Yoenis Cespedes Meets with Marlins: How Cuban Outfielder Fits New Miami Mindset

After finally overcoming his various visa and residency issues, Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes will reportedly meet with the Marlins today for a tour of the team's new stadium.

The Marlins have made their interest in the outfielder very public since the beginning of the offseason, when team president David Samson said the team would be "aggressive right to the point of stupidity, but not quite there."

Now the day for that aggressiveness looks to be upon us, as the team will attempt to add Cespedes to an already impressive offseason haul that includes shortstop Jose Reyes, starter Mark Buehrle and closer Heath Bell.

What is it that makes Cespedes such an attractive option for the Marlins, though, as there is plenty of risk associated with signing a relatively unknown to a multimillion dollar contract?

First off, he fills a clear need in center field, where Emilio Bonifacio is currently slated to be the everyday starter.

Coming off of a season in which he hit .296/.360/.393, 5 HR, 36 RBI, 78 R and went 40-of-51 on stolen-base attempts, Bonifacio is certainly not the worst option to receive everyday at-bats in center field.

However, he did that while playing six different positions and his biggest value to the team lies in his versatility off the bench.

The 26-year-old Cespedes would likely not give the team as much speed as Bonifacio, but he would still be more than capable of hitting in the No. 2 spot in the lineup and would provide significantly more in the way of power.

Cespedes first made a name for himself on the international scene as Cuba's starting center fielder in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He hit .458 BA, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 R and added three triples in six games.

Since then, he has torn apart Cuban pitching, setting the single-season home run record last season, as he hit .333/.424/.667, 33 HR, 99 RBI, 89 R over 90 games.

Those numbers, as well as a much-talked-about YouTube showcase video, put him on the radar of a number of MLB teams when he defected and headed to the Dominican Republic to gain citizenship and free agency.

That process took a good deal of time and when he finally gained citizenship, there were reportedly six teams with serious interest, including the Cubs, White Sox, Orioles, Tigers and, of course, the Marlins.

However, yesterday Cespedes himself said he would like to play in Miami and with a meeting today, it looks more and more likely that he will be playing for the Marlins this coming season.

With the opening of a new stadium, there was already a good amount of buzz surrounding the 2012 Marlins and they have only fueled that buzz with their aggressive approach on the free-agent market.

Adding Cespedes would not only add yet another name to the list of offseason acquisitions but would add a talented young slugger with big upside to a lineup that already features a good young core of players, as the Marlins are looking more competitive in the present but are also built to win down the road.

In addition, with such a large Cuban population in Miami, Cespedes would not only feel more at home while making the transition to the big leagues, but the Miami fanbase would likely grow significantly with his signing, as many of his fellow countrymen would immediately become Marlins fans.

It remains to be seen if he will live up to the hype and the large contract he is likely to receive, but there is no team in baseball that signing Cespedes makes more sense for than the Marlins.

He fits their goal to build buzz surrounding the team now, while also fitting the mold of a high-upside young player to add to their core as they continue to build toward contention.