TAMPA – Randy Levine prides himself as the protector of the Yankees brand. As team president, he has a Trump-ian zero-tolerance policy for criticism.

He is feisty and combative, and his counter-strike strategy is often: You hit the Yankees once, we are going to hit you 10 times. Proportionality is not a strength.

The Yankees found out Saturday they won their arbitration over Dellin Betances and will have to pay him $3 million in 2017 rather than $5 million. But a few hours later there was a loss, as Levine requested a conference call with reporters in order to lambaste Betances’ representatives for financially “over-reaching.” Levine thought the reps were depicting the Yankees as the villains, and he was not going to let it slide.

Levine is correct that Betances’ reps were trying to create a new market in which a reliever without big save totals got paid closer money – which I would have done if I represented Betances, as well, because he has not been an ordinary setup man. Let’s say I even agree that the strategy was to paint the Yankees as the bogeyman – the deep-pocketed organization that wouldn’t dig a little deeper for a homegrown New York kid who has given much of his arm the past three years while being a model citizen.

I still believe this story has a 24-hour shelf life if Levine just takes a deep breath. In that scenario, Betances would have expressed some disappointment. The Yanks could have mainly no-commented by saying the system is the system, but that doesn’t change their affection for Betances.

Instead, Levine called Betances a “victim” of his agent’s “half-baked” attempt to change arbitration precedent. I cannot remember a non-Yankees team executive asking to speak to reporters to attack agents after an arbitration result – particularly one his team won.

This launched a tidal wave that is not going away anytime soon. Betances’ representative, Jim Murray, fired back, noting that Levine said he loved Betances, but during the first 15 minutes of the arbitration process Friday kept calling him “Dylan” rather than “Dellin.” Betances further fanned the flames, admitting he was doing so only because Levine went public with his criticisms. And one of the union’s top officials, Rick Shapiro, called Levine “unhinged.”

So on the day position players – and Betances – reported, the Yanks had a mushrooming controversy they don’t need. More important, they have a vital player so unhappy he declared it would be “fair” if he now limited himself to just eighth-inning work rather than coming in with runners on or to pitch multiple innings.

In addition, one of the most powerful agencies in the game (Excel Sports Management) and the union are enraged at the Yanks. How can that be a positive for the franchise?

Maybe this will subside with time and when Betances’ competitive juices flow. But it is no one-day story any longer. Murray, normally not one to comment publicly about his clients, promised to keep firing back if Levine persisted.

When I spoke one-on-one with Levine later to say I thought he unnecessarily made this more incendiary, he disagreed, saying he felt “it was important to correct the record” that the Yankees were mistreating Betances – as he claims the reliever’s agent was espousing. Rather, by giving him the most money ever ($3 million) for a first-time arbitration-eligible reliever, the Yankees, Levine reasoned, were appreciating Betances.

The truth is both sides had strong arguments. If I represented Betances, I would have maintained that he is a three-time All-Star who has been at least as vital as Yankee closers David Robertson, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman, regardless of when he was getting outs.

If I were representing the Yankees, I would fight that non-closers have yet to be honored financially that way in the arbitration process and I would not allow precedent to be set with my club.

Thus, I get why both sides were hardened in their positions. The sides never came close to an accord when Murray made multi-year pitches in December or to avoid arbitration with a one-year contract, including Betances making a last-second plea to Levine and GM Brian Cashman just prior to the hearing.

This is why all teams and agents work diligently to avoid the negativity of the hearing. Betances complained about what the Yankees said about him before the arbitrators. But this is the reality of the process. If you don’t want to hear it, avoid it.

But what is not standard is to then hear your team president rip your agents. Levine tried to separate Betances – whom Levine said he loved and respected – and his representatives. But no player is going to hear that difference, especially when Levine deploys a loaded term like the player was “used” by his agents, which will make the reliever feel he is no more than a puppet.

That the sides could not agree last year either and the Yankees responded by giving Betances the major league minimum ($507,500) in his final pre-arbitration season – the same as he made in 2015 – signifies bad blood in the relationship. That is why after such a brutal process Friday, Saturday should have been about healing – not for overreacting to protect the Yankees brand.