Monday May 28th, 2012

Robert Whitmer:  Pumas are a sleek and agile animal.  It will eat any animal it can catch.  It has no preference.  It must, however, consume red meat to survive.  There is no type of vegetables or greens for this beast.  It is the opposite of everything your mother told you to do.  Instead of chasing down its prey with speed and sprinting, it prefers to stalk its prey and stare it down.  Then, when the prey thinks that it is safe, the puma pounces and digs the ten claws at its possession into the haunches of the animal.  With one mighty snap of his jaws he breaks the neck while knocking it to the ground.  From this precisely calculated strike, the puma will feast for a week before it must start again; seeking another prey out and repeat the process with centuries of genetics telling him exactly how to execute his game plan. Such is the same with Lance “Big Puma” Berkman.  He honed his craft at Canyon High school in New Braunfels, TX (30 miles down the road from me).  He then took his talents to Rice University.  Then, after being taken with the 16^th pick in the 1997 MLB draft, he began his journey to the show. 

            It had to be 2004 when I was sitting in Bank One Ballpark in downtown Phoenix, AZ.  The Diamondback were playing the Astros.  Lance Berkman was in town.  I had heard of him; seen him play on television, but never in person.  I was lucky enough to have decent enough seats (it was an empty game and I knew the seating attendant from frequenting the stadium so we got better than what we paid for) to be pretty close to the plate when Berkman stepped in.  After his first at-bat, and researching pumas for this article, I realize where he got his nickname.  Stepping into the box, he didn’t break his eye contact with the pitcher even when he was spinning himself around and trying to psych himself up to pitch to the Astros best hitter. As Berkman got set and the pitcher was getting the signs, that stare never broke.  The pitcher, content with his sign, hurled the ball toward the plate, the puma pounced on his prey.  His feet turned, his hips twisted and his claws gripping his bat, swung it around and smashed it into the ball. His prey traveled 400+ feet and hit off the Fridays Restaurant windows above the left field bleachers.  The man is an animal. 

            Along with being an animal come the subjections to injury.  His most recent is the most concerning.  Any time you hear the words “torn ACL” you cringe.  Luckily for Lance, this was not his injury this time. Had it been you would have to think that retirement would have been going through his head.  The man is 36 and that type of injury usually has a 7-10 month recovery time.  He would have been out the rest of this season through most of next spring training. With him being a free agent at the end of this season, coming off a torn ACL, it would have been rough to find work. This is not the case. He only has cartilage damage that, with surgery, is only expected to keep him sidelined for 6-8 weeks.  Let’s play the “what if” game though.  Let’s assume he had retired, would he have been a Hall of Famer?  Retiring with his stats so far this year he would end with a career .296 batting average, 1,836 hits, 1,197 RBI’S, and 359 home runs.  He was also able to play four positions with the fluidity and preciseness of the pouncing puma.  He has been seen in all three outfield positions and also first base.  In my far from professional opinion I think that he makes the hall, but not in the first or second ballot.  He will have to beat out people everyone already eligible and everyone retiring after this and we already know that Chipper Jones is.  I don’t think he will beat out Chipper for a spot.  I think the key for Lance is finding a spot as a DH for an American League ball club like the Astros since they are moving to the AL next year. If Berkman can do that and get to 500 home runs, he will be speaking at Cooperstown in the future, and it won’t be for a teammate. 

            Let’s go back to that night in 2004 against the D-Backs.  The next time Big Puma came up to the plate he locked his gaze again.  The pitcher remembers what happened the first time and was whole lot less confident the second time around. He managed to survive the puma attack but got severely damaged.  He had lost his surety; his “eye of the tiger.” Instead of attacking Berkman this time, he tried to get pretty.  Like the pretty girl at school who like to play games with the boys, the pitcher tried to get him to chase. Puma wasn’t having any of it. He sat and waited with that gaze.  When the time was right he pounced and smacked a double to right field this time. Yes those pumas are crafty creatures. They make you think that you are safe by being patient, but that is their game plan from the start. In the end, their patience pays off and they get you. You will never know when, and you never know how, but they will get you.  Then, before you know it- you are getting the ball back and cussing at yourself for giving up the second hit to the guy you vow to not give him a chance again.  Meanwhile the puma is sitting on second base smiling while the bat boy is collecting his helmet and glove.  The pitcher looks at him and thinks: “of course he’s smiling; he’s 2-2 off me.”  Really the puma is just thinking about how to get this guy the next time. Because all of this is only a game to a predator like the puma.

