Paulie!

     Over the past 15 years, there has been one constant on the city's South Side. Between new stadium names, managerial shakeups, good seasons, bad seasons, and everything in between, White Sox fans have always been able to count on seeing Paul Konerko step up to the plate for the team. Yesterday, Paulie played his final game as a member of the team, capping off a career that has seen him bring a World Series title to the South Side, as well as make a name for himself. It all started out in 1994 when he was drafted by the Dodgers, entering into their farm system and briefly making it to the big league squad before being traded to the Reds. After spending a few games in Cincinnati, he ended up coming over to the Chicago White Sox.

     In 2000, he made his arrival known by helping the Sox make it to the playoffs for the first time since 1993. Even though they were swept in the first round, Paulie had made his impression. In 2005 the team returned to the postseason. That venture was slightly more successful. Konerko made an instrumental impact on the ALCS, driving in several runs and punching their ticket to the World Series. Once they got there, Konerko made another impact, smacking a Grand Slam homer to motivate the Sox and helping them to a sweep of the Astros. At their victory rally, Konerko produced another memorable moment:

    After the departure of Frank Thomas, Konerko became the face of the franchise, and he had several more special moments left in his career.  In 2008 he became the final opposing player to hit a home run in Yankee Stadium.  The next year he partnered with Jermaine Dye to become the first ever players to both hit their 300th home run in the same game.  Late in the 2010 season, he was hit by a pitch in Minnesota, which led to a contentious conclusion to the game.  In 2011 he was elected to his 5th All-Star Game in the midst of a season where he hit 30 homers and had 105 RBIs.  After Ozzie Guillen's departure following the season, Kenny Williams even considered making him player-manager.  Ultimately he decided against it and hired Robin Ventura, but Konerko remained a valued team-mate.  He announced that this 2014 season would be his last, and wrapped up his baseball career having played all but 81 of his 2,348 career games with the White Sox.