A look back at the weekend and what is ahead:

The Indians can't seem to get their hitting machine rolling. It is now the end of June and Travis Hafner still is not hitting. That is the bad news. The good news is the Tigers are only 2 games ahead and the Indians lead the wild-card race.

Juan Pablo Montoya won the Nextel Cup race in Sonoma, Calif. It was his first win, but more important for NASCAR, it was a minority driver who won the race. With Lewis Hamilton, a black man, winning twice in Formula One, NASCAR has been getting more questions about its minority program. Montoya's win shows NASCAR is making progress.

Does anybody really care to hear about Kobe Bryant every day? Enough already ESPN.

All indications are that Brady Quinn is going to need a lot of work to be of any good to the Browns this season. Now we see why most didn't think he was a high first-round prospect.

The Cavaliers have a lot of value with veteran contracts that are going to expire after next season. In today's NBA, those can be more valuable than gaining a real player.

Ohio State football is being talked about as being the fourth best team in the Big Ten this season behind Wisconsin, Michigan and Penn State. I just don't see Penn State being better than the Buckeyes. The other two should be, but the Badgers will be like the Buckeyes, going with an inexperienced quarterback.

Greg Oden and Kevin Durant or should I say Kevin Durant and Greg Oden. I think Oden will go first, but the NBA, despite the players being on the West Coast, has to be happy that these two will be playing against each other in the same division for years to come.

As for the draft, I think the Cavs will pass on trading into the proceedings.

Paul Tracy, the Canadian driver, continues to race well in Cleveland. Kudos to Tracy.

Wimbledon gets started today …. wake me when it's over. Speaking of Wimbledon, when it was great in the 80s and 90s, we couldn't watch the early rounds because it was on HBO. Now that it is on ESPN, I see no reason to watch.

It doesn't register on most sports fans' radars, but it was good to see the United States win the Gold Cup this weekend, beating Mexico 2-1. It bodes well for Bob Bradley's plan for the National Team.

I have pointed out how inept the NBA is on TV and the lack of folks interested in it, even with LeBron James on center stage.

Well here is more proof from Peter King of SI:

There are approximately 113 million television households in the United States, and the average rating for the NBA Championship Series showed that 6.9 million households watched the series between Cleveland and San Antonio.

We all know football is king in this country, but if the best the NBA has to offer gets trounced by the worst the NFL has to offer … well, the NBA is in more than a little trouble.

Well, this is the time of the year when baseball becomes the focus.

The NBA and NHL are over. The draft looks to be pretty quiet on the home fronts.

Golf doesn't get back on the radar scene until the British Open and Bridgestone until later in July.

NASCAR has had the Dale Jr. saga end. Only the Pepsi 400 is a big race in July.

The Browns and the NFL are on vacation until the end of July.

So really, it is baseball time. Time to talk Tribe chances of trade, who makes the all-star game and, as always, Barry Bonds.

Enjoy the lull in the schedule.

Any worries with the play of the Browns quarterbacks?

Patrick McManamon wrote in his story for Friday that only Derek Anderson seems to have a grasp on the offense. Brady Quinn and Charlie Frye remain off target.

Look for an indepth piece on new offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski on Sunday on Ohio.com and in the Beacon Journal.

Did the New York papers go too far in running pictures of Alex Rodriguez with a woman, not his wife, entering night clubs and running a story of his day with this woman?

I know we received a few complaints of running photos of LeBron James' new home in Bath. And there was some talk in our newsroom of whether this was news or not.

Do you guys care whom Grady Sizemore is dating or LeBron or Brady Quinn? Or what the marital status is of other players. Personally I don't think these items are stories unless the player or his teammates or the organizations say it is the cause of poor play or strife in the locker room.

LeBron James was fouled, but the Cavs can't wait to take the last shot. Go for the throat! … Danica Patrick will win an IndyCar Series race but not this weekend's Indy 500. … The Indians, Tigers, Angels and Red Sox will be the playoff teams in the American League. … Charlie Frye will be the starting quarterback for the Browns, and Brady Quinn will sit unless Frye and Derek Anderson get hurt. … Jamal Lewis is an ancient 27 and will show it this season. … Kent State football will make a run at the MAC title game. … Jimmie Johnson will win the Coca-Cola 600 because he does just about every year. … Expect the David Beckham talk to pick up after the holiday. His arrival to MLS is two months away. … The Yankees are done, and Joe Torre will not survive the season.