***Today’s feature was prepared by Robert Whitmer, MLB reports Baseball Writer.  We highly encourage you to leave your comments and feedback at the bottom of the page and share in the discussion with our readers.  You can also follow Robert on Twitter (@rwhitmer)***

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Sunday May 27th, 2012

Jonathan Hacohen:  Posted every Weekend: Your top baseball questions from the past week are answered. E-mail all questions to mlbreports@me.com, message us on Twitter, post on our Facebook Wall and leave comments on our website! There are many ways to reach us and we will get to your questions from all social media outlets!

Let’s get to your top questions of the week:

Q: What do you think about Honolulu (for MLB expansion)? They would get so many people during the summer for vacation.  Robert

JH:  Robert! I don’t think a week goes by where I don’t receive a question from you on MLB expansion. You know that it is one of my favorite topics- so inevitably, we end up discussing it seemingly at least once on ATR every week. Honolulu now…that is interesting. As we discussed in previous expansion talks, Major League Baseball will consider many factors in its next round of expansion. Population base and the availability of fans for games will be one key factor. Honolulu has apparently 337,000 residents while Hawaii itself is closing in on 1,000,000.  Not bad. Not bad at all. But even with a strong population base, we would have to be realistic on the area. Travel will be a killer. Which division would we even consider putting them in? The climate would be perfect though. Nice and dry in the summer, warm but not overbearing. A very population destination for tourists, but with most trying to enjoy sun and beaches, I am not sure how baseball would go over as a tourist attraction.

Ultimately, distance will be the killer. Also, taxes I understand may be an issue as well. Les Murakami Stadium in Honalulu is home to the University of Hawaii baseball team. The stadium holds 4,312 and has turf. Guess what? A new stadium will need to be built to accommodate MLB. Will that happen? Many of the other candidates for MLB expansion will need to build a stadium as well. But at least those areas have a decent shot at a team. To get a good stadium, you need a rich owner with a supportive community willing to subsidize the venture. Hawaii folded its winter league in 2008, but I have read reports it could return. If the area could not keep the winter league, I think MLB expansion would be a tough sell. But if nothing else, distance is the killer. You can have one team in Hawaii and expect all the other teams in the league (especially in the division) to travel such a distance. Ten hours from Hawaii to NYC? No thanks. We need to be creative in thinking MLB expansion, but Honolulu is reaching a little too far.

Q:  Is the Bullpen turnaround for the Angels sustainable?  Greg

JH: The Angels bullpen, like its rotation, like the rest of the team- is of high quality. It just needs the time to gel and then…watch out! Heck, when C.J. Wilson is your 4th starter, good things will happen for your team. But you are concerned at the bullpen for the moment, so let’s stick with that topic. Firstly, Scott Downs is the closer for now. He has the experience and he is gritty. I know Downs well from his time in Toronto and bottom line, he is a dependable guy that you want in your pen. Look at this year’s numbers. 5 saves in 7 opportunities. 0.00 ERA.10 strikeouts and only 4 walks in 16 innings. 0.88 WHIP. Yes, he is as dependable as they come. I really like this kid Ernesto Frieri they picked up from the Padres. Big kid. Young. 0.00 ERA in 11 games for the Angels. A whopping 23 strikeouts to 8 walks. I don’t know what the Padres were thinking when they let him go in a trade- but meet your future closer. Solid pitching this season from LaTroy Hawkins. Jason Isringhausen (hopefully the two vets can contribute in the 2nd half and stay somewhat healthy). Remember your closer to start the year, Jordan Walden? Don’t look know, but he has a 3.07 ERA in 17 games with 1.16 ERA. Not only is the Angels pen going to keep doing what they are doing, but they are going to excel right into September. while my prediction of the AL West crown for the Angels might have been slightly ambitious, I wouldn’t count these guys out just yet. The Angels will still be a force right until the end of the year and their pen will be a big reason why.

