The White Sox still due not sit on their winter laurels.
Gordon Beckman, traded to the Angels last August, has re-signed with
Chicago on a one-year, $2 million deal.
And to make room for Beckham’s return to the roster the White Sox designated for assignment outfielder Dayan Viciedo, for whom the Sox just signed a $4.4 million deal to essentially back up new LF Melky Cabrera.
The White Sox have been trying to trading Viciedo, so the idea of signing him to avoid arbitration then DFA him to sign Beckman, who is really a bench player under the current roster.
Beckham figures to compete with Emilio Bonifacio was signed as insurance for the second base position that may be given to rookies Leury Garcia, Micah Johnson or Carlos Sanchez. Bonifacio can also play the outfield, so he would be the team's super-sub.
Beckham is known for playing good defense at second base but he came up as a natural shortstop. He may be slotted as Alexi Ramirez's back-up on the depth chart.
Clearly, the move takes away the power of Viciedo (even off the bench) for better defense in Beckham. Still, it is a surprising move because it is doubtful any team will trade for Viciedo now. If the White Sox cut him, Chicago will still be on the hook for part of the 2015 salary (approximately $775,000.) Even if a team would claim Viciedo, and make a trade with the White Sox (with the Sox eating some of that contract money).
If the White Sox were interested in Beckham, they could have non-tendered Viciedo and avoided the arbitration settlement, in essence saving $6 million in salary budget. However, Viciedo may have been insurance for RF A. Garcia, coming back from last season's injuries. Either way, GM Rick Hahn continues to tinker with the roster, which White Sox players at the fan convention appreciated the strong work to improve the team's competitiveness.
