Paul Konerko Re-Signs!!!!

Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko, together, in the heart of the Chicago White Sox lineup. I could not be happier as a White Sox fan in light of the news that Konerko re-signed today for $37.5 million over 3 years. Especially in light of the fact that I came into work this morning to an ESPN.com story that negotiations between the White Sox and Konerko had stalled and that Kenny Williams was looking into "Plan B."

Adam Dunn just turned 31, runs well for a bigger fellow, and will put up an OPS of .900 every year. In fact, looking at Dunn's offensive numbers, it is fair to say that he may be the most consistent offensive player in baseball. He is going to reach base a lot, hit 35+ home runs, and draw plenty of walks. The only real downsides to Adam Dunn are strikeouts (almost 200 last year) and very below average defense (even at first base). I can live with the strikeouts given how productive Dunn is offensively, and I can live his defense so long as he is your DH four days a week. The only way Dunn hurts you is if the Sox decide, a la Rob Mackowiak in 2006, to put a subpar defensive player in the field every single day, and with Konerko on board, there is little risk of that.

Konerko, on the other hand, is 34 (he will be 35 on Opening Day), with bad hips, and is on the cusp of the age where power hitters (who haven't mysteriously gained 40 pounds of muscle and 3 hat sizes) historically slow down. Konerko is not the most consistent guy from year to year (compare his horrendous 2008 to his MVP caliber 2010), so I can see an argument that the Sox gave him too many years. That argument, of course, ignores the reality of the situation that Konerko was not going to sign for fewer than three years at this stage of his career. While limited from a range standpoint defensively, Konerko provides needed stability at first base in terms of picking throws out of the dirt.

Most importantly, Konerko and Dunn give the Sox maybe the best 3-4 combo in the entire American League. They will hit 70 home runs between the two of them, take countless walks, and provide plenty of RBI opportunites for whoever hits fifth (I'm looking at you Carlos Quentin). So long as Dunn is willing to DH, the Sox bolstered their offense at a reasonable price for the next several years without sacrificing defense to get there.

But above all else, as a White Sox fan I am happy today because Konerko means something to this organization beyond home runs and defense. Konerko and Mark Buehrle are the longest tenured White Sox. Konerko hit 5 home runs in the 2005 playoffs (though looking back, it feels like he hit one in the first inning of every game that fall) and signed a five year deal with the Sox that offseason when the Angels were offering him more money to leave. As fans, we tend to give lip service to loyalty, mainly because players and owners do not show the same loyalty that we do. But we claim to want our athletes to be more than just hired guns. That did not stop White Sox fans from hammering Konerko in '08 when he hit .240 in 112 games. Peyton Manning is getting that same treatment from Colts fans right now. Some fans here in Indianapolis seem to forget that if Ryan Leaf had been drafted ahead of Manning in '98, they would probably be the Los Angeles Colts today, such was the apathy of this city. I kid you not, there have been people on sports radio and message boards here calling for Curtis Painter to start ahead of Manning.

At the end of the day, loyalty in sports is a funny thing. Fans are demanding. We expect players to love the organization the same way we do, but we also expect those same athletes to perform at their peak at all times. When they do not, we express our displeasure. My two cents, for the remainder of his time in Chicago, so long as Paul Konerko is in shape and busting his ass, I will cheer him. Konerko could have gotten more money from the Angels in '06, and probably could have gotten more money on the open market this year as well, but he chose to remain a member of the Chicago White Sox. So for that, cheers to Paul Konerko, behind Mark Buehrle, the face of the Chicago White Sox for another three years.