Q:  You know what’s a good topic of discussion? The aura surrounding the “quality start” very overrated if you ask me…  Jade

JH:  We talked about this one extensively on Twitter, but I wanted to share the topic with our ATR readers. Like many fans of the game, I am not a big supporter of the Quality Start stat. To qualify for a quality start, a starting pitcher needs to pitch at least 6 innings and give up 3 earned runs or less. As you pointed out Jade, 6 innings at 3 earned runs gives you a 4.50 ERA. Not too great. I agree that it is time to fix the quality start. I threw out a couple of options. 6 innings at 2 earned runs gives a 3.00 ERA. Good…but not great. So I turned it up a notch. 7 innings at 2 earned runs or less to qualify for a Quality Start. That give a 2.57 ERA. I am all for option “B” for 2 reasons. Firstly, it forces a pitcher to go 7 innings to qualify for the stat. I mean, seriously folks. How often do we groan when a pitcher is out after 5 innings and reminisce on the good old days when pitchers pitched complete games regularly?? Pitching 7 innings is a good compromise. It is not a complete game, but it is very close. If a starter can go 7 and then leave the game to the 8th innings setup man and then the closer, I see that as a quality start. Then giving up 2 earned runs or less. To me, an ERA between 0.00 and 2.57 is true quality. Those are great numbers. Not just good. But great. So when determining a quality start, let’s set the bar for quality much higher. I would love to hear what readers have to say on this topic so please feel free to share everyone. Would you change how a Quality Start is calculated or do you think it is fine the way it is?

Q:  With Astros moving to AL in 2013 how do you see overall schedule working out w/interleague play almost every day?  Old Man Mack

JH: ATR without Old Man Mack is like baseball without reports. Just plain silly. I think the schedule will still need many tweaks. Let’s face it, until MLB expands by 2 teams to 32 and has complete realignment, we need to work with what we have. With the Astros moving to the AL West, we now have a 15/15 team split between leagues. This means interleague play everyday of the season essentially. Now there are certain measures that will be in play to limit interleague at the start and end of the year, especially at the end to ensure that there are no interleague games on the road in September. Makes sense during a playoff run. My understanding is that the divisions will rotate every year in interleague. So while the games for example can center on the AL East vs. NL East one year, it could be the AL East and NL West the following year. So MLB is still sticking to a division-focused schedule for interleague. There is one idea that has not been implemented though that could have been the difference maker. Here goes: AL rules in NL parks and NL rules in AL parks. Translation: during interleague games, no DH in AL parks and use the DH in NL parks. Now that would make things interesting! I know that baseball purists would scream to the heavens, but still, if we are making it this far- let’s go all the way. Living in an AL city (Toronto), I would love to watch NL style ball at home. I am sure that there are those in say…Cincinnati that could go for some ballgames with a DH. Let’s make it fun for the fans and mix it up.

But, alas this is not happening anytime soon. But even without my radical changes, I like the interleague play everyday. There is no choice with the 15/15 split and having 6 teams in the NL Central and 4 teams in the AL West just never made sense. To have balanced divisions, interleague play is the compromise. Plus, quite frankly: how many times can A’s fans watch the Mariner? Cubs fans watch the Pirates? Let’s balance things up. Interleague allows teams to face-off against a greater pool of rivals. In a 162-game schedule, we need to have more excitement for the casual fans. This is a definite step in the right direction. More interleague play won’t solve anything and I guarantee you there will be more changes coming in the future as the system is tweaked. But you have to start somewhere to know where you are going. This is a step in the right direction for Major League Baseball. It comes slowly for our fave sport…but it does come eventually.

