Saturday Blog checking
Nothing really to write about here. The Chris Benoit case keeps getting uglier and uglier (as if that were possible). The Indians keep winning at home. The Cavs did nothing in the NBA draft. Matt Sussman informed me Kenny Lofton had four steals last night for the Rangers -- at 40.
Michael Moore has another movie out that I won't see.

* Sussman does some writing about Frank Thomas and Craig Biggio, who had perhaps the most uninspiring march towards the respective milestones in baseball history.

* Erik is examining the veterans v. rookies debate that currently exists in the Indians outfield. I think it's important to have Trot Nixon on the roster. But that's only so he can keep hitting Ben Francisco and Franklin Gutierrez with pies as they continue to get big hits.

* Here's my column on pro wrestling, in light of the Chris Benoit tragedy.

Poor Romeo
ESPN's John Clayton says if the Browns start 2-2, that "may not be good enough." Funny. If the Browns start 2-2, I'll dance on the roof of my apartment.
Cleveland might be the only city to be thrilled with an 8-8 season. The Browns haven't won more than six games since 2002.
Romeo Crennel is a marked man this year. He avoided a firing last season by the skin of his teeth (which, would have been unfair in my opinion).
Still, to be a Browns fan is to be optimistic, against all logic. Crennel might have to win more than eight games to save his job (since the Browns will likely want to offer Bill Cowher nothing short of the moon to coach the team he played for). If he can somehow do that, there will be a parade from Cleveland Browns Stadium to the Terminal Tower.
As I have written before, I don't see how going better than .500 is possible, given the division the Browns play in, the schedule, and -- let's face it -- it's the Browns.
A year from now, I get the feeling we will have hit the reset button again. The new Browns' coach will come in and stress the importance of "changing the culture of losing." The Browns will go 7-9 in 2008, but will lose many close games, fooling fans into thinking the team has turned a corner.
We've seen it before; we will see it again.

Socialized medicine has it's problems
When I heard Michael Moore was doing another film, my first question wasn't what it was about.
Rather, it was whether the film would be termed a documentary, or rather a piece of fiction. Moore's reputation of playing it fast and loose with the facts is well-known.
In some ways, the worst thing to happen to Moore was for him to find great success with Bowling for Columbine and Farenheit 9-11. The exposure he received may have been good for his pocketbook, but bad for his long-term reputation.
Writers such as Christopher Hitchens assailed Moore's claims; and actual documentary makers have had their say.
All of Moore's critics are not, as he would have it, all agents of the Bush Administration. Some are left-leaners. Basically, anyone with the time or vague interest can find out in a matter of minutes what type of filmmaker, and for that matter what type of man, Moore is.
As for Moore's latest work, well, I haven't seen it (I generally boycott Moore's work). I also cannot claim to be an expert on medical care in this country or anywhere else.
Beyond that, I can concede that the health care system in this country is far from perfect, and likely in need of some reform.
But socialized medicine is not, as Moore is said to claim in his latest film Sicko, a wonderful, beautiful system.
Not having seen the film, I can't say whether Moore gives even a second to someone with a differing opinion than his (history would say no). But here's a differing opinion well-worth reading.

More on Benoit
The story keeps getting more and more gruesome. In the past few hours, we've learned more about the Benoit murder case -- and that's what it almost certainly is -- murder.
There have been tragedies like this within wrestling before. Wrestlers like Bruiser Brody, Dino Bravo and Chris Adams died violently.
But I can't remember anything like this. This would be a major story even without wrestling involved -- although the steroids at Benoit's house gives it an irrevokable connection.
Bill Simmons compared this story to O.J. Simpson's murder case. It reminds me of that, and also of Phil Hartman's death.
There's really nothing to compare this to within wrestling, but then again, wrestling doesn't matter right now.
Three people are dead. Given the brutal nature of this, it may seem hard to have much sympathy for Chris Benoit, at least in comparison to his wife and son. But not all the facts are in yet. We have to remember that.
This case has the potential to change not only wrestling, but the face of sports in general, depending on what the findings are in relation to the steroids.
But before that happens, I hope the families of Nancy and Daniel Benoit get a chance to grieve. It's such a sad story, and it's probably not going away.

