Now that I think of it, the Devil Rays have rarely had a good month.

I'm not kidding. They had a losing record in each month of their first season. In their second year of operation, the D'Rays posted their first winning month, by going 16-12 in August (even though they were actually outscored in those 28 games.) They had another successful month in 2000, when they went 15-11 in June. They then posted a losing record in 18 consecutive months before breaking through with a 14-12 mark in July 2003. And then, in June of 2004, came what stands so far as the franchises's nearest Brush With Glory - a sizzling 20-6 log, that included a 12 game winning streak. It carried the team to the dizzying heights of 70 victories and fourth place, for the only time in franchise history.

Last year was business as usual. Lou Piniella, by now 61 years old and in his third year managing a team without hope, seemed to lose interest after a couple of months. The Devil Rays did manage to post a winning record in August, but they also managed to preserve their unblemished record of losing more than 90 games every year.

That's eight consecutive 90 loss seasons, and that's not a feat that has been accomplished very often in major league history. In fact, it's worth a little Historical Detour. None of the other expansion teams have matched it, with Houston coming the closes by losing 90 plus games in each of their first seven seasons.

It has been, in fact, fully half a century since a team lost so many games for so many years. The 1955 Baltimore Orioles stumbled through a 57-97 season for their ninth consecutive 90 loss season - the first seven of which they played as the St. Louis Browns. It's the longest such streak by an American League team, and that's the mark that the 2006 Devil Rays will have their sights set on.

Two teams in the National League have had longer stretches of misery than Tampa Bay. When the Braves were in Boston, and changing their team team nickname every year, they lost 90 or more games nine years running, from 1904 to 1912. And of course, the worst such run ever was set by the Phillies, who stumbled through ten such dreary seasons from 1936 through 1945. Meanwhile, such celebrated and ancient teams as the Indians, Yankees, and Giants have never suffered through more than two such years in a row. (And yes, I know - the longer schedule has made a difference.)

So - can Tampa catch Boston and St.Louis/Baltimore for a share of... uh, second from the bottom?

Actually, I don't think so.

The Devil Rays, as you probably know, have stockpiled a nice cache of intriguing, and sometimes downright exciting, young talent. Not all of it has arrived at the major league level - the two most celebrated of all the Devil Rays phenoms, B.J. Upton and Delmon Young, have recently been sent to AAA to further hone their skills. But you may expect to see both of them in the majors before this season is over. Meanwhile, the young players already on the scene provide legitimate grounds for... hope? In Tampa Bay?

You betcha. So let's look at what first year manager Joe Maddon will be working with. His starting lineup and rotation, not to mention his roster, is still a work in progress, even this late in the spring. But we can sketch the broad outlines.

Tampa re-signed catcher Toby Hall to a one-year deal for $2.25 million last December, for reasons that surpasseth all understanding. Hall is not very good. He's a big strong guy, who looks like he ought to be a good hitter, but he's terrible. He makes pretty decent contact, but has no power and hacks at everything, resulting in a bountiful number of GDPs. He doesn't throw particularly well, and any evidence that he's good at working with pitchers is extremely hard to find. If there was one team in the majors that should have taken a run at Bengie Molina, it was the Devil Rays - a team that: a) needed a catcher, and b) had lots of young pitchers who would benefit from Molina's ability to work with a pitching staff. Instead, Tampa traded for Molina's backup, Josh Paul, to serve as Hall's caddy.

Things look better for the Devil Rays when you begin to look at the guys who play in fair territory. First baseman Travis Lee is what he is - not a star, but a very good defender and a decent complementary left-handed bat. Not unlike what John Olerud was in 1991-92. Lee did hit quite well in the second half of last season, but Miguel Batista's not in the league anymore.

The Devil Rays will probably have Jorge Cantu at second base this year. He split his time last year moving between second and third. On a team full of hackers, Cantu may be the most impatient of them all. Last year he walked just 19 times in 150 games. But when you have an infielder who bangs out 40 2Bs, 28 HRs, and drives in 117 runs... you can live with it, I suppose.

