak," Feliciano said. "The therapy is going good, it's coming up strong."That "abuse" would have been a red flag for Cashman, if the market for lefthanded relievers was not so tough.

"It's a thin market when you are out there looking for lefties and he was one of the better ones out there," Cashman said. "You don't typically run to sign up guys that have been used like that."Cashman then held up his crossed fingers to describe how he went ahead with the deal for Feliciano.

The pitcher shrugged off his heavy workload with the Mets, admitting he likes to pitch a lot, and said this injury was just a fluke. In fact, he laughed when someone suggested he blame former Mets manager Jerry Manuel. "No, no," Feliciano said. "Maybe a pitch I threw I threw it the wrong way. That's all."