Chris Benoit
What is there to write about this?
Sherri Martel died a little more than a week ago. It was sad, but not shocking.
That's just the way it has become in pro wrestling. It's a never-ending thing.
So when Martel died (at 49), it was sad, but not shocking. How could it be? So many wrestlers are gone that it's difficult to be surprised.
Then Chris Benoit, one of the best wrestlers in the world, is found dead in his home. Not only that, but his wife and young son are found as well.
I didn't know Chris Benoit. But he seemed well-liked by his peers, and in interviews, seemed like a decent, modest guy.
So as the day went on yesterday, and the information continued to come out, it was shocking.
The guy I saw on TV ( and in person a few times) didn't seem capable of such a horrible thing. And yet, reports indicate Benoit killed his wife, his son, and then himself in a three-day span.
All this occurs with the backdrop of wrestling. World Wrestling Entertainment had just embarked on a storyline where chairman Vince McMahon was blown up. It was a storyline which caused me to swear off WWE for good.
Too many people have died. In the back of my mind, I wondered how WWE could do a mock death when so many of its former employees had passed away young. I also wondered how Benoit felt about it, since he had lost so many friends in the industry.
Eddy Guerrero was Benoit's best friend. Owen Hart and Brian Pillman came from the same training ground, and were friends as well.
Now Benoit is gone, under the most tragic of circumstances.
We'll know more in a few days.
I can't help but think that as we write in sadness about the wrestler, the true victims were his wife, Nancy, and his son, Daniel. If this were anything else, that's what I would have said a lot earlier.
Sometimes you end up with more questions than answers.

Update
The Associated Press is reporting Benoit strangled his wife, smothered his son, then hanged himself. CNN has a reporter outside the Benoit home. Forget wrestling as a context. This is a story that is going to be reported like few others.

Mel Hall arrested
The Indians of my earliest years were not a great bunch of players. There was the occasional star (Joe Carter, Julio Franco) biding his time at Municipal Stadium until his contract ran out or he was traded, but for the most part, the Indians were full of mediocre players making up a less than mediocre team.
Mel Hall was somewhat better than most of the players the Indians had, which is to say he was somewhat better than average -- at the plate, anyway.
Since he retired more than a decade ago, he's become a name from the Indians' past. If I ranked him on the Indians index of my lifetime, he'd be somewhere above Terry Francona and somewhere below Tony Bernazard.
Still, Hall did have an impact with the Indians that stretched far beyond the end of his own career. The Tribe dealt the outfielder in 1989 to the Yankees for backup catcher Joel Skinner. The trade would be unremarkable except for the fact that Skinner has never left the Indians. After injuries forced his retirement in 1991, Skinner became a coach and then manager in the Indians farm system. He coached third base with the big league club under Charlie Manuel, then took over as manager at the all-star break in 2002 when Manuel was fired.
After the Indians hired Eric Wedge to manage in 2003, Skinner stayed on, as the third base coach. He must really like Cleveland.
Anyway, back to Hall. He played four seasons in New York, leaving after the 1992 season to do ... well I'm not quite sure. He returned to the bigs in 1996 with the Giants, playing in 25 games.
Hall probably never would have been mentioned again by too many people in baseball. But today he was back in the news for some very bad things.
It doesn't look good for the former Indian. Not good at all.

