Boston Red Sox and Yoennis Cespedes: 7 Reasons He'd Be Great Signing for Sox

A lot of the free-agent madness this offseason has been around big name players in Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder, but will now move to a more international market. This coming Tuesday we will find out which team made the highest bid for Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish.

After that drama is completed, general managers will make a big push towards the Cuban outfielder Yoennis Cespedes. Cespedes is regarded as one of the best outfielders in international play and will be available within the next few weeks after he defects from Cuba. 

MLB Trade Rumors has reported that Cespedes will require around double what Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman received for the Cincinnati Reds, and that Yoennis could even ask for a 6-8 year deal. Money will obviously be a huge factor in where he decides to sign, but Boston is already going to blow past the luxury tax so money shouldn't be an issue there.

Ben Cherington should make an effort to sign this prized player for several reasons—let's look at seven of them. 

Fills the Right-Field Void

Besides the starting pitching issues, Boston also needs to determine their starting right fielder for the 2012 season. The Red Sox used Josh Reddick for most of last season while J.D. Drew was injured. Reddick is a solid option, but his hitting is a concern, even though his defense is above average. In 87 games last season, Reddick hit .280 with seven home runs and 28 runs batted in.

The other in-house option for Boston is Ryan Kalish, who was injured for most of last season while playing at Triple-A Pawtucket. Kalish did play 53 games in the majors in 2010, but he only hit .252 with four homers. Kalish was regarded as a better prospect than Reddick but his injuries have set him back some. Both Reddick and Kalish will compete for the job in spring training if a move isn't made.

Cespedes mainly played center field in Cuba, but a move to right field might be good for him. Boston moved Jacoby Ellsbury to left field for a short period of time with hopes of resting his speedy legs and trying to lessen his chances of getting injured. This method could be used for Cespedes as well, since moving Ellsbury again wouldn't make much sense.

It hasn't been reported on whether Cespedes would be opposed to playing right field or not, but this shouldn't be a deal breaker.

Adds More Depth to the Lineup

It's no secret that the sixth spot in the Boston lineup was sub-par last season, hitting only .245 with 16 home runs and 73 RBI. To say that Cespedes would immediately hit sixth in the lineup is a little premature, to say the least, but it is a good estimate.

The one-through-five spots seemed pretty locked up, especially with David Ortiz coming back. A trade that would involve Kevin Youkilis is still a possibility, and Cespedes is very well-rounded so he can really hit anywhere in the lineup.

This past season, Yoennis hit .333/.426/.667 with 33 home runs, 89 runs and 99 RBIs in only 90 games. That's right—90 games. Through 90 games this MLB season for the Red Sox, no player even had 20 home runs, better yet more than 30. His speed is also a huge selling point for Boston as he was successful in 11-of-14 steal attempts.

Cespedes' dominance in Cuba is very apparent, and it seems like a switch to MLB is being done at the perfect time. This All-Star's potential would only add to a very dangerous Red Sox offense. 

New Face in the Clubhouse

The "cleaning of house" that Boston has gone through this offseason has not been fun to watch. We have watched the general manager and manager who won us two World Series titles pack their bags and move on to new ventures. The regime of Ben Cherington and Bobby Valentine is now here and we must adjust to it. Boston needed a clean slate after the collapse during September of last season, and new faces are exactly what the team needs. 

Jonathan Papelbon has already left Boston to play for the Phillies, and there will definitely be some other faces to leave Fenway before the season starts. Cherington has already traded Jed Lowrie and Kyle Weiland to Houston for reliever Mark Melancon. They have also signed Nick Punto, who is known as a great clubhouse guy.

Adding Yoennis Cespedes would only add another new face to a "clique" group of players. I can assure you that there won't be any beer in the clubhouse or dugout next season, and I doubt that they even have fried chicken in Cuba anyway.

Keeps Him from Rivals

The Red Sox and Yankees are constantly bidding for the best talent in baseball, and this time shouldn't be any different. The Yankees have had good success with their big deals as of late, and Boston, well, hasn't. New York has put in a bid to try and win the rights to Yu Darvish, and have already won the rights to Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima. It's foreseeable that Brian Cashman could try to sign Cespedes as well, and then try and move Nick Swisher. 

Boston also has plenty of other AL East competition, with the other great general managers in Baltimore, Toronto and Tampa Bay. Any of these teams could shell out the money to acquire this Cuban phenom. Cespedes would do well in any one of these cities, but New York would be the most threatening to Boston. The Yankees already have an explosive lineup, and the addition of Cespedes would only add insult to injury. 

Theo Epstein went for the "keep him away" technique with Daisuke Matsuzaka, and had the winning bid by a huge margin. Also, Dice-K hasn't really owned up to the money he's been paid over the last few seasons, but hopefully he can rebound after he fully recovers from Tommy John surgery. Hopefully Cherington doesn't make an overestimation like Theo did. 

Trade Opportunities

The addition of Yoennis Cespedes would give Boston a variety of trade options with their current right fielders. Like I said earlier, Cherington has already traded Jed Lowrie away, and it doesn't seem like he will be hesitant to make another deal to either acquire a full-time closer or another starter.

Boston has been linked to possible deals to send Athletics closer Andrew Bailey to the Red Sox, and that would most likely include either Reddick or Kalish. If Boston were to sign Cespedes, it would make the decision to make a trade easier for Cherington as he wouldn't be left with only one right fielder to start Spring Training.

The Red Sox could also use either of these two young outfielders in deals to acquire a starter such as Gio Gonzalez, who has been appealing to several teams throughout this offseason.

Adds More Youth

Boston seems like it will cut ties with the aging players in Jason Varitek and Tim Wakefield, as they have plenty of youth almost major league-ready. In virtually every position, Boston has a young player, either in the majors already or at Triple-A, who will play a huge difference in the future.

I've mentioned Reddick and Kalish plenty in this slideshow, but they are two of the youngest players currently on the roster at 24 and 23, respectively. Ellsbury is only 28 years old, and Carl Crawford is 30.

The youth in the outfield would get better with a deal for the 26-year-old Cespedes. All of the outfielders will be locked up for at least four years which would give Boston a great chance at bringing some World Series championships home. 

He Will Help Us Win

In a nutshell, the 2011 collapse of the Boston Red Sox is now behind us and we can only count down the days until pitchers and catchers report in February. With a new general manager, a new set of coaches and some new players, Boston will be able to stay one of the top teams in the American League.

Yes, the Boston offense is very good, but it could definitely be better—the addition of Yoennis Cespedes would only solidify that. 

He is going to cost around $60 million at least, but we have the money—why not take a risk on a guy who can help a team win baseball games? Take note, Ben.