Chicago White Sox Titans of 'Taters: The Top 10 Sluggers in Team History
The Chicago White Sox have not been an organization known for the long ball. Sure, we had the South Side Hitmen back in the late '70s, but the franchise also had the Hitless Wonders and the Go Go Sox.
Still, the White Sox, especially in recent years, have had their share of power at the plate. Paul Konerko and Carlos Quentin are among the league leaders in homers this season.
How do these guys stack up on the all-time list? Here are the White Sox top 10 home run hitters in franchise history.
Honorable Mention
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The following guys don't make the top-10 list for homers as a member of the White Sox. Nonetheless, they provided plenty of pop on the South Side.
Albert Belle: Spent just season with the White Sox but had 79 homers in that time, including a franchise-record 49 in 1998.
Jim Thome: 42 homers in his first season in Chicago in 2006. He had 134 in his four seasons with the White Sox, good for 13th on list.
Minnie Minoso: Had 21 round trippers for the 1959 American League Champs, Minoso is 12th all-time with 135 for the White Sox.
Jose Valentin: In his five years with the club, never hit less than 25 homers in a season. His 136 place him 11th all-time. Hit 30 in 2004, his last year with the club.
10. Ron Kittle: 140 Home Runs
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Kittle had three tours of duty for the White Sox. His rookie season was by far his most productive, as he hit 35 homers for the Western Division Champions. He garnered the Rookie of the Year award that season for his efforts.
Kittle hit 32 more in the 1984 season but never approached that total in any of his remaining eight seasons in the big leagues.
9. Carlos Lee: 152 Home Runs
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El Caballo spent his first six seasons with the White Sox before he was traded to the Brewers after the 2004 campaign.
The big Panamanian currently has 334 home runs in his major league career, 152 for the White Sox. He never failed to hit at least 24 homers, having hit 16 in 1999 after being called up in May. Lee hit 31 in each of his last two seasons with Chicago.
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8. Bill Melton: 154 Home Runs
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Beltin' Bill spent eight of his 10 seasons with the White Sox, and the third baseman topped the 20-home run mark five times.
In 1971, Melton hit three homers in the season's last two games to overtake Reggie Jackson for the American League home run crown with 33. He also had 33 homers the season before.
7. Jermaine Dye: 164 Home Runs
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Dye's 44-homer season in 2006 is the second highest total in team history behind Belle's 49.
Dye patrolled right field in Chicago for five seasons, including the 2005 World Championship season. His power numbers for the White Sox were the most consistent of his 14-year career, never hitting less than 27 in a White Sox uniform.
6. Robin Ventura: 171 Home Runs
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Ventura, who also won five gold gloves at third base while with the White Sox, was a run producer in the heart of the Chicago lineup throughout the 1990s.
His best season came in 1996 when he slugged a career-high 34 homers to go with 105 RBI along with his fourth Gold Glove.
He hit 22 home runs in 1993 when the White Sox won the American League West and had 18 in the strike-shortened 1994 season, which saw Chicago atop the AL Central when play was halted in early August.
5. Magglio Ordonez: 187 Home Runs
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Before he moved on to division rival Detroit, Ordonez was a consistent 30-homer, .300 hitter for the White Sox.
Ordonez's five highest season home run totals came with the White Sox, including a career-high 38 with Chicago in 2002. He hit 32 for the AL Central champions in 2000.
4. Carlton Fisk: 214 Home Runs
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Pudge belted 37 homers in 1985, a number he never approached before or after in his storied career.
That season saw him awarded one of the three Silver Slugger awards he earned in Chicago. The first came in his first season in town in 1981. The third came in 1988, when at age 40 (and playing in just 76 games) he hit 19 dingers with 50 RBI.
Fisk's longevity certainly helped him reach this spot on the list.
Catching the bulk of the 1990 and 1991 seasons at ages 42 and 43, Fisk hit 18 homers both years. That was good enough for a top-15 MVP finish in 1990 and an All-Star nod the following year.
3. Harold Baines: 221 Home Runs
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Kids, see that mild-mannered guy coaching first base? The man could rake.
Baines spend the bulk of his 22-year career as a DH, but in the 1980s he patrolled the outfield for the White Sox with class and a sweet stroke from the left side.
Baines had two short stints with Chicago after the team traded him him in 1989 for Wilson Alverez, Scott Fletcher and Sammy Sosa. The best was the 1996 season when he hit 22 homers and knocked in 95 runs.
His best Chicago season was 1984 when still in right field. That season he hit a career-high 29 homers to go with 94 RBI and a .304 batting average.
2. Paul Konerko: 366 Home Runs
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All but seven of Konerko's 373 career home runs have come in a White Sox uniform.
The long-time man at first has topped the 300-homer mark four times in his career and hit 40-plus homers twice. He hit 39 in a resurgent 2010 and is on pace to reach over 30 so far this season.
Konerko hit a career-high of 41 homers in 2004 and hit 40 more in the White Sox championship year of 2005. He is currently tied for third in the American League in homers and his 27 RBI makes him the league leader in that catagory.
The 400-homer plateau is within Konerko's reach this season. How much higher could he climb by the end of his current deal expires in 2013?
1. Frank Thomas: 466 Home Runs
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The Big Hurt spent 16 seasons in Chicago in his role as first baseman/DH/offensive juggernaut.
The juggernaut part of his career came from 1990 to 2000, when he was no doubt the most feared hitter in baseball. In that stretch, he averaged 36 homers and 125 RBI per full season.
The 2000 season, which saw the White Sox win the AL Central, was Thomas' last great offensive effort. He hit .328 with 43 homers and a career-high 142 RBI. He never hit .300 again, becoming less choosy about his pitch selection and opting to focus on home runs (he admitted as such several times).
He had one great season left in Chicago, a 42-homer, 105-RBI 2003 in which he hit .267. Injuries limited him in his later years but could still send balls to the cheap seats. He had 39 homers with the A's in 2006 and finished his career with 521 lifetime home runs.
Is