Breakdown
The Indians recent play is cause for concern.
It's not just because of the team's streaky play. It's because the Tigers are better, and maybe the Twins will be better. If the Indians don't start improving, particularly on the road, they could be toast, and fast.
The problem with Cleveland has been the same for a number of years. It isn't that one or two guys go cold. It's as if the team gets a bug, and it spreads through the lineup.
Ryan Garko is struggling. Josh Barfield has been off a little at the plate. Casey Blake is coming off a 26-game hitting streak, but he doesn't drive in runs. Trot Nixon is swinging the bat like retirement is one double play ball away. Jason Michaels is Jason Michaels, and David Dellucci is hurt, but no one has noticed.
The biggest problem, though, is Travis Hafner. I really thought, going into this season, that Hafner was slump-proof. That's because since 2004, he had been.
The designated hitter slammed 75 homers over the past two seasons. He drove in 117 runs last year, when he was one of the five best hitters in the game.
This season, Hafner looks lost.
I get on Blake all the time for not hitting with runners in scoring position, but the fact is, Hafner is hurting the team more there than Casey ever could.
Hafner is hitting .194 with runners in scoring position, and .125 with two outs and RISP.
But perhaps what's most surprising is he's hitting .222 (2-9) with the bases loaded, a spot where he has thrived in his career. In fairness, that's probably not enough at-bats for a fair sample.
When Hafner didn't homer in Spring Training, most of us thought it was an abberation. But as of June 25, not only does he have just 10 homers, but he hasn't hit one in almost a month, when the Indians were in Kansas City.
Cleveland doesn't have enough hitters to overcome a Hafner off-year.
The Indians might as well be tied to Victor Martinez's back. It doesn't matter if he plays first or catcher -- the guy is having a great season.
If the Indians rebound, Martinez could qualify as an MVP candidate. It's not just that he has14 homers and a .314 batting average. It's that he comes through when the team needs him most.
His homer against the Nationals Saturday saved the Indians from a sweep. He has 62 RBIs and has a .403 RISP average. That's stunning.
The Indians may be their most effective with Martinez at first and Kelly Shoppach catching. Shoppach is showing he may be more than just a backup catcher. Any backup hitting .373 is earning his keep.
The same can't be said for utility infielder Mike Rouse. I had never even heard of the guy before he showed up in Spring Training, and now I know why.
He's a backup and in many ways inconsequential, so I don't want to lay into him. But Rouse has struggled to stay above a .100 batting average. You could bring Jeff Manto out of retirement and he'd hit better than that. As for his defense, he's OK, but no one will confuse him with Juan Castro any time soon.
So why is he on the roster? Only manager Eric Wedge knows for sure. And if the PD's Paul Hoynes is correct, Rouse won't be going anywhere.
The Indians have an eight-game homestand starting tonight against Oakland. We should have a better idea after its conclusion whether the Indians will contend for a title, or just attain (GM Mark Shapiro voice on) "an acceptable win total for this market."
One day I'd like to tell Shapiro just how insulting that phrase is, since you have to pay big money to see a team which takes satisfaction in mere decency. Until then, I'll sit and wait.

Vacation
One of the great benefits, and perhaps the great benefit, of being away from work for a period of time is that it makes you think.
You have more time and less pressing matters.
This can be a blessing and a curse. You are under the impression you need to do more -- do as much as you can -- to make the time well spent.
So you run and run, and by the end of the week you are just as tired as if you were working.
The other option is to take it easy. Slow things down. Then three days pass and all you have to show for it is 40 pages down in a book and a loss in Monopoly.
Still, the time for thought is always worth it, especially when you find yourself with more questions than answers.
Where am I going?
Am I in the right place?
Should I move?
Am I doing the right thing?
None of the answers are simple. But it never comes easy. Life is about choices. I know of no important decision made without at least some reflection.
That's what a break affords you. Taking advantage is another issue.

Terry Hoeppner dies
In some very sad news, Indiana football coach Terry Hoeppner has died.
Like many of my friends, I remember Hoeppner most for his time at Miami University, when he battled my school -- Bowling Green -- almost every season.
Hoeppner always struck me as a heck of a guy, and a great football coach. I covered two of his games my final semester in college -- both wins over BG.
After the win over BG in the 2003 MAC title game, Hoeppner made the media wait a long time to talk to him.
He wanted to take a picture of his team on the field at Doyt Perry. This irritated all of us in the media room. I remember a highly respected journalist yelling out "He's not on deadline!"
I was on deadline that night, and he put pressure on me by taking a picture. For a while, I nursed a bit of frustration from that evening. But as time passed, I realized Hoeppner wanted his kids to know how special the moment was. He likely wanted them to realize how fleeting moments like that are.
It was more than a job to Hoeppner, and I came to respect him for doing what he did that night.
Two of the coaches BGSU faced that year are gone. Northwestern's Randy Walker died last year. He led the Wildcats against BG in the Motor City Bowl in 2003.
It's just a sad thing.
Rest in peace, Mr. Hoeppner.