Q:  Hello…
I just sort of stumbled on this mlb realignment proposal website with the changes in divisions
and description!

http://mlbreports.com/2011/05/19/mlb-realignment/

Great read and put together perfectly!

Is this how it will look next year?

I’m very nervous and a little bummed on what I’m hearing how it might look next year but maybe because I’m not even sure really what it is still!!

This page and breakdown gave me goosebumps on how intricate, and fresh yet keeping the historical value implemented!

It makes dam good sense!!!

The thought and energy put into it, how could it be any other way!!

I love baseball and hate when things start to change in a certain way.

I applaud this article and look and wish this would go right into effect next year!!

Bryce

JH: Bryce, even if I paid you, I don’t think a person could have written a nicer or more complimentary message than yours. Thank you sir and I am glad that you enjoyed the article! The realignment piece was very well received for the most part. Some loved it. Some not as much. But it created dialogue and thought for our readers, which at the end of the day is key. I personally am tired with the old stale divisions and see a need for change. Even with the Astros coming to the AL in 2013, I need more change. The changes that I propose are not getting implemented next year. Maybe in the future, but this will ultimately depend on what direction MLB owners wish to take the sport. Baseball is scared of change. Always has been and always will be. There is an old guard that likes the status quo. Fortunately, there are young, up-and-coming executives with ideas to push the sport forward. We have night games. Interleague games. Expanded divisions. Wild Cards. The sport has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. Now the sport is at a crossroads. How much interleague play is too much? Should the DH be abolished or expanded into the NL? What is the ideal roster size? How many teams should make the playoffs? The questions are never ended. At the forefront is the number of teams, divisions and alignment of the divisions. While realistically I do not see Major League Baseball adopting the full realignment that I proposed in this article, I can see a large push for realignment when 2 more teams are added in expansion. Then, baseball will have no choice as the time will be right to align divisions better based on geography and competitiveness. When will that happen? Your guess is as good as mine. Five years would be ideal. But I think 10 years is more realistic. I am glad to see that there is so much love for baseball that fans want to see the sport evolve, grow and thrive. Thank you for writing in and enjoy the Reports!

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Jonathan Hacohen is the Founder & Lead Baseball Columnist for MLB reports:  You can follow Jonathan on Twitter (@JHacohen) Follow @mlbreports

Sunday May 27th, 2012

Ryan Ritchey (Baseball Writer): The Cleveland Indians are off to a hot start for the second straight season. Last year it didn’t last… and the team ended up falling apart. What is going to happen this season? Will the pitching stay strong until the end of the season or fall off the map when it most counts? Asdrubal Cabrera has come down with a pulled hamstring in the past week and will be out. This could really end up affecting the team, or he could come back soon and be fine. The thing about a hamstring is that it can be a nagging injury, if it doesn’t fully heal properly. If I’m Manny Acta, I sit Cabrera until he is fully healthy.

To answer some of the above questions, I believe the starting pitching will last past the All-Star Break and the Cleveland Indians will have a shot at the AL Central crown. With Ubaldo Jimenez, Justin Masterson, and veteran Derek Lowe the Indians pitching staff is one of the best in its division.  Or at least it should be on paper. Derek Lowe with a 3.25 ERA and 6wins has been a horse for the Indians. The biggest surprise thus far for this team is Chris Perez, who has 16 saves in 17 chances. With a sweep of the Tigers this past week, the Indians made a statement in the American League Central. They are ready to show that least year was no fluke and that Cleveland is ready to return to the promised land. The MLB playoffs. With another Wild Card added this year, the Indians have to like their chances at postseason glory.

Many things have to happen for a team to win as many games as the Indians are winning right now. You need great pitching, timely hitting and a little bit of luck. Whatever the Indians are doing…let’s face it, it’s working! The Indians aren’t a team that relies on one person or one part of its game to win. This team is well rounded and can do many things well. The team is 6th in on base percentage but 18th in batting average in the majors for example, which tells me this team likes to take walks and win with a small-ball type of game. So far, so good. 

