Still, Cespedes hits free agency with some intriguing distinctions. He's the first free agent to come off consecutive 100-plus RBI seasons since Adam Dunn in 2010, and the first free-agent outfielder coming off a 6.5 FanGraphs WAR season since Crawford signed with the Red Sox that same winter.

There's no denying that when Cespedes connects, he hits the ball with authority. According to MLB Statcast, he ranked 12th among hitters (minimum 200 at-bats) with an average exit velocity of 93.4 mph in 2015. That placed him right between Ryan Braun and Josh Donaldson.

Like his free-agent outfield peers, Cespedes will be jockeying for a seat with only so many chairs available this winter. The San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, Tigers, Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, Mets, San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds are all dabbling in the outfield market, but several of those teams are looking for lower-cost young talent or platoon types rather than big-ticket acquisitions.

Ultimately, prospective suitors will wade through the thicket of metrics and scouting reports and make their calls. Even executives who praised the CAA/Roc Nation book as an entertaining read concede it won't make much difference in how fervently (or not) their teams pursue Cespedes.

"We got a lot of positive commentary, which is satisfying," Van Wagenen said. "But more importantly, it sparked dialogue about the player's talent -- which was the original intention. And it sets up the follow-up discussions where we go into the deeper dive."