SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- If you like nice weather, friendly people, beautiful beaches and baseball, you could do a lot worse than the Dominican Republic.
It's an affordable destination just a short flight from the United States. If you're flexible and hunt for bargains on the discount carriers, you might be able to get there for not much more than the cost of a flight to Kansas City.
And unlike the two other baseball meccas in our hemisphere (Cuba and Venezuela), the Dominican Republic has a stable political climate, is relatively safe and presents few hurdles for travelers.