It's simple: The time is now for Viciedo

Someone associated with the White Sox is being stubborn or stupid, and you can take your pick whom it is and take your pick which it is.

Regardless, this has become silly. It's time to just go ahead and promote Dayan Viciedo from the minor leagues.

I have resisted the urge to suggest that, figuring Sox management knew what it is doing.

Sunday's 6-3 loss to Minnesota — giving the Twins the four-game series 3-1 — was the breaking point.

My eyeballs nearly imploded watching the Sox' offense being held to 1 run and 4 hits over 6 innings by Anthony Swarzak, a decent young pitcher but not exactly Justin Verlander or CC Sabathia.

“Hitting is the toughest thing to figure out,” Sox first baseman Paul Konerko said, “why things go the way they go.”

The Sox are only 5 games out of first place but four games under .500. There is no reason to think anything will change when their all-star break ends Friday at Detroit.

Something dramatic needs to be done, like perhaps a major trade to stimulate the batting order.

Or maybe simply elevating Viciedo from Triple-A.

Except that apparently it wouldn't be that simple. If it were, Viciedo might have been here a month ago.

If the reason the Sox resist this move is that general manager Kenny Williams and field manager Ozzie Guillen differ on going in this direction …

Well, fellas, settle your differences and get it done.

If the Sox don't want to rush Viciedo to the big leagues the way Gordon Beckham was a couple of years ago …

Well, accept that Viciedo served longer in the minors.

If management's perception is that there isn't anywhere on the roster for another outfielder like Viciedo …

Well, sorry, this is the lamest excuse, er, reason of all.

The White Sox must be the worst team ever with too many quality starting pitchers and too many quality outfielders.

First the Sox had to resort to a cockamamie six-man pitching rotation because of all those alleged great arms.

Now there's no room in the outfield for Viciedo because of Carlos Quentin, Alex Rios and Juan Pierre.

Huh?

I guess without those guys in the lineup the Sox wouldn't have scored even that 1 run against the mighty Swarzak.

The theory goes that Pierre can't be benched or dispatched from town entirely because the Sox wouldn't have a leadoff hitter.

Yes, they would. Who? Anybody, that's who.

Put Beckham there. Maybe the jolt would kick-start him into reaching his potential. Put Rios there. Maybe the responsibility would force him to play like he cares. Put Alexei Ramirez there. Maybe he's intelligent enough to adjust.

Listen, I don't know exactly how it would work if Viciedo were on the Sox. I just know the math says something needs to be done.

The Sox don't generate enough runs … my baseball sources, including an usher behind home plate and a beer vendor down the left-field line, tell me Viciedo is ready to be a big-league run generator … case closed.

Just get the 22-year-old Dayan Viciedo to Comiskey Park and figure out how to make it work when he arrives.

Ah, but smarter baseball people than I am tell me that the Sox aren't going to do it over the break.

They should, finally, and quit being stubborn or stupid or both.