Mo Vaughn failed eight sobriety tests after crashing his pickup truck into a car parked alongside the highway, a state trooper testified today.

At the Boston first baseman’s drunken driving trial in Dedham District Court, arresting officer Richard Ball said he gave Vaughn three chances to recite the alphabet after reaching the accident scene.

He reached the letter P’ and just stopped, Ball testified.

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Vaughn was arrested Jan. 9 after the early-morning highway accident in Norwood, Mass. He was not injured, and has pleaded innocent.

Asked three times to stand on one leg and count to 30 after the crash, Vaughn got as far as five, Ball said. The final test, which he said Vaughn failed twice, was to take nine steps, heel to toe.

Ball also said Vaughn smelled of alcohol, staggered as the two men walked toward Ball’s cruiser, and occasionally used the officer to steady himself.

Defense lawyer Kevin Reddington said the car parked on the side of the road created a hazard and that fog and heavy rain led to the crash.

The 30-year-old first baseman has pleaded innocent to charges of operating under the influence of alcohol and failure to stay in his lane. The trial is expected to last two days.

Before the opening of the trial, District Court Judge Gerald Alch instructed the jurors to disregard Vaughn’s status as a professional athlete.

The defendant in this case is a professional baseball player, Alch told the court. He is a member of the Boston Red Sox. That’s not a factor in this case. It is to work neither for nor against him.

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An all-white jury of five men and three women was chosen Monday morning to hear the case.

If convicted, Vaughn faces a possible jail sentence, fine and loss of his license for up to one year. He also could be ordered to take an alcohol education program.

Vaughn said he would not testify, but Reddington said a meteorologist would testify visibility was impaired and he would call on a limousine driver who reportedly notified police of the disabled car several hours before the crash.

Vaughn, eligible for free agency after the World Series, is in the last season of an $18.6 million, three-year contract. Negotiations over a new deal stalled before Thanksgiving.

Brett Butler says Piazza is moody, self-centered

While Mike Piazza may soon become baseball’s first $100 million player, former teammate Brett Butler says his attitude leaves a lot to be desired.

Mike Piazza is the greatest hitter I’ve ever been around but you can’t build around Piazza because he’s not a leader, Butler was quoted as saying in the Los Angeles Times Monday.

You know all that stuff that went down last year about Mike being the leader, calling out the team, all that stuff? Butler said. It was all fabricated. Mike Piazza is a moody, self-centered, ’90s player.

Butler, who retired last year at age 40 after 16 big-league seasons, questioned Piazza’s commitment.

We’re in (crunch) time during pennant races the last two years, and all Piazza seems to care about is winning the MVP from Larry Walker or the batting title from Tony Gwynn, Butler said. We’d be winning games 8-0, but if he isn’t getting his (hits), he’d be all ticked off, walking up and down the dugout all mad.

Do you want to spend $100 million and build your team around that or pay for a less-talented guy who is more of a leader?

When Piazza heard what Butler had to say at the Dodgers’ spring training headquarters in Vero Beach, Fla., he acknowledged disappointment.

Brett obviously doesn’t know me as well as he thinks he does, Piazza said. You lead according to your personality. Guys can smell a fake. For me to be a rah-rah guy, that’s not me. I lead other ways.

Maybe Brett, who’s never won a World Series, either, is very frustrated about something, and wants to make me a scapegoat. I always looked up to him, tried to learn from him. That’s why this is so disappointing. We can’t be concerned about what Brett Butler says about our club, because he’s not on our club.

Coming off one of the finest offensive years by a catcher a .362 batting average with 40 homers and 124 RBIs the 29-year-old Piazza will earn $8 million this season, completing a $15 million, two-year contract. He will be eligible for free agency following the season.

You know why Ken Griffey is a leader, why Barry Bonds is a leader? It’s respect, Butler said. They are respected because they are team players. We didn’t have any of that on the Dodgers. … Mike doesn’t want to be a leader, he just wants to play.