Cuban third baseman Dayan Viciedo has tentatively agreed to a deal with the Chicago White Sox that would quickly bring to an end negotations for the free agent’s services. Viciedo will fly to Chicago for a physical to complete the deal, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

At just 19 years old, Viciedo would appear to be years away from the big leagues, but the White Sox will have an open competition for third base job and pave the way for his arrival. Last season’s starter Joe Crede is a free agent unlikely to re-sign with the team, leaving just Josh Fields standing in Viciedo’s way.

Yahoo! Sports Jeff Passan talks about Viciedo’s strengths and weaknesses in his recap of the signing.

“Viciedo, who turned professional at 15, hit .337 and made the All-Star team in Cuba as a 16-year-old. Scouts at his workout raved about his power bat, though they expressed concerns about his conditioning and wondered whether his weight would balloon.”

In terms of fantasy, the key words in that statement are “power bat” and “weight.” A power bat obviously leads to valuable contributions in home runs and RBIs, and a weight problem is just one of the signs of a more fundamental attitude problem. If motivation is an issue, then having a consistent desire to be excellent could also come into question.

The White Sox don’t seem too concerned. Viciedo is expected to compete right away for the starting third base job and, according to his agent Jaime Garcia, “If I were a betting man, I’d be that he’s there.”

Fantasy Spin
At this point, Viciedo demands to be on all fantasy owners’ radars. There are a bunch of obstacles in his way to just making the Major League roster, let alone earning a starting job and making fantasy contributions. Watch this story as spring training develops; Viciedo could make a similar splash to new Cuban teammate Alexei Ramirez, who finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting after defecting last winter.