Paul Konerko's Career

Lore & Background

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. Konerko hit .558 in 1994, the school season record until Ike Davis hit .559 in 2003. 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. 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.

In Their Own Story

The lights hummed over U.S. Cellular Field as the seventh-inning stretch approached, but Paul Konerko's eyes were fixed on the pitcher's mound. The stadium buzzed with a familiar, electric tension that only a South Side crowd could generate. He adjusted his batting gloves, feeling the weight of the city's hopes in his hands.

Reader's Guide

Konerko was drafted in the first round (13th overall) of the 1994 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. On May 13, 1995, with the Single-A San Bernardino Spirit, he drove in the only run of a 21-inning game. 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 finished with one hit in six at-bats with a walk in six major league games with the Dodgers. 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. In 1999, he hit .294 with 24 home runs and 81 RBI in 142 games. In 2000, he batted .298 with 21 home runs and 97 RBI in 143 games. The White Sox made the playoffs and lost to the Seattle Mariners in the 2000 ALDS; Konerko did not record a hit in nine at-bats. In 2001, he hit .282 with 32 home runs and 99 RBI in 156 games. In 2002, he hit .304 with 27 home runs and 104 RBI in 151 games, earning his first All-Star appearance. In the 2002 All-Star Game, Konerko hit a two-run double; broadcasters said if the American League had won, he would have been MVP, but the game ended in a tie. In 2003, a thumb injury limited him to 137 games, batting .234 with 18 home runs and 65 RBI. In 2004, he hit .277 with 41 home runs and 117 RBI in 155 games. In 2005, Konerko batted .283 with 40 home runs and 100 RBI in 158 games as the White Sox won the division. In the playoffs, he hit home runs in Games 1 and 3 of the ALDS against the Boston Red Sox. In the ALCS against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, he was named ALCS MVP, batting .268 with two home runs and seven RBI. In Game 2 of the 2005 World Series, he hit the first grand slam in White Sox World

Did You Know?

• Konerko was named the ALCS MVP in 2005, the first and as of 2025 only White Sox player to receive the award.
• Konerko's grand slam in Game 2 of the 2005 World Series was the first grand slam in postseason history to give a team the lead when trailing in the seventh inning or later.
• Konerko caught the final out for every series-clinching game throughout the 2005 playoffs.