LACTOSE INTOLERANT: LEFT FIELD OPTIONS BESIDES THE MELK MAN

We know the White Sox need to upgrade left field. The White Sox know they need to upgrade left field. Rick Hahn himself basically went on the radio earlier this week and said it. While he spoke in his typical measured tones, if you read between the lines of what he was saying you could hear his brain screaming "Dayan Viciedo is so bad please don't make me go through another season with him as my left fielder."

That's why there have been all those rumors about the White Sox and Mariners talking Viciedo, with most of the talking coming from the White Sox end of things. Maybe the Sox are hoping that if they say Seattle's interested in Viciedo enough that it will eventually come true. Like an exasperated Jedi mind trick.

I don't know that it will work no matter how many times that Sarah McLachlan commercial plays.

But we need a new left fielder, and the obvious choice if the Sox go the free agency route would be Melky Cabrera. There's just one problem. While we don't know exactly how much money Hahn has to play with this winter, he made comments in San Diego for the winter meetings that basically said there isn't another big-ticket acquisition coming via free agency. Considering that the yearly salary demands by Cabrera start at $12 million, I just don't think it's feasible that the Sox will have the cheddar needed to lure him here.

So for the sake of argument, let's say Cabrera is not possible. Where do the White Sox turn from there? What's the next option? You have to think Hahn will exhaust any possibility that isn't "White Sox left fielder Dayan Viciedo."

On the free agent market there's Colby Rasmus, and Rasmus does fit the mold of what Hahn has mentioned. The White Sox want an athlete out there. Somebody that can run down fly balls, catch fly balls, and also has the ability to go from first-to-third or score from second on a base hit. Rasmus certainly checks off a lot of the things on that list, but I've never been a huge fan. Defensive metrics weren't that high on him last season, as he checked in at -7 defensive runs saved, but that was in centerfield. The White Sox have Adam Eaton there, and Rasmus has been a good centerfielder in previous seasons, so you have to think his glove would play in left.

But as far as the bat is concerned, Colby's a lot like Viciedo in many ways. He doesn't walk a lot, strikes out often, and occasionally his bat runs into a fastball and hits it 380 feet. So if you do sign Rasmus to replace Viciedo, he's an upgrade defensively, but you may not be adding much more to your lineup other than a lefty bat. Which, admittedly, has some value. Plus you can probably get him on a one-year deal, so if he's a flop you aren't required to do anything other than say goodbye after the season.

But even Rasmus could end up costing more than the Sox are willing to spend. So maybe the most likely scenario is that the Sox go the trade route.

Forget the pie-in-the-sky dreams of guys like Carlos Gonzalez. He's way too expensive, and will cost something significant in return. Plus, if you've ever looked at his career splits at Coors Field compared to outside of it, he may not seem all that attractive anymore. And I haven't even mentioned the health concerns, and did I tell you that CarGo has health concerns? He does. He's well acquainted with the disabled list. They're old friends. They show each other pictures of the wife and kids, talk about old times, and occasionally go their separate ways.

As for more realistic targets, they may not be very exciting, but they could be improvements.

We'll start with a former Rockie and current Padre in Seth Smith. Maybe now that the Padres have Matt Kemp Smith becomes easier to part ways with. As a bat, I'd gladly add him to the lineup. You lose a lot of power going from Viciedo to Smith, but Smith gets on base a lot more often. His .367 OBP last year was a career high, which probably isn't sustainable considering he's 32, but his career mark of .347 is more than acceptable. He also puts the ball in play consistently, and could fit well behind Eaton and ahead of Abreu. He's also owed a little over $12 million the next two seasons with an option for 2017, which is palatable.

As for his defense, while he's not a Gold Glover and never will be, he's adequate in left. And adequate is a huge upgrade over what the Sox have had lately.

If Seth Smith doesn't work, we can stay in the NL West and ask about Scott Van Slyke. Maybe now that Matt Kemp is gone there's more playing time available for Van Slyke with the Dodgers, but he's still somewhat unnecessary in Los Angeles. But he's useful. Van Slyke was great in limited time last year, putting up a line of .297/.386/.524. Now, don't go expecting that if he comes here. A large part of the line is due to an unsustainable BABIP of .394. That's going to come down, but he's still only 28 and under team control until 2020.

There's upside here.

He was also an above average defender in left field as well. This is a move that would fit more in line with the "rebuild," as Van Slyke would be an immediate upgrade, but could also prove to be a cog in the machine for years to come.

There's also Matt Joyce, who the Rays have made available. Joyce would cost about the same as Viciedo salary wise, as he's arbitration eligible, but he gets on base a lot more often. Defensive metrics also liked his work in left last season, so he's certainly an upgrade out there.

The problem with Joyce is that if he's your left fielder you need to platoon him. He has a career line of .261/.356/.463 against righties and of .189/.258/.316 against lefties. So you'd need to find two left fielders if you're going the Joyce route.

But those are just some options. I'm sure Rick Hahn has himself a nice little list of guys he wants to consider, and we shouldn't rule out the Sox making a move for a right fielder and moving Avisail Garcia to left. Personally this is the route I'd prefer, since I just don't think Avisail is a plus defender, but I'm not sure the Sox are ready to give up on his potential there just yet.

I guess we'll see what happens. There's still a long way to go between now and opening day. Anything can happen, and I hope it does.