When Bobby Valentine agreed this winter to become the next manager of the Boston Red Sox, there was one small problem — he had previously been quite critical of one of his ace starters, Josh Beckett, during his days as a TV analyst on ESPN. But Beckett revealed today that he’d sat down with Valentine to settle their differences, and they’re now on the same page, ready to roll in 2012.

“We had a little talk about [the ESPN commentary], and I think it was initiated just as a kind of conversation starter,” Beckett said in an interview on the MLB Network. “It wasn’t really anything too detailed. I think it was one of those deals where he felt bad because somebody else told him he should feel bad about it, but it wasn’t anything for me.”

Beckett, along with Jon Lester and John Lackey, received criticism from Valentine after the Red Sox collapsed down the stretch and surrendered the AL wild card to the Rays in September.

The Red Sox blew a nine-game lead in the final month of the season, and many including Valentine blamed Beckett and his fellow hurlers for causing a rift in the team’s clubhouse chemistry. Beckett responded to those allegations tonight.

“We stunk on the field, and that was the bottom line,” he said. “If we would have pitched better, none of that stuff would have even been an issue. And it shouldn’t be an issue anyway, because what goes on in the clubhouse should stay in the clubhouse.”