The Indian’s pitching mirrors its offense. Placing in the top-10 in quality starts shows that the Indians are getting good pitching performances, but still having to rely on strong run support to win games.  This is not a team that will win many 2-0 games. The bullpen is pitching very well though and if that continues, you can expect the Indians to stay atop the American League Central for awhile. Perez could end up saving over 40 games this season and send the Indians to the playoffs. Just like the Orioles, the Indians are relying on their pen heavily to start the year. 

The one thing that I believe the Cleveland Indians really need is another power bat. That is the main thing holding them back from being a great team. The only big bat they have in their current line-up is Carlos Santana, the catcher. Don’t get me wrong, he is a great power hitter but his legs and knees won’t last him late in the season. At the trade deadline, the Indians need to search for a big bat to say in contention come September. 

The last key ingredient for the success of the Indians is manager Manny Acta. Players have said he is a great manager to play for and is  well equipped to bring the best out of his players. If this is the case, he could end up winning manager of the year in the American League this season if the Indians make the postseason. It looks to me like he is getting the best out of his players so far this season. If Manny can keep the magic going and get that big bat into his line-up, the Indians are in great shape. Both in 2012 and moving towards the future. 

Ryan Ritchey is a Baseball Writer for MLB reports. I am a high school senior, play second base and plan on studying sports journalism in college. I am a huge fan of Barry Larkin and Brandon Phillips. Have been a baseball fan my whole life and have been writing about baseball since freshman year. You can reach me on Twitter(@Ryan13Ritchey)

Please e-mail us at: mlbreports@me.com with any questions and feedback.  You can follow us on Twitterand become a fan on Facebook.  To subscribe to our website and have the Daily Reports sent directly to your inbox, click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage.

Sunday May 27th, 2012

Sam Evans: Oakland Athletics prospect Michael Choice was drafted by the A’s 10^th overall in the 2010 MLB Amateur draft. Looking back at the pick, most of the players drafted before Choice have risen quicker through their respective systems, but Choice still looks like a nice selection by Billy Beane and his scouting department. Michael Choice has 70 grade power, so even though his tools are raw, it’s hard not to like a future All-Star.

Michael Choice was born in 1989 in Forth Worth, Texas. Being a young Texan outfielder with power projection, it must be pretty difficult to go unnoticed out high school. Nonetheless, Choice was under the radar coming out of high school and he eventually ended up at the University of Texas-Arlington. At Texas-Arlington, Choice began to turn some heads. In three college seasons, or 175 games, Choice hit thirty-four homers and had a batting average over .375 in all three years.  His junior year at Texas-Arlington, in 2010, Choice drew seventy-six walks and he only struck out fifty-four times.

Coming into the draft, Choice was considered by most as a top fifteen prospect, so the A’s selecting him at #10 didn’t surprise many. The player that went before Choice, Karsten Whitson did not sign. The player that went after Choice, Deck McGuire, is a little overrated in my opinion, but he has reached Double-A already in the Toronto organization.

Michael Choice is about 6’0’’ 210 pounds. He hits from the right side of the plate, and he’s considered a great athlete, by all measures. The 70 power grade (on the 20-80 scale) has been casually given to Choice by the majority of scouts. His defense is considered decent but most see him playing right field in the end.

Michael Choice may be a fairly speedy outfielder right now, but I think his speed will disappear in a couple of years. My reasoning behind this is that he has a large frame, and as he naturally gets stronger and adds weight over the next couple of years, he is going to lose speed. However, many big-bodied corner outfielders have proven that a large corner outfielder can cover just as much ground as one with a smaller frame. Jay Bruce is a big corner outfielder that plays good outfield defense that comes to mind.

In 2011, Choice’s first full season in the minors, he proved that other aspects of his game are farther along than we thought. Not only did Choice hit for power, but he also drew walks at a good rate, and hit for a solid average. In 118 games at High-A, Choice hit thirty homers, had an 11.3 BB%, and batted .285. All of a sudden, Choice rose to the top of most Oakland prospect rankings.

