While stopping short of issuing a formal apology, the Giants on Friday pulled back from general manager Brian Sabean’s inflammatory comments regarding Florida Marlins outfielder Scott Cousins, made Thursday on radio station KNBR.

The Giants issued a statement regarding Sabean’s comments, saying “they were not meant to vilify Scott Cousins. Brian has been in contact with Florida general manager Larry Beinfest to clarify his comments and to assure him that there is no ill will toward the player. He has also reached out to Cousins directly.”

The Giants general manager made a series of caustic remarks about Cousins and the May 25 home-plate collision that ended catcher Buster Posey’s season, summing up his radio interview by saying, “If I never hear from Cousins again, or he doesn’t play another day in the big leagues, I think we’ll all be happy.”

Sabean told Comcast SportsNet Bay Area on Friday that he wanted to let the matter die down. The G.M. was unavailable for comment Friday night at AT&T Park, but team president Larry Baer and manager Bruce Bochy addressed Sabean’s radio rant and agreed they were made out of emotional frustration.

“Look, there’s nobody more supportive and protective of his players than Brian,” Bochy said. “I’d compare him to like a papa bear. When something happens to your kids, your fangs come out. He’s hurt. He’s hurt for Buster, and he’s hurt for the club, for baseball. It’s a very emotional time, and as

we know, Brian’s very emotional.”

While the statement didn’t offer an apology to Cousins or the Marlins, Baer said he talked to Florida president David Samson.

“I talked to David Samson and said similar things to what Brian said to Beinfest, that this was not meant to be a personal thing toward (Cousins),” he said. “That’s certainly not the organization’s point of view, and I apologized for the way it may have come out. It was not stated properly. I don’t want to say what Brian meant to say, but our focus is on Buster Posey, his state of mind and getting him feeling better, out of pain.”

Baer said that Sabean phoned Cousins but didn’t reach him. Sabean left a voice mail, Baer said.

Baer added that he and Sabean talked with Joe Torre, Major League Baseball’s executive vice president of baseball operations, on Friday. Baer said he was unaware of any forthcoming sanctions against Sabean or the team.

Earlier in the day, Cousins also issued a statement.

“I hope and believe that Mr. Sabean’s comments were made in the heat of the moment and are based more on his fondness for Buster Posey than on any animosity towards me,” the statement said. “This situation is still an open wound for many, including myself. As I have stated previously, nobody outside of Buster feels worse about his injury than I do.”

Cousins has tried to contact Posey several times but has been unsuccessful.

Sabean received a torrent of criticism nationally in the wake of his comments, including from Marlins player Logan Morrison, who lives with Cousins in Miami.

“He’s taking this very hard without the comments that Sabean’s made,” Morrison said in a radio interview. “He’s getting death threats from people. This is his hometown, San Francisco. He’s worried about his family and his friends that are there.

“And now (Sabean’s) going to make comments like that? It’s ignorant, it’s inappropriate and he has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.”