Scott Kazmir probably didn’t do himself any favors with his rant Thursday about the strike zone from umpire Derryl Cousins in a game against the Angels. He said Cousins, a 28-year umpiring veteran, squeezed the strike zone at a critical time of the game - which he did.

By complaining publicly though, Kazmir will almost certainly be fined. He may also find the strike zone considerably smaller the next time he pitches.

Is it just me, or does it seem like the Rays complain a lot about stuff they need to handle better? I’m not talking about the brawl in Boston, either. They’re letting umps get under their skin way too much.

B.J. Upton was tossed from a recent game for arguing a called third strike. Matt Garza has come mentally unglued the last two times he pitched.

Now Kazmir.

Not good. Part of the maturation process as a team is learning to better handle things mentally. The Rays still have a lot of catching-up to do there.

CHAD JOHNSON REPORTS: Any Bucs fans hoping to see Chad Johnson in Tampa this fall might find this story interesting. After spending much hot air telling everyone how much he wanted out of Cincinnati, he reported to a mandatory Bengals minicamp.

There’s still a lot of trouble in paradise though.

Johnson didn’t practice (ankle injury) and refused to talk with Cincy reporters. Most of his teammates wouldn’t talk about him, and when asked if he was sick of talking about Johnson, quarterback Carson Palmer said simply, “Yes.”

CHAD UPDATE: A bit happened since that above post. Here’s an update from Cincy as the day wore on.

It’s getting a little weird there.

Is it any coincidence that both Chad and Plaxico Burress, who is threatening a holdout with the Giants, have the same agent - Drew Rosenhaus?

Didn’t think so.