In 2012, I think the Athletics are making a somewhat aggressive move by starting Choice at Double-A. He still has a lot of areas he can improve in his game, and I would have liked to see him get half of a season at High-A to continue to work on those areas of development. Not to mention, the Athletics currently have a logjam in their outfield in the upper minors and majors. With Oakland not planning on contending anytime soon, there is no reason to rush Choice.

The other side of this argument is that Choice is twenty-two years old. He wasn’t drafted out of high school, and he put up great numbers in the lower minors, so why shouldn’t he deserve a promotion? I tend to side with the first argument just because I think Choice is still pretty raw, and he probably could have improved his strikeout rate, and plate approach, if he spent another year at High-A.

Speaking of plate approach, Choice is very interesting when it comes to strikeouts and walks. Despite his tremendous walk rates (he has never posted a BB% under 11 in the minors), Choice has problems with containing his number of strikeouts. He can get out in front of pitches, and he has a lot of swing and miss in his swing.

I’m not actually that worried about Choice and his strikeout issues in the future. Almost every prospect that has 70 power is going to have some swing and miss in their swing. While it would be nice to see Choice cut down on the strikeouts, it is not critical for his success at the major league level. However, if Choice turns into the next Delmon Young, and his projected power never really comes into play at the major league level, he’ll be in a lot of trouble.

In 2012, Choice is hitting .250/.338/.328 in just forty-six games. Even though that makes his season look disappointing, he really has not been as bad as the numbers suggest. His walk and strikeout rates are in-line with his career totals, and it’s just too early in the season to make a judgment on his success. Apparently, the Oakland minor league coaches are working with Choice on making some adjustments to his swing that they see necessary. While it’s not a good idea to mess with his swing too much, if they can get Choice on track for major league success by making minor adjustments, that is big news.

Overall, I think Choice is going to hit about .270 with thirty homers per year in the majors. With the right coaches and staff around him, the A’s should be able to turn this twenty-two year old into a superstar. The tools are there, now Choice just has to continue to display them. Looking back at the 2010 draft, it is still too early to form a conclusion, but Choice looks like a solid pick for an Oakland organization deprived of enough talented young position players.

***Today’s feature was prepared by our Baseball Writer, Sam Evans.  We highly encourage you to leave your comments and feedback at the bottom of the page and share in the discussion with our readers.  You can also follow Sam on Twitter***

Please e-mail us at: mlbreports@me.com with any questions and feedback.  You can follow us on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.  To subscribe to our website and have the Daily Reports sent directly to your inbox, click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage. 

Friday, May.25/2012

Its Travel Blog Friday:

Chuck Booth(Baseball Writer and- @chuckbooth3024 on twitter)-Renting cars in all 27 MLB cities is an expensive proposition.   Some of the bigger cities can charge from $50-$90 per weekday for just your run of the mill economy car.  Throughout my travels in the last 5 years I have discovered many new ways to combat such prices.  Earlier this year, I stumbled upon the latest nugget that I will share for you here.  Air Miles is a Canadian reward that people have been collecting up here since 1991.  It is designated with many of sponsors in order to collect Miles to redeem them for various redemptions.  Most of the time these rewards are personalized to the cardholder themselves.  I found a rare exception.

I learned that Canadians can transfer Air Miles, (in exchange for car rental redemptions towards USA Residents in any of the USA Airports.)  Not only that, but the Canadian cardholder doesn’t even need be present as part of the rental.  The rates are start at 230 Air Miles for an economy car, 250 Air Miles for a compact and 310 for a Full-Size Car.  The only state that the rental rates are cheaper belong in Florida where the economy car rental goes for only 175 Air Miles for an economy car, 200 for a compact rental and 250 for Full-Size Car.  The daily rate of the car rental in each airport is covered, the only thing that you would be responsible for are the taxes.  I will give you an example.  I rented a car in San Francisco Airport that carried a daily rate of $49.99, but was about $77 after taxes.  I used 230 Air Miles to redeem for the free day, all that was left was about $27 in taxes once the redemption was made.

