It's been a while since we've had a feeding frenzy in baseball over a Cuban defector but we may get one pretty soon.Dayan Viciedo is in Miami after leaving the island in late-May. He ended up in Mexico and made his way to the U.S. and hopes to sign with a team soon. Just 19, Viciedo was a provisional member of Cuba's team at the World Baseball Classic and, at 16, was the youngest All-Star in the history of Cuban baseball. Some scouts have compared him to Cuba's legendary third baseman Omar Linares while others are less bullish. Either way, his youth and accomplishments would surely make teams line up for a chance to develop him as a ballplayer.
Except, he might not be a free agent. Because Viciedo came to the U.S., Baseball America reports, he may have to enter the pros via the draft.
Had Viciedo gone to Costa Rica or the Dominican Republic or some other nation not subject to the draft, he clearly would become a free agent. Now that he's in the U.S., he's subject to draft rules.His agent argues that Viciedo was in the U.S. before the draft and wasn't selected and, therefore, he's a free agent. MLB sends out a list of draft eligible players, however, and his name wasn't on it nor was he announced as a Cuban defector eligible to be signed as a free agent. A summer in an independent league before selection in the 2009 draft would probably be Viciedo's fate if that's true.
