Four Tiny Tidbits On: The Devil Rays

We'll, we're just more than a month from Opening Day, so it's time to start previewing the season. Inspired by an old feature on The Black Table, we're going team-by-team and distributing Four Things You Don't Know about them. We're not sure how this is gonna work, but if you have suggested oddities on your team, send them to us at [email protected]. Today, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

• 1. Julio Lugo is a dick. The perpetual fantasy sleeper shortstop was arrested in April 2003 for spousal abuse, after she accused him of punching her in the face and slamming her head into the windshield of their car. She later modified her story at trial, where Lugo was found not guilty. The prosecutor, frustrated by the story reversal, said, "How sad is it to hear a woman say over and over, 'I hit myself with the truck. I provoked him. It was my fault.'" • 2. The name is the problem. The team is considering changing its name from the "Devil Rays," saying "Devil" has a negative connotation. Well, only when "Rays" is added. • 3. They're as current as ever. Going against every trend in baseball, the Devil Rays do not have a general manager. New owner Stuart Sternberg says he considers the position "outdated." • 4. They're honest. On the Devil Rays Web site, the team's logo features the words "Under Construction." Runner-up, we presume: "Excuse Our Mess."

(Tomorrow: San Francisco Giants)