It's all over a tweet Pedro posted on Tuesday, saying, "The Yankees don’t seem to have the energy of a winning team. I understand some key players are injured, but they don’t seem to be hustling out there."

We asked Straw (who famously played for the Yanks) if he thought Pedro (who played for the Sox) was just trying to motivate the talented squad -- but Darryl wasn't havin' it.

"I don't know why former players always have something to say about other teams," Darryl said ... "It's not really important for us to be able to say things about the teams. You just wish them well!"

So, how does Darryl feel about the Yanks this season? He admits he doesn't really "deal with baseball anymore" ... but thinks the Yanks are only scuffling 'cause of injuries.