Mariano, Joba clear the air after intense exchange

KANSAS CITY -- Mariano Rivera and Joba Chamberlain said that all was forgiven on Sunday, one day after the Yankees pitchers had an intense exchange during batting practice in the visiting dugout at Kauffman Stadium.

Rivera was conducting an interview with reporters in the dugout and instructed Chamberlain, who was yelling to family members in the seating area, to be quiet. Chamberlain took exception to Rivera's comment, barking, "Don't ever shush me again."

When Rivera chuckled dismissively, Chamberlain continued, "No, seriously. Don't ever shush me again. I don't get to see my family very often."

Chamberlain said on Sunday that he did not feel the need to apologize for the incident, but Rivera said that Chamberlain did indeed offer an apology before Sunday's game.

Brothers don't shake hands, brothers gotta hug twitter.com/YankeesPR/stat…

- Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) May 12, 2013

Rivera also said that he personally wanted to apologize because the exchange was in view of reporters and fans.

"Sometimes you have little things that we say that we don't mean," Rivera said. "It's good. We're a family here. That's what it is all about. It's something that we take care of in-house. It's something that is in-house. Unfortunately it happened in front of you guys, but again, it shouldn't happen. We apologize and we move on."

Rivera had been discussing an emotional visit with local families and seemed to be distracted at times by Chamberlain's loud running commentary. Chamberlain said that he spoke to Rivera outside the clubhouse on Saturday and actually asked for an autograph on behalf of a family member, which Rivera granted.

"We joked and laughed after the game," Chamberlain said. "It's one of those things. I'm around him more than I am my family. He's a brother to me. I'm pretty sure everybody has had an argument with their sibling at one time or another. It was good. I saw him, we laughed and joked this morning. It's just another day."

Chamberlain hinted that there may have been more on his mind than Rivera's comment, saying, "There's a lot of things. It was my fault, personally. My family is here and my son [Karter] wasn't here, which kind of bothered me. But that's another story for another day."

Manager Joe Girardi said that his understanding is that everything is fine between Rivera and Chamberlain. Rivera added that he is not angry or insulted by the comments from Chamberlain, who has been his teammate with the Yankees since 2007.

"No, I'm better than that," Rivera said. "When you're in the team or you're in the family for so long, you know the members of your family, you know what I mean? He's a good kid, man. He's a good kid.

"Sometimes we all say things that we don't mean to say. It's the way it is and I keep it like that. ... There's a lot of other things that I have to worry about. I'm better than that, guys."