DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA...

• The Sporting News has named Andrew Friedman their Executive of the Year for 2008...So let this be a warning to all. If you are about to join a fantasy baseball league and one of the teams is named "World B. Friedmans", don't do it. He'll kick your arse. [MLB]
  
• MLB Trade Rumors has their list of the top 50 free agents and where they are projected to land. With the Rays declining Cliff Floyd's option and lopping $5 million off of the roster, Pat Burrell could fill the need at DH and right-handed power bat. Also, Nick Punto is the kind of player that Joe Maddon covets, a switch-hitter with lots of positional flexibility and excellent baseball skills. Is he a difference maker? No. Can he be a highly effective part-time player? Yes. He could come to the Rays and fill a bench spot and still get 2-3 starts a week. The question is whether another team still sees him as an everyday player. [MLB Trade Rumors]
• David Price has been selected by ESPN the Magazine as one of their "Next" athletes. [ESPN]
• This story is a bit stale, but for those of you, like us, that loathe the long pajama pants worn by most players and long for the day of short baggy pants and stirrups, we can *thank* the Rays' very own George Hendrick. [Sports By Brooks]
  
• The Rays have extended their partnership with the Princeton Rays through the 2010 season. [Rays Prospects]
  

THE GOOD: All 3 AL East Teams in action last night lost. Both the Sox and the Yankees lost last night.

THE BAD:

THE TELLING: Even if the Rays lose 2 of 3 in this series, the Rays would still be in first place in the AL East...David Ortiz went on the DL and will miss this series, and will be out at least a month, meaning he will miss the next Rays-Red Sox series at the end of this month. There are even rumblings that Big Papi's injury could be season-ending.

DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA...

• Don't forget to VOTE for Carl Crawford to start the all-star game. If you haven't voted yet today, go NOW! [MLB All-Star Voting]
• Is our push to get Carl Crawford voted to the All-Star team working? CC moved up a spot to #12 on the list. Remember he only need finish in the top 3. [Rays Report]
• Looks like this week's Rays Index Live Blog-A-Baloo will be Thursday night. There is a small chance we will have to move it to Wednesday night. We will make another announcement later on to confirm the day.
• Scott Kazmir was named AL Pitcher of the Month. [Yahoo! Sports]
• just to show how Sox fans are not taking this series seriously, the opening line of this Boston Globe piece: "For now, it ranks more as novelty than high drama, this notion of the Red Sox playing a showdown series in June against the Tampa Bay Rays". [Boston Globe]
  
• One blog nominates first base coach George Hendrick for "Most Interesting Man in the World". They even found a picture of him, which is apparently not an easy thing to do. [The Place To Be]
  
• Jim Caple of ESPN.com has had enough of "Red Sox Nation" and set out to figure out exactly when the Bandwagon started filling up. It is refreshing to know that the Trop isn't the only park where the home team's fans are outnumbered by the green and pink hat wearing newbies. [ESPN]
• Baseball Prospectus does a Q&A with Andy Sonnanstine. It is hidden behind their password wall if you don't have an account. It is an interesting read in that Sonnanstine still considers himself a pitcher that throws from different arm angles even though we showed you a while back that he is not doing that this year. [Baseball Prospectus]