Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series

See #1 MLB World Series for a description of the series, including how to solve the puzzles.

This cache - MLB Bonus

D/T takes the series into account.  

This cache can be found by finding an 11-letter keyword.    The letters are written on the front of the logbooks you will find in some of the caches.     The clues are given in the format "A=1".   If indeed A=1 it would mean the first letter in the keyword is A.    (But it isn't A).   

Each letter clue is hidden in two caches, so you should be able to find the keyword even if you have a DNF or two... unless you are very unlucky.  

Enter the correct keyword into the "Certitude" checker at the end of the page.  

The logbook is inside a "safe" with a combination lock, inside an outer container.   

(10 October 2023):  It seems the safe lock has broken, so the combination is not needed.    I've left the information below for historical purposes.

  The combination of the safe needs 2 numbers, A and B.      Where:

A=X+5

B=X+17

Once you have identified the correct keyword,   Certitude will provide you with "X".   

There are instructions on the "safe" itself on how to apply the numbers.

Please note:   Because of the size of the container and places to hide it, the bonus isn't as near the start as I would have liked.   And whilst I leave the route to your own planning, I have posted the approximate coordinates as a waypoint.   I suggest doing the "circuit" in as much of a counter-clockwise direction as you can, which means by the time you reach here you should have enough information to get the final coordinates.
 

"Bonus Information" about the league

What follows is not required to find this cache.   It is literally "bonus information" about the league if you are interested.  

Major League Baseball does not have the concept of "relegation" (as you find in the English Football leagues for example).     So the league itself remains fairly stable (apart from teams sometimes moving city and or changing their name, as you will have seen).

Each of the "Major League" teams is supported by a network of "Minor League" teams, affiliated with the Major League team.  .    When a Major League team signs a player, they are generally assigned to a minor league team, and if they are good enough, they work their way up and eventually play for the Major League Team.

In the current (2023) structure, the minor league system is divided into four classes (with AAA being the highest level).

• Triple-A (AAA)
• Double-A (AA)
• High-A (A+)
• Single-A (A)

And below that, there are a number of "Rookie Leagues".

While major league teams play a 162-game schedule, minor league seasons are shorter. As of 2022, a complete season in Triple-A is 150 games, Double-A is 138 games, and High-A and Single-A are each 132 games.

At each level, there are multiple leagues.    For example,  AAA currently includes two affiliated leagues: the 20-team International League and the 10-team Pacific Coast League (known as Triple-A East and Triple-A West, respectively, for the 2021 season).

A player need not play in each of the levels; often a player will skip a level - for example, be promoted from AA directly to the majors.    More rarely a player skips the Minor Leagues altogether.   This has become increasingly rare since the Major League Baseball draft was instituted in 1965; it has only occurred nine times since 1980, and only three times since 2000.

I've enjoyed attending both Major and Minor League games.   Most summers when visiting family in Maine we will watch at least one Portland Sea Dogs game (AA affiliate of the Boston Red Sox).  

The Minor League teams themselves generally are owned separately from the Major League team.   There is a split of responsibilities between the Minor League and Major League teams.

The Major League team management:

• Makes all the decisions about who plays for each minor league team for the season.
• Assigns the manager, who runs the team, coaches, who work with players on hitting, pitching, and catching skills, and trainers, the guys who help keep the players healthy and in good shape. 
• Pays the salary of the players and coaches.

The Minor League team management:

• Sells the tickets
• Maintains the stadium
• Hires and pays staff needed to run the operation.
• Gets the revenue from ticket sales, ballpark concessions,  local TV/Radio, etc.

In short, the Minor League team provides everything but the players and coaches, and they keep the profits the Minor League team makes.   

For the Major League team, they have a place where their players can play.  

Lastly, there exists a number of independent baseball leagues.   These are not overseen by Major League Baseball and are outside the Minor League Baseball clubs affiliated with it.   A young player who is not selected by any Major League organization, or a veteran player who is released by a Major League club can play here.   If a Major League team wants to sign a player in an Independent League, they pay a fee to both the team and the league.  

A Portland Sea Dogs game.   

An Austin Weirdos game (An Independent League team, in the Pecos League)

You can validate your puzzle solution with certitude.