Youkilis ends D&C boycott: 'It's a new year'

Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis surprised Dennis & Callahan Monday morning by ending his boycott of the show and stopping by for a visit at spring training in Fort Myers, Fla.

Youkilis had not spoken with D&C for a couple of years after he took offense to some comments the hosts made.

Said Youkilis: "There's things in the past that were said, and not agreeable on a lot of things. … I'm moving past a lot of things. It's a new year and it's going to be a great year. So, why rehash on all that other stuff?"

The hosts were convinced that they offended Youkilis with their comment that he had "married up" in a previous relationship, but Youkilis said that wasn't the line that put him over the edge.

"There was stuff that was said off the air that we talked about, and it was portrayed in a different light," he said. "The one that got me upset was the charity comment. There was a charity comment made by somebody here, and we talked about this, that said, 'If I have to see Kevin Youkilis in the papers one more time in his charity.' And that comment was made, and I heard it from another party."

Added Youkilis: "The last straw was about the charity. And I take pride in my charity. That's my thing. I take a lot of pride. And trust me, the one thing I hate about doing the charity work is the media side of it and taking pictures."

Youkilis recently became engaged to one of Tom Brady's sisters, and he attended the Patriots' Super Bowl loss to the Giants in Indianapolis.

"It was a very humbling experience to see how families react and how much they love you and care about you," he said. "And it eats them up, too, with a loss. So, I definitely have more of an appreciation for my family when we lose games."

Added Youkilis: "Unfortunately, I've been to two Super Bowls and I'm 0-for-2. I literally blame myself after that game. I'm 0-for-3 in the playoffs with the Pats, and I'm never going back."

Youkilis' four-year contract expires at the end of this season, although there is a team option for 2013. He said that will not change the way he approaches the game.

"I just play the game. I don't worry about my contract. … I don't understand playing for a contract. I go out there every day and prepare myself to play. I don't worry about what my contract is and what's going to happen down the road, because you can't control that. I can only control what I'm going to do today, and little things like that. I know a lot of players get amped up for that contract year and all that, you can be a free agent and test the market. But I'm a Boston Red Sox player until they tell me I can't be."

The Red Sox memorably ended last season by sleepwalking through September and blowing a huge lead to the Rays in the wild card race. Youkilis was hurt at the end of last season and watched most of the collapse from the bench, but he said it hurt him just as much as anyone.

"I think this offseason was kind of a reflective offseason for a lot of guys to look in the mirror and [ask] what you want," he said. "Do you want that to ever happen again? I know I don't. I was embarrassed. And it was very tough for me, because I had to sit back and watch. I hated it. I hated watching losing and all that. You just feel helpless. You can't do anything. It drive you nuts.

"But this offseason was more about going out and getting healthy -- for myself, personally. All the other guys, your whole goal is to have fun. You've got to enjoy yourself. Even though, the worst thing that happened with the collapse and all that, you've got to go enjoy yourself. Because the season's long. And if you sit there and basically just cry about this and that -- 'Oh, I could have done this' -- you've got to move on. You've got to get going. You've got to work out. You've got to hit. You've got to figure out the goals to make yourself better for the next year."

To hear the interview, go to the Dennis & Callahan audio on demand page [1]. For more Red Sox news, visit the team page at weei.com/redsox [2].