On Vacation ...
So blogging will be slow, if I get around to it at all over the next week.

* So, Casey Blake is batting third. Never thought I'd see the day.
* I've never been less excited for a Browns season. I don't see how they'll be any good.

Cavs swept
I just got done watching the first season of Denis Leary's Rescue Me on DVD. After being unable to turn it off an blowing through 13 episodes in three days, it's probably not a great idea for me to write too much about the Cavaliers tonight.
My concern is going off like Leary, ranting and raving about how my team let me down.
But I don't want to be mad at a team that gave me such a thrill over the last month. The ending was an epilogue which, hopefully, will be forgotten. The end of the movie is last Friday's game against Detroit.
As for the finals, the better team destroyed. Hats off to San Antonio. Though I was nauseated watching Eva Longoria hold up a Spurs banner, then look around late in the game to see if it was OK to come on the court, the team itself is a classy group.
Maybe there's something to be written about the Cleveland Curse, but I don't want to rehash that. In my opinion, the OIC curse is dead. Cleveland has LeBron James, a first-place Indians team and a Browns' squad with an offensive line that's competent.
It's time to feel good about Cleveland sports.
The sweep hurts. But four years ago, the thought of the Cavs (or the Indians, for that matter) in the playoffs was laughable. And let San Antonio enjoy their NBA title. At least Cleveland has sports all year long.
Sorry San Antonio, couldn't resist a sore-loser shot.
I feel bad about the Cavs losing, but good about where the city's sports are going.
Raise your glass to LeBron and the Cavaliers. Great season. Great last month.
Raise your glass to Cleveland. Great year.
To better ones to come.

Assessing things after three games
My contention from the beginning of this series was that just to get to the finals was not enough.
The opportunity was there; it was a matter of the Cavaliers grabbing it, and in the process, ending the cities 43-year title drought.
A few days later, the Cavaliers are staring at elimination.
I want to be mad at Cleveland, but I can't. The Cavaliers came ready; prepared to take a championship.
LeBron has left everything on the floor. So has Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall, Drew Gooden and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. So is everyone else who has played.
But the Cavs are down 3-0. That's just the way it goes sometimes. I'm long past blaming this on Cleveland luck. San Antonio is a fantastic team who deserves praise.
I really think (in a rare moment of optimism) the Cavaliers will win tomorrow. LeBron will give Cleveland its first finals game win. After that, I doubt the Cavaliers will do much.
But as hard as Cleveland has played in this series, they have to get at least one break.

Cavs making me sick
Well, not really. The Cavaliers are in the NBA Finals, so I am happy about that. But the Spurs appear to be on another level.
I haven't posted in a few days because I caught a virus Wednesday and have spent much of the time since then in bed, or making the people around me miserable -- in more ways than one.
I'm pretty sure I've already passed on the virus to someone at work.
Anyway, today I finally felt well enough to make a post. and the Cavs play just horrible in Game 2.
I don't want to be negative or positive about this. The Cavaliers have given the fans of Cleveland a great season, and a great month.
But allowing ourselves to fall into the "proud to be second" mindset only adds to Cleveland's inferiority complex.
As my father said to me when the Indians lost the World Series to the Braves in 1995: "When you get there, you have to win it."
I didn't really get it then, but I do now.
In 1995, there was this idea the Indians would be back -- and they were. They came close -- closer, in fact -- to a World Series title in 1997.
But they didn't win it then either. Nor did they in the next five years, when they made four playoff appearances.
LeBron James is awesome. But the window won't be open forever. There will be new challenges in coming years, so a return to the finals is not guaranteed.
When the series comes to Cleveland Tuesday, the Cavaliers need to represent themselves, the Eastern Conference, and the city well. They haven't done that on the court in the first two games.
Being down 0-2 is tough, but a comeback can happen. Being there is one thing; winning it is another.
Winning it is much better.

