Report: White Sox nearing six-year, $68 million deal with Cuban first baseman Jose Abreu

(Getty) According to Fox Sports Ken Rosenthal, Cuban first baseman Jose Abreu is nearing a six-year, $68M deal with a major league team believed to be the Chicago White Sox. If the numbers hold and the deal becomes official, it would be the largest first-time contract ever for an international player.

Yes, it would be a deal even richer than those signed by Yaisel Puig, who received $42 million over seven years from the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Yoenis Cespedes, who got a four-year, $36 million deal from the Oakland A's.

Here's a little more perspective on Abreu's potential deal from Rosenthal.

The Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros are believed to be the other two serious suitors for Abreu, but it appears the White Sox emerged from the pack on Thursday. It would be a hefty commitment for vice president Kenny Williams and general manager Rick Hummel, but in many ways it seems like a gamble worth taking. Most notably due to the instant success and popularity Puig and Cespedes have achieved in MLB.

He also fits a need with first baseman/designated hitter Paul Konerko contemplating retirement. The 26-year-old Abreu isn't the all around athlete that Puig and Cespedes are, so he'll be pretty much limited to those two positions in MLB. But the Cuban slugger can certainly do just that, as his .382 average with 13 home runs and a 1.270 OPS in 42 games this season would indicate. He was even better last season, hitting .394 with 35 homers and a 1.379 OPS in 71 Cuban games.

Of course, only time will tell if it was truly worth it for Chicago, but another factor in their favor is the presence of Cuban-born players Alexei Ramirez and Dayan Viciedo. At the very least, they should be able to help ease Abreu's transition. They may have even influenced his decision. Many of those details are likely to surface in the days to come, but for now it looks we're on the verge of a record-breaking contract that will have people around the league talking all winter long.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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