Since most of our readers hail from the USA, I will tell you how to bypass the fact that while you can’t take advantage of the program being for a Canadian collector, you can still take advantage of this car redemption.

Option #1- If you know a Canadian who has collected Air Miles, and is willing to part with some of their Miles, they can call up 1-888-247-6453 and go through the process of redeeming Miles for you.  They will be allowed to put your name on the car rental at any of the airports.  All you have to do is to show up at the Airport with the same identification that they have stated your name to be.  If your friend really trusts you, they can even give you their 4 digit pin code and you can call in for the redemption yourself.  The category of redemption is travel and the operator will prompt you into the category of car rentals.

Option #2- Again, you can sign up for your own Air Miles Card here providing you use an address of a permanent Canadian Resident.  A card will be issued to that house.  You never even need to use the card for these car rentals.  Once the redemption is made, Air Miles sends a confirmation e-mail to you and the impending car rental at the given Airport Location.  You will still need to have your Canadian resident earn the subsequent Air Miles needed in order for that redemption.  Additionally, you may receive 100 Free Air Miles  by signing up for a e-coupon Notification subscription by Safeway Grocery here .  You can even use your American 10 digit Safeway Card in order to sign up but make sure you use your friends Canadian address on the form.  Just make sure when you sign up for your card that you choose the ‘Dream Reward’ as your reward preference and not the ‘Cash Reward.’  Okay, so you have signed up and received 100 Air Miles for free.  This leaves you just 130 Air Miles short for a car rental.   This is where you can talk with your Canadian friend about having them help you collect those extra Air Miles.  Routinely, I can collect 130 Air Miles at Safeway in Canada, by spending about $30-$40.

If you do use this offer in the USA Airports, you are guaranteed to have National/Alamo as the car rental company at.  Again, this company has separated itself as the premier rental car company by its excellent customer service, brand new fleet and exceptional benefits as a valued member of their rewards program.  What I love most about National/Alamo, is that they never charge you a dime over your total car rental in forms of a credit card deposit.  If your free rental car costs $10 for the day after the taxes, that is all they will take for an authorization.  Also, National/Alamo still recognized me as an Executive Elite Member of National’s Emerald Club while I redeemed these free days. I am always given the royal treatment and for this I am grateful.  It really makes me feel great to be recognized as a person that rents from this company for 365 days a year.

The last thing to talk about is the one-way airport drop fee waiver option that is available within the States of California and Florida.  If you rent from any Airport in these 2 states, you are allowed to drop off the car in any of the states other Airports.  Meaning you can pick up a car in San Francisco’s International Airport (SFO) and drop it off in San Jose (SJC), Oakland (OAK), Sacramento (SMF), San Diego (SAN), Los Angeles Airports: (LAX, SNA, LGB or ONT) and you will not be charged the high price of  a one-way drop fee(provided it is within the 24 hour time limit.)  The same rule applies in Florida in conjunction with the cheapest price of 175 Air Miles for an economy rental car out of any airport.  This is by far the best value and perk out of this car rental deal.  There are 7 MLB cities in these 2 states, and not having to drive back to a city in which you came from saves invaluable time, money and effort.

So network your Canadian friends right now and make plans to visit MLB Parks.  If you need any additional information on this matter, email me at booth7629@gmail.com and I would be happy to discuss the rules and regulations with you on this deal.  If you live in Canada, this is the best redemption you could possibly use with your Air Miles in terms of value.

 ***Thank you to our Baseball Writer- Douglas “Chuck” Booth for preparing today’s feature on MLB reports.  To learn more about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames” and Chuck Booth, you can follow Chuck on Twitter (@ChuckBooth3024) and you can also follow Chuck’s website for his successful Guinness Book of World Record Bid to see all 30 MLB Park in 23 days click here  or on the 30 MLB Parks in 23 days GWR tracker at the Reports click here. To Purchase or read about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames Book please click here . ***

Please e-mail us at: mlbreports@me.com with any questions and feedback.  You can follow us on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.  To subscribe to our website and have the Daily Reports sent directly to your inbox, click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage.