Paul Konerko

Paul Henry Konerko (born March 5, 1976) is an American former professional baseball player.

The White Sox finished with a 95–67 record, and made the playoffs for the first time since 1993.

Konerko hit .558 in 1994, the school season record until Ike Davis, who later became a Major League first baseman, hit .559 in 2003.

Konerko was drafted in the first round (13th overall) of the 1994 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Konerko had been on the radar of Eddie Bane, the special assistant to Dodgers general manager Fred Claire, since he was 13 years old.

On May 13, 1995, with the Single-A San Bernardino Spirit, he drove in the only run of a 21-inning game.

It was the longest shutout in California League history.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman from 1997 to 2014, most prominently as a member of the Chicago White Sox, where he was a six-time American League All-Star and team captain for the 2005 World Series winning team.

Konerko began his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds.

Konerko played for the Triple-A Albuquerque Dukes for the majority of the 1997 season, batting .323 with 37 home runs and 127 RBI in 130 games.

He is one of four Dodgers position players to have been twice selected for the Dodgers organization's "Minor League Player of the Year" award, along with Billy Ashley, Joc Pederson, and Gavin Lux.

On September 8, 1997, Konerko made his major league debut with the Dodgers against the Florida Marlins as a pinch hitter, hitting a single off Marlins pitcher Dennis Cook for his first career hit.

He would finish with one hits in six at-bats with a walk in six major league games with the Dodgers to close out the season.

In 1998, Konerko played in 49 games with the Dodgers, batting .215 with four home runs and 16 RBI.

On July 4, 1998, Konerko was traded along with left-handed pitcher Dennys Reyes to the Cincinnati Reds for All-Star closer Jeff Shaw.

Konerko played 26 games with the Reds, batting .219 with three home runs and 13 RBI.

On November 11, 1998, Konerko was traded by the Reds to the White Sox for Mike Cameron.

Konerko became a consistent hitter and power threat upon his arrival to the White Sox, hitting for a .294 average with 24 home runs and 81 RBI in 142 games during his first season with Chicago in 1999.

In 2000, Konerko finished the season batting .298 with 21 home runs and 97 RBI in 143 games.

Konerko made his first postseason appearance that year, when the White Sox lost to the Seattle Mariners in the 2000 American League Division Series (ALDS).

The Mariners swept the series in three games, and in nine at-bats, Konerko did not record a hit.

He got on base once via a walk.

Konerko continued to hit consistently in 2001, hitting .282 with 32 home runs and 99 RBI in 156 games, reaching the 30-homer plateau for the first time in his career.

The next season, he reached 100 RBI for the first time, finishing with a .304 average, 27 home runs and 104 RBI in 151 games.

This culminated in his first All-Star appearance at Miller Park, where he also participated in the Home Run Derby, hitting 12 home runs in the two rounds he appeared in.

In the 2002 All-Star Game, Konerko hit a two-run double for the American League in the top of the seventh inning to grab the lead.

Broadcasters Tim McCarver and Joe Buck stated that if the American League had won the game, Konerko would have been the MVP; however, the game ended in a tie and the MVP was not awarded.

Konerko also held the school season record in doubles, with 18, until Davis hit 23 doubles in 2003.

He also held the school career record in doubles (44), until Davis passed him with 48 doubles.

Konerko suffered a thumb injury in 2003 that reduced his playing time to 137 games and resulted in a drop in offensive production.

He finished the season batting just .234 with 18 home runs and 65 RBI.

In 2004, Konerko bounced back in a big way, eclipsing the 40 home run mark for the first time in his career.

In 155 games, he hit .277 while setting career highs with 41 home runs and 117 RBI.

In 2014, Konerko was named the recipient of the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award.

Born in Providence, Rhode Island, to Henry ("Hank") and Elena Konerko, Konerko is of Polish and Italian descent.

At Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, Konerko was named the Arizona Republic/Phoenix Gazette Player of the Year as a senior, after leading his team to a Class 4-A state championship.

As of 2014, he was the school's all-time leader in home runs and RBI.

Konerko was ranked the #1 catcher in the nation during his senior year in high school.

He signed a letter of intent to play college baseball at Arizona State.

Konerko finished 16th in the MVP voting that year as the White Sox finished second in the division to the Minnesota Twins.