THE HILLS ARE ALIVE FOR BROWNS? In Akron, Terry Pluto
writes on Calvin Hill and Paul Warfield joining Isles co-
Owner Howard Milstein on a possible Browns bid: "If they
have the money, they might be irresistible to the NFL. ...
[D]on't be surprised if they end up as the next owners of
the Browns." Pluto adds that the "conservative" Hill and
Warfield "don't make any moves without a great deal of
thought and research. ... It's hard to imagine them joining
any group that didn't have the bucks to pay the NFL's
expansion ransom" (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 5/19). Also in
Akron, Chris Tomasson writes on minority interest in the
Browns under the sub-head, "Minority Ownership For New
Browns Could Be More Than Mere Talk" (BEACON JOURNAL, 5/19).
OTHER NOTES: In Miami, Cindy Krischer Goodman examined
Florida Panthers Holdings (FPH) and wrote, "Though
diversified, the bulk of its revenues now come from upscale
hotel properties." FPH Chair Wayne Huizenga has abandoned
"plans he once had to create a sports/entertainment empire.
Now, all efforts are aimed at building a presence in the
lodging industry. ... Next to go could be the company's
name, Panthers Holdings officials said, to signal to Wall
Street that the company wants to be a player in the resort
business" (MIAMI HERALD, 5/17)....The current issue of
BASEBALL AMERICA ranks MLB markets, listing the top three
MLB cities as St. Louis, Boston and Chicago (Cubs).
BASEBALL AMERICA also ranks the best minor league cities,
naming Rochester, NY; Durham, NC; and Reading, PA as the top
three, respectively (BASEBALL AMERICA, 5/25 issue).