Lee and Cantu are here to stay, although there are circumstances that could see Cantu move back to third base, with Nick Green moving in to play second. The Devil Rays have a problem at third base. They sent first round disappointment Dewon Brazelton to San Diego for another first round disappointment, Sean Burroughs. The idea was that Burroughs, pushed a little by Ty Wigginton, would take over third base, with Wigginton backing up at both corners. Alas, both Burroughs and Wigginton have been so bad this spring, that Maddon is now playing Aubrey Huff at third base. Wigginton will probably make the team as a backup, and Burroughs will probably go to AAA to try to put his long-lost game back together.

This - Huff playing at third - can neither last, nor end well. Granted, it eases the log-jam in the Devil Rays outfield, but it's still unlikely to work. Huff is not particularly good at first base or right field, which are his best positions. Adding to his discomfort is the fact that he also had an off-year at the plate in 2005, and will be trying to bounce back. I see no reason why can't do that - he gave Tampa three very fine seasons in a row with the bat, and he's still just 29 years old. (Surprised? I was, actually.) Huff is the subject of trade rumours every year, and I promise that this year will be no different. He is still an attractive talent, a proven LH bat, on the good side of 30, and a player whose best position is one the Devil Rays have covered. And then some.

The shortstop, for now, is Julio Lugo. The Devil Rays have evidently decided, for now, provisionally, that B.J. Upton's future will indeed be at shortstop. That future may very well arrive in 2006, which makes Lugo a commodity likely to be shopped around in mid-summer. Until that happens, it will be interesting to see if Maddon can resist the temptation to be dazzled by the guys who run really fast (Crawford, Gathright, Baldelli) and stick Lugo at the top of the batting order. On a team of free swinging hackers, Lugo will actually take a walk and get on base from time to time, and once there, he runs very well indeed.

The Tampa outfield is also in a state of some confusion - Aubrey Huff was expected to be the right fielder, but he's playing third. Rocco Baldelli was supposed to come back from knee and elbow surgery and play centre field. Baldelli, however, has seen duty strictly as a DH so far this spring - he was about to make his outfield debut last Friday when he tweaked his hamstring. He will eventually be back, of course, and he will be just fine. He's still only 24 years old, and he did hit .280 with 16 HRs in the American League at age 22. There's a lot of room for growth here, especially for a player with his size and speed and athleticism. He may end up in right field, this season, while Jumping Joey Gathright dashes around in centre field. Gathright, of course, has two major claims to fame: 1) he jumps over cars; 2) he's even faster than Carl Crawford. The little fellow has less power than even Toby Hall (into whose pocket he could comfortably fit) - on the other hand, if they ran twice around the bases, Gathright would probably lap him before turning for home. Don't be surprised if he gets shipped out somewhere - the Devil Rays have lots of outfielders.

Because we haven't even mentioned the best of them all. I happened to be at the SkyDome on July 20, 2002 when Carl Crawford made his major league debut - he had a two-run single off Brian Bowles as Tampa rallied from an 11-1 deficit only to lose 12-10. Off the top of my head, the only player clearly better than Crawford whose debut I remember being present for was that of the Crime Dog, Fred McGriff, way back in 1986. Crawford was just 20 years old that afternoon, and he doesn't turn 25 until this August. In the meantime, he has developed steadily and impressively, improving all aspects of his game, right across the board. He has raised his BAVG and increased his power in every season. As you have surely noticed, he is insanely fast, but as his power continues to develop, one wonders if he may find himself best suited to hitting third in this lineup. Being a Devil Ray, he doesn't walk a lot, and he banged out 63 extra base hits last year. An amazing athlete, and a great player to watch.

The fourth outfielder, who can fill in at all three spots in a pinch, is Damon Hollins who may be the starting right fielder on Opening Day if Baldelli isn't ready. Hollins finally made it to the show for a full season last year, at age 31. He has no upside, but he can fill a role off the bench. And one wouldn't want Jonny Gomes running around in the outfield, although the comedic possibilities are tantalizing. It's not like he's not trying out there - he's just pretty much overmatched by this whole task of tracking a ball in the air and catching it. But the young fella is a very fine looking hitter. Even if he's not quite impatient enough to be a true Devil Ray. He has a very quick bat, very strong hands, and a pretty good idea of what he's doing at the plate. He strikes out a zillion times, but I tend to see that as an inevitable consequence of his approach. Gomes is trying to hit the ball hard somewhere, he's not going to get cheated, and he is going to strike out. If he hits 35 homers - and I think he will - you live with it.

