Amidst the hoopla (which is warranted by the way) of Derek Jeter’s impending retirement, a pretty good slugger in Chicago is about to call it a career as well.
Chicago White Sox First Baseman, Paul Konerko will end his career this weekend after spending sixteen of his eighteen seasons in the Windy City. Konerko was known primarily for his power, as he belted 439 Home Runs in his career, potent numbers by any standards. He also eclipsed the 2,000 Hit mark, has a more than respectable Career Slash Line of .279/.354/.487 and represent the White Sox in six All Star Games. He also was a big part in the White Sox last World Series win in 2005, where he was named the MVP of the ALCS. This is a good resume but one that has far too many holes in his resume to be a serious Hall of Fame candidate.
The advanced metric of bWAR shows that Konerko only has a career bWAR of 28.3, which is far too low by the modern standard set for Hall of Fame players. The slugger hit into far too many Double Plays (16th All-Time) was a poor in the field and a horrific base runner. Konerko is likely to be “one and done” on the ballot when eligible in 2020, but receiving the ultimate honor in Chicago seems very likely.
Jerry Reinsdorf, has already stated “of course it will be retired” in regards to the retirement of his number 14. Konerko is second all time in White Sox history in Home Runs and RBIs behind Frank Thomas, and as a former Captain of the team, the regard he is held in White Sox land is certainly high.
Should that occur, Konerko will be the tenth player to receive this accolade from the White Sox organization.
We would like to thank Paul Konerko for the long ball memories and the class he showed through out his career.
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