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Paul Konerko Rumors: Wednesday

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Yesterday the talks between the White Sox and longtime first baseman Paul Konerko hit a snag, with GM Kenny Williams talking about moving on.  Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf still may step in and make it work, but here's the latest…

  • Yahoo's Steve Henson calls a Konerko-White Sox reunion "dead in the water for the time being."  He suggests Jayson Werth's signing caused Konerko to raise his demands as a ripple effect.
  • Rival teams bidding on Konerko are convinced he's returning to the White Sox, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Snag In White Sox, Konerko Talks?

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10:26pm: White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf still wants the deal to happen and will work to resolve things by tomorrow afternoon, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

10:00pm: White Sox GM Kenny Williams told Dave van Dyck of the Chicago Tribune that he’s prepared to move on without Konerko and address other needs. "There's no deadline, but we're going to make the first best deal we can," Williams said. The White Sox had plans to discuss alternatives this evening.

5:25pm: There's still "pretty decent optimism" for a deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Konerko's agent is pushing for more than the White Sox want to commit.

4:14pm: There have been "big changes" in the talks, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter links). The Konerko ship may be sailing, Cowley writes. Even though talks have hit a snag, it does seem that there's a fit here.

4:10pm: Snag or no snag, the Orioles expect Konerko to re-sign with the White Sox, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter). The O's will likely be in on Derrek Lee if that's the case.

12:50pm: The White Sox are not the only team to make a multiyear offer to Konerko, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  No deal is expected today.

10:59am: There could be a snag in the Konerko talks, tweets Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, with the player's agent insisting on $15MM per year.

7:11am: We've heard Paul Konerko's name connected to a few teams over the past several days, including the White Sox, Orioles, Rangers, and Diamondbacks. According to this tweet from SI's Jon Heyman, however, the White Sox are "in the driver's seat" for Konerko.

The Rangers will instead be focusing their efforts on signing Cliff Lee, and Heyman quotes a friend of Konerko who says "no way" on the possibility of him going to the Orioles.  The Diamondbacks don't have enough money to win the bidding, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

Yesterday, we heard that talks between the White Sox and Konerko were going well, and that he could be in line for a $12.5MM annual salary, possibly over three years. The 34-year-old Konerko enjoyed perhaps the best season of his career, hitting .312/.393/.584 with 39 home runs. He finished fifth in the American League MVP voting.

Paul Konerko Rumors: Monday

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Paul Konerko led all free agents with 39 home runs in 2010.  The White Sox are considered the favorites, but the Rangers and Orioles are also in the mix.  Here's the latest on the first baseman:

  • Talks between Konerko and the White Sox seem to be going well, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). Konerko will likely get $12.5MM per season, potentially for three years.
  • The White Sox are awaiting a response from Konerko and agent Craig Landis, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
  • The White Sox will continue to have conversations with Konerko's representatives, according to Scott Reifert of the White Sox (on Twitter). GM Kenny Williams is neither optimistic nor pessimistic about reaching a deal.
  • White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, asked if he expects to sign Konerko by week's end, replied, "I hope so."  He also said Konerko "belongs in Chicago."  Jon Paul Morosi reported the quotes on Twitter.
  • Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers "had extended talks" with Konerko, reports Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports.  However, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the D'Backs have had "virtually no dialogue with Konerko."  Konerko lives in the Phoenix area during the offseason.  Arizona's first round pick is protected, so they'd give up their second rounder to sign him.  The supplementary round is especially large this year, so second round picks will be pretty far down.

White Sox, Konerko Talking

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MONDAY, 1:15am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that Monday's meeting will involve Konerko's agent and assistant GM Rick Hahn. With the Orioles viewed as the only other serious suitor for Konerko, there's a "strong feeling" the White Sox will get a deal done as early as this week.

SUNDAY, 9:29pm: Reinsdorf will do anything he can to re-sign Konerko, a source tells Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com.

1:42pm: A deal between Konerko and the White Sox will probably happen but nothing is imminent, sources tell Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter).

1:34pm: Konerko won't be meeting with White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf tomorrow, only his agent Craig Landis will, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  Rosenthal believes that the two sides will reach an accord, though they're not close just yet.

12:58pm: Jerry Reinsdorf and Paul Konerko are very close, according to Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter).  The slugger and White Sox chairman are scheduled to meet tomorrow.

Re-signing Konerko would cap off an incredibly busy week for the White Sox who also reeled in Adam Dunn and retained A.J. Pierzynski.  On Friday GM Kenny Williams told reporters that both Dunn and Pierzynski will accept deferred payment on their newly minted contracts, giving the club the ability to make Konerko a solid offer.

Rangers Interested In Crawford, Konerko

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5:47pm: MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says that the Rangers have just "kicked the tires" on Crawford, but are "far more in" on Paul Konerko. The team obviously likes both players, but they feel Konerko is the better fit given their needs. 

1:49pm: The Rangers are in on free agent outfielder Carl Crawford and the interest is mutual, according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated (via Twitter).  The Angels and the Yankees are also of particular interest to Crawford, Heyman tweets.