Ottawa will beat Anaheim in six games to win the Stanley Cup. … David Stern had to cringe when his next two potential superstars ended up in the Northwest with the Trail Blazers and SuperSonics winning the draft lottery's top two spots. Greg Oden will go to the Blazers and Kevin Durant to the Sonics. … Will anybody see them play? … Despite all of the offseason moves, the Patriots will not win the Super Bowl. No team has bought the Super Bowl, like you can a World Series. … Barry Bonds won't break Aaron's mark until late July at the earliest. … C.C. Sabathia will sign with the Dodgers after next season for $140 million over seven seasons. … Travis Hafner will sign a contract with the Indians, something like $75 million for five years, maybe more. … USC despite having so many players back will not win the BCS title. … Tiger Woods will win the U.S. Open next month at Oakmont C.C., near Pittsburgh. … Wait until you all see the changes to that great course.

Took my boys on a family trip to Charlotte for the NASCAR All-Star race.

What a great time, go-kart tracks, good time with family and 180,000 gear heads.

The race was outstanding with the no-holds barred format. Kevin Harvick was victorious but Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon showed that they can dominate at Lowe's Motor Speedway. And that should make the Coca-Cola 600 this weekend worth the price of admission and your time on TV this Sunday.

Don't forget about the Indy 500, which will also be raced Sunday. Three women in the race for the first time.

Folks can talk about the NBA and NHL and Major League Baseball, but the attendance marks and TV ratings show that NASCAR is second only to the NFL in the U.S.

It looks like in the near future the NFL will add a 17th game to each team's schedule.

Sounds good, right? There is never enough football.

Here is the caveat, though: The game must be played outside of the United States.

The Browns and Steelers could play in Berlin or Tokyo.

I really don't have a problem with games being moved around as long as it is not divisional games and as long as it doesn't take place at 3 a.m.

The Cavs have a plan, and they followed it perfectly in Game 1. It is amazing when you have a plan and stick to it how far it can take you. Now to win a title, I think the offense might need to get a little better. But there is nothing saying that that can't happen this year.

The Browns drew media from all over to cover Brady Quinn's presence at minicamp. I will say it again. Phil Savage was desperate when he made the move for Quinn, and now he is going to be under more scrutiny than every before.

We often talk about windows of opportunity in sports. Well, the Indians' window is wide open, and they need to follow C.C. Sabathia right through it this year. C.C. is on track for his first Cy Young and probably will become the first $20 million per season pitcher in history after completing his deal next season. The Tribe's window might be just this season because all of the talk next season will center on C.C. and his contract status.

Jimmie Johnson and Tiger Woods won again. No surprises with either. Again, having a plan and following through. It does work, if you have the right plan.

Joe Thomas, Brady Quinn and Eric Wright were the Browns' selections on the first day of the NFL Draft.

Not a bad haul at all for GM Phil Savage. The only real question besides the risk in taking Wright with his questionable past is the cost of the picks.

Thomas was a no-brainer, really. He is the best at his position in the draft. And as long as he doesn't morph into Robert Gallery or Tony Mandarich, no one can argue with his selection

Quinn cost a lot in terms of draft picks (a second-rounder this year and a first next season), and his signing bonus and contract will be set higher than going 22nd in the draft will indicate. It will interesting to see how he does compared with the quarterbacks taken in the second round yesterday. The flaws in his game are arm strength and accuracy (the same as Charlie Frye). Strengths is his work in a pro-style offense with Charlie Weis. There is a reason he went 22nd in the draft, but the same thing could have been said about Tom Brady going in the sixth round.

Wright had some major problems at Southern Cal and transfered to UNLV, where he stayed out of trouble. He cost third and fourth round picks to move up.

It came across Saturday like Savage and Crennel know that their time is short. Which it is. The real questions is did they give away too much to try to secure their positions and make a big splash to cover their flaws.