Is Dayan Viciedo a good fit for the Orange & Black?

     The Chicago White Sox released Dayan Viciedo into free agency last week, following his DFA earlier in January. He hit a lowly .231 in 2014 and provided below average defense mostly in left field. That being said, he crushed 21 homers and has always had above-average power with multiple 20 home run seasons so far at age 25. He is also available in the cheap following a rough 2014 season. Viciedo has below below average to average defensive numbers playing 3B, 1B, LF, and RF.

     That's about all Viciedo has to his resume while playing at Chicago's hitter friendly park in his few major league year. So why would San Francisco have an interest in a made-for-DH type slugger? The answer is the same as it was when the Giants signed Aubrey Huff back in 2010. Power. The Giants have none. They are projected to hit less than 100 homers in 2015, and even in a small-ball dominated game, that doesn't fly. To be frank, it doesn't make sense for the Giants not to sign Dayan Viciedo. He has 15-25 homers in his bat, crushes lefties (.291 AVG vs LHP in 2014), plays 4 positions, and provides some insurance off the bench that Arias, Duffy, and Ishikawa can't. Along with that, he is in the same price range as the three aforementioned players. 

     Maybe the Giants could get lucky and strike gold with Viciedo, like they did with Aubrey Huff or Cody Ross in '10. Viciedo certainly has the offensive ability of either one of those players, and has an age advantage on both. Brian Sabean could have Viciedo for one or two million for a year or two, so the risk is low and the potential reward is substantial. Another free agent consideration for the Giants quiet offseason, we'll see how it plays out.