If Texas were to land Crawford, they would have to creatively re-align their outfield.  Crawford would presumably take over in left field, likely making Josh Hamilton the full-time center fielder.  Hamilton's career -6.0 UZR/150 in center field indicates that he's below average at that position.

Earlier today, ESPN's Buster Olney surmised that the BoSox will still have enough money after the Adrian Gonzalez trade to go after someone like Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth.  However, Heyman believes that recent events make Werth to the Red Sox a likely scenario.

Orioles Notes: Tillman, Hernandez, Reynolds, Uehara

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The Orioles missed out on Victor Martinez and Adam Dunn, but they're still in the hunt for Paul Konerko.  Here's a look at some of their other offseason targets…

  • Chris Tillman's name has been mentioned in connection with the Mark Reynolds trade rumors, tweets Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman.  Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic thinks the D'Backs "seem to like" David Hernandez more, but Hernandez would be just one piece of what's likely to be a pitcher-centric package (Twitter links).   
  • The O's are one of three teams known to be exploring a Reynolds deal, but they're the ones with "the heaviest interest" in the third baseman according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com.  The Blue Jays and Padres, in fact, "strongly deny" that they're even pursuing Reynolds.
  • "Some progress has been made" between the Orioles and Koji Uehara, reports Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.  The club has been keeping in touch with Uehara's agent and Zrebiec says team officials "feel pretty good" about their ability to re-sign the reliever.
  • Zrebiec also notes that Baltimore has been in discussions about a number of free agent relievers and have contacted the representatives of Grant Balfour, Jesse Crain, Scott Downs, Brian Fuentes, Matt Guerrier and Kerry Wood.  The O's "have at least one offer out" to one of these pitchers, Zrebiec says.
  • Baltimore has contacted Bobby Jenks' agent, reports Zrebiec in another piece.
  • From that same article, Zrebiec writes "the next person I speak to in the organization who feels the O’s have a shot at Konerko would be the first."  The Orioles' interest in Konerko is "largely overblown" and most insiders feel Konerko will re-sign with the White Sox.

Odds & Ends: Hardy, Punto, Dunn, Marlins, Lee

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Some items to wrap up the week…

Execs Think Konerko Will Stay With White Sox

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"Competing execs" think Paul Konerko will ultimately re-sign with the White Sox for around $13MM per season, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.  Konerko's close relationship with owner Jerry Reinsdorf is cited as a main factor.

The Cubs, Orioles and Rangers have all been mentioned as suitors for Konerko this winter, and the Orioles have made Konerko an offer.  Still, moving elsewhere could be a tough call for Konerko given his ties to the White Sox and the fact that the team seems to be doing all it can to find payroll space for him.  Adam Dunn and A.J. Pierzynski deferred money from their contracts just so the Sox could have more cash available in 2011 to re-sign Konerko.  "They literally put their money where their mouth is so we can put a better offer on the table for Paulie," GM Kenny Williams told MLB.com's Scott Merkin.

White Sox Rumors: Fielder, Dunn, Konerko

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Here's the latest on Kenny Williams' search for power bats, as the White Sox announce their deal with Adam Dunn:

  • The White Sox discussed Prince Fielder with the Brewers before completing the Dunn deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Rosenthal explains how the shortage of available pitching could make it difficult for the Brewers to acquire high caliber young arms in a potential Fielder trade.
  • Dunn says he'll DH or play any position, according to Scott Reifert of the White Sox (on Twitter).
  • Williams says A.J. Pierzynski and Dunn will accept deferred payment on their new deals to help the White Sox make Paul Konerko a strong offer, Reifert notes on Twitter.  Konerko is meeting with the White Sox on Monday, tweets USA Today's Bob Nightengale.

White Sox Sign Adam Dunn

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The White Sox added one of the game's most consistent sluggers today, locking Adam Dunn up to a four-year $56MM deal. The team has officially announced the deal.

Dunn settled for a two-year, $20MM deal when he last hit free agency, but his representation at Legacy Sports was aggressive this time, setting their client up with the biggest contract so far this offseason and nearly tripling the value of Dunn's previous deal.

Dunn has hit 38 or more homers in each of the past seven seasons. He boasts a career .250/.381/.521 line with 354 home runs in ten seasons. Few players are as durable as the 31-year-old, who has appeared in 150 or more games in eight of nine seasons since becoming a regular.

It's not clear how often Dunn will play in the field, but that likely depends on Chicago's pursuit of free agent first baseman Paul Konerko. Dunn appeared reluctant to be a full-time DH despite criticisms of his defensive play.

The Nationals, who discussed extensions with the slugger all season long, will obtain a supplementary first rounder plus Chicago's 23rd overall pick in next year's draft. Adam LaRoche and Carlos Pena are Washington's most likely first base targets, according to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).

Crasnick reported that the White Sox had serious interest in Dunn, Jon Heyman of SI.com reported that the sides were closing in on a deal and Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times reported the terms of the contract. Peter Gammons of MLB Network and Bob Nightengale of USA Today also reported elements of the story on Twitter.

Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.

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