A good sports story? Ridiculous!

I'm not a huge fan of sports journalism.

Unless the reporter is talking or writing about an athlete I've heard of and care about (of which there are few), I tend not to pay much attention to sports stories.

But one story I heard on NPR last weekend definitely caught my ear.

It was a great take on sports, although I thought at first it was just a piece of ridiculous fluff.

The story is about the Tampa Bay Rays, who've just changed their name from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The columnist starts out by telling the reader the Rays are one of the worst teams in baseball, and that suddenly they've been winning--playing great games.

The story evolves. Rather than going into the ways the team has pulled the rug out from under their competitors, the columnist interviews a Lutheran minister and the head of the Church of Satan to talk about the implications of removing the word "Devil" from the team's name.

Sure, mixing religion and sports in this way can be seen as no-news cotton candy airtime filler. But the more I think about it, the better my outlook on this story becomes.

Not only did it catch my attention, but it kept my attention--and I probably would have switched to another radio station if the story had been a more traditional take on baseball. I've been thinking about the story for a few days--so it was memorable. Plus I've been telling people about the story and sending them the link.

If you're looking to grab listeners/readers, this is a great way to do it.

Give the story a listen if you get a chance.