Ah, more poor decision-making in St. Petersburg. But this time it wasn't the front office, or one of those crazy young outfielders. This time it was the pitching coach ...

Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey was charged with driving under the influence, hit-and-run with damage and resisting arrest after rear-ending a car near Tropicana Field on Sunday night shortly after the team arrived home from its season finale in Toronto. "I made a horrible mistake," Hickey, 45, told the St. Petersburg Times on Monday after posting $900 bail on the misdemeanor charges. "It was a total lack of judgment. I apologize for that. It's inexcusable. I certainly put my job in jeopardy. They have every right to go in any direction they want to." Hickey just completed his first season as the Rays' pitching coach, but Sunday night's incident cast a shadow on whether he would be back.

This is an exceptionally easy decision for the Devil Rays, right? Let's see ... they've got a young team, with a bunch of questionable personalities in the mix. Their pitchers, despite leading the American League in strikeouts, easily finished with the worst ERA in the league. Aside from Scott Kazmir and Jamie Shields, the lowest ERA among their many young starters was 5.76. The bullpen was even worse, with a 6.16 ERA that guaranteed them the worst record in the majors. So, what should they do with their pitching coach, who's exhibited poor judgment and has no history of success?If Hickey's fired -- and I believe that he will be -- some will suggest that there's a double standard. Well, of course there's a double standard. There's not a specific rule about situations like this. Within the boundaries of basic decency, baseball teams, like any other business enterprise, should make such decisions based on the needs of the organization. And right now, what the Devil Rays need is a pitching coach who's an upstanding citizen with a demonstrated ability to shepherd young pitchers. Hickey fails on both counts, which is why it should be easy to fire him.