Going easy on Blake
Some may have noticed a lack of anti-Casey Blake posts lately. There are a pair of reasons for this.
1. The Cavs are in the NBA Finals, so I'm not in the mood to complain these days.
2. Blake has been pretty decent lately.
He's hitting .281 with eight homers. His RBI total (29) isn't great, but he's being utilized in the No. 2 spot, which isn't exactly made for run production.
His defense at third has been pretty decent. He will not be a gold glover, but to expect that would be too much.
Still, I am not changing my prediction for a full season, which is that Blake will finish with a .250-.260 average and 20 homers.
Blake is a streak hitter, and he's riding the high tide right now.
But before anyone from the Indians talks about how we should build a statue of the man, let's look at three major statistics.
1. He's hitting .140 with runners in scoring position.
2. He's batting .071 with runners in scoring position and two out.
3. He's 1-8 with the bases loaded.
Why are his overall numbers good?
With none on and one or two out, he's hitting .371. With the bases empty, he goes .324.
So I will lay off on him, but won't celebrate him just yet.

Song quote of the day
Yes you loved me
and you sold my clothes
I love you
but that's the way that it goes-- Flying Burrito Brothers

Billy Donovan wants out of Orlando
Billy, Dan Dakich just called. He said what you did was pretty low.

Great moments in sports broadcasting
"It's a very tough thing to be a very rich, very handsome athlete today." -- ESPN's Peter Gammons on Alex Rodriguez

I'd love to get Peter's definition of tough. I do sympathize with Rodriguez, in that I think his personal life should be left alone by the media.
But "very tough" seems a tad extreme. It can't be as tough as a very poor, very normal looking person working two jobs to make ends meet.
Perspective, people.

Bitter
Rasheed Wallace is a selfish, whining thug.
You know what the difference is between the Pistons and the Cavaliers? The Cavaliers' mantra of "no excuses" was tested, but not broken after bad calls in game two.
Cleveland coach Mike Brown blew up and got a technical when LeBron was hacked attempting a shot in the final seconds.
But by the time Brown was interviewed, his demeanor had changed. He was upset, you could tell.
But the focus was on what the Cavs needed to do.
Contrast that with Wallace, who apparently knows nothing about Cleveland sports. With 7:44 left and the Cavs up by a dozen , Wallace was called for a foul. Instead of regrouping, and remembering that in Cleveland, nothing is for certain, Wallace finalized the Pistons' demise by getting ejected. Even if the Pistons somehow came back, he would have been diqualified from game seven.
As Kyle O'Neil of the Detroit Free Press put it:
Sixth foul and a technical … and another technical on Wallace. Fitting end as the Pistons’ toughness has been replaced by whining and a sense of entitlement to winning when it needs to be earned each night.
At least we could count on grace and class from the other Pistons. Oh, wait.
Chauncey Billups brings out the tired old line of a sore loser:
"I still think we're better, I'm saying that because I'm serious, and I really believe that. To be saying that in defeat, I have no problem with that. I'm standing up and saying that. I think the same could be said by a lot of guys."
You know, I can just see, more than 200 years ago, William Howe, Great Britain's commander-in-chief during the American Revolution, saying something similar to King George. And what would King George have said?
"I have to go argue with a tree now."
The point is, it doesn't matter. If the Pistons want to console themselves by believing they're better than the Cavs, they can go ahead. Maybe one day, we'll stop playing games on the field and on the court, and we'll just decide whose best by computers. The BCS already does that, and that has worked well for everyone.
The Cavaliers are the best in the East. They proved it in six games, Chauncey.

Going to the finals
I don't have the words right now. All I can think is that this is for Austin Carr, for Nate Thurmond, for Jim Chones.
This is for World B. Free.
This is for Brad Daugherty, Mark Price, Lenny Wilkens and Craig Ehlo.
This is even for Ron Harper, who as a Pistons' assistant, had to have just a few mixed emotions, even if he'll never admit it.
This is for Danny Ferry (duh). This is for Terrell Brandon, the late Bobby Phills, and Tyrone Hill.
But most of all, this is for Joe Tait. Driving back from Columbus, I switched my ESPN Radio feed to a static-filled WTAM. Tait sounded really happy. Like Herb Score with the Indians, Tait has been through a lot with the Cavaliers, and lived to tell the rest of us.
LeBron James saved the franchise, but Tait allowed it to be saved.
Four more wins, and the weight is off. Still, let's enjoy this one. Who knows when it will happen again.