Nov 20th 2008 6:48PM by Matt Snyder (author feed)
The White Sox caught lightning in a bottle with “The Cuban Missile,” Alexei Ramirez last season. The 27 year-old Cuban import finished second in the American League rookie of the year race in 2008, so the White Sox are trying to strike gold again for 2009.

Kenny Williams has reported inked Dayan Viciedo to a contract worth a total of $11 million. He’s only 19 years old, but was an All-Star in Cuba when he was only 16. According to the report, there is some debate on whether or not Viciedo is currently major league-ready. There is no debating the prodigious power of the young Cuban.

For the White Sox, spending this type of dough on a young third baseman is a sign they aren’t fully convinced that Josh Fields is the future. He took a huge step backwards in 2008 after hitting 23 home runs with the big club in the previous season. Since he’s still only going to be 26, I’ll guess the Sox enter the season with him as the starter in the hot corner, while Vicideo adapts to the United States in the minors. Should Fields falter, the Sox would then have the option to make the change during the season or wait until next season.

Either way, the potential of Viciedo, if scouting reports are accurate, is enough to make White Sox fans love this acquisition.