And waiting in the wings, of course... Mr Delmon Young. Look for him, and Upton, to arrive in July. After the Devil Rays clear out Huff, Gathright, and Lugo in order to a) make room, and b) acquire a pitcher. Any pitcher. Please.

Consider this: the leading winner on the staff each of the last two seasons has been Mark Hendrickson. Yes, folks. Our own fondly-remembered Lurch. And yes, Tampa Bay fans call him "Lurch" as well. How can you not?

But still...Lurch? How alarming is that? It gets worse. Lurch is the first pitcher in franchise history to have consecutive seasons winning in double figures. Despite which, I somehow don't expect them to retire his number. Anyway, Lurch and Casey Fossum will both be in the rotation to start the year, but they're both just placeholders until the Devil Rays find a better option.

They already have a better option at the top of the rotation, of course. As longtime Box readers have probably noticed, I am constitutionally incapable of even mentioning the name of Scott Kazmir without indulging myself in a memory of his high school numbers:

11-2 , 0.37 ERA, 75 IP, 175 Ks, 19 BB, 19 hits.

Is that ridiculous or what? He would have faced about 265 batters - they batted about .078 against him. Almost two out of three hitters struck out. That was his senior year - as a junior he threw four consecutive no-hitters.

Whee! Can you imagine the poor kids on the other high school teams? A foul ball was a moral victory, as someone once said about Koufax.

Kazmir turned 22 only two months ago - he's already pitched 219.1 innings in the major leagues, and struck out 215 hitters. The Devil Rays have been prudent - he started 32 games last year, but worked just 186 IP. Some of this, of course, was due to Kazmir's tendency to run up high pitch counts in a hurry. He hasn't yet established a firm and lasting relationship with the strike zone - he did walk 100 guys last year. But when he gets locked in and has it together, oh my my. He is simply unhittable. I haven't seen a ball just explode out of a young lefty's hand like this for a long, long time. Since - I hate to say it, it's so unfair to Kazmir, and so blatantly ridiculous - but not since Koufax. He reminds me of Sandy, and I don't really know why. The delivery is completely different, Kazmir is built more like Guidry (well, he's not that skinny) than Koufax... but he just does. Must be the K.

The other rotation spots will be filled by Seth McClung, who looks close to be harnessing his impressive set of tools. Warning - "looks close" also means "hasn't done it yet." The fifth job was a tussle this spring between Doug Waechter, who will end up in the bullpen if the nod goes to former Dodger Edwin Jackson. Jackson's handling by the Dodgers was... puzzling, to say the least. Jackson, who is only 22 years old himself, will go to AAA if Waechter gets the starting job - unless Lurch is unable to start the season (Hendrickson has a sore right leg.)

The Devil Rays have replaced pitching coach Chuck Hernandez - the new man is Mike Butcher - and we shall all see what impact this has on the young arms. Developing young pitchers has not been a strength of this organization, and it's especially disturbing when you hear that Dewon Brazelton, of all people, has been impressing people in San Diego this spring. And last year, of course, Jorge Sosa had a sensational season working with the famous Leo Mazzone. One of Butcher's first projects had better be Jesus Colome, who seems to have inherited the closer's job. Colome has an utterly electric arm, and has been utterly unable to have any consistent success using it at the major league level. Getting him sorted out will have to be a priority. The rest of the bullpen consists of Travis Harper and a few guys named Chad, one of whom, Orvella, actually pitched quite well for the 2005 Devil Rays.

Oh, one more thing. Carl Crawford, Jonny Gomes, Rocco Baldelli, Jorge Cantu, Scott Kazmir, Seth McClung, Doug Waechter, Joey Gathright, Chad Orvella, Edwin Jackson - not to mention B.J. Upton and Delmon Young - are all 25 years old, or younger. Good times are coming, even if they do come slow...

So... nine 90 loss seasons in a row? Will it happen?

I say no. I say the Devil Rays have their best season ever, and slip past the staggering and stumbling Orioles.

75-87, Fourth Place.