"Kevin Youkilis spent most of the winter in California, recovering from surgery to repair a sports hernia that sidelined him for the final two weeks of last season.

But he couldn't escape the fallout from the Red Sox' epic September collapse.

Youkilis, who held his annual fund-raiser last night at the State Room to benefit his children's charity, admitted the Sox' clubhouse "definitely didn't have the best vibe" for stretches of last season. But the third baseman also compared the ensuing chaos, including reports about the discord that painted him as a selfish malcontent, as a "witch hunt.""