It never worked for Wile E. Coyote, so why did an employee of the Tampa Bay Rays think that some fake ACME explosives would propel his team back into the AL East race? Meet William L. Jordan, 38, a mechanic at Tropicana Field who apparently saw the film “The Hurt Locker” one too many times, and thought it would be funny to plant a fake bomb at the stadium for a game with the Boston Red Sox.

Placed in a cabinet near one of the gates, the device was box-like, with wires and blinking lights — very MacGyverish. Police and team officials, however, did not get the joke, and Jordan was arrested. Read more…

• The career route of Troy O’Leary’s ex-wife Annette: From elementary school assistant principal to escort-for-hire?

• Maurice Clarett decides he needs to spend more time in prison.

• A Rays fan takes a 40-foot drop at the Trop from an escalator.

• Hey, you Ole Miss Rebels - Mississippi State’s got two words for ya.

• The Titans will wear a special helmet decal in honor of the late Steve McNair. But some Tennessee fans aren’t so touched by the tribute.

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Rays fans didn’t exactly go crazy for the World Series rematch with the Phillies at the Trop this week — they didn’t get a crowd that topped 21,000. But one Rays fan got his money’s worth down by the Phils’ bullpen, and ended up getting allegedly smacked around by J.C. Romero.

Romero, if you didn’t know, was the winning pitcher in the deciding game of the Series last year, then was suspended for 50 games this year for testing positive for androstenedione during the 2008 season. He and some other Phillies were approached by 25-year-old Robert Eaton for autographs, but after brushing him off Eaton yelled out to Romero something about him “getting some juice” instead. J.C. didn’t take too kindly to that, but after reading the whole story I’m not so sure that Eaton doesn’t come off looking like the bigger idiot.

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TAMPA BAY RAYS DROP ‘DEVIL’; READY TO DROP THE TROP?: Now that Tampa Bay has dropped the “Devil” from its Rays name, are they also ready to drop the Trop?

The ST. PETERSBURG TIMES reports that the club has plans to build a new waterfront park to replace Tropicana Field.The $450 million stadium would be developed on the current site of Al Lang Field, a long-time spring training facility. The new digs would be similar in style to San Francisco’s Pac Bell SBC AT&T Park.

Of course, there’s the little matter of acquiring the land, since it’s public property, and having the public approve the sale. Also, there’s some money matters to consider, with the team hoping the Florida state legislature okays the use of sales tax reveunes for developing the park.

And let’s not forget the Rays’ lease at the Trop that runs until 2027. But by then, all the other concerns should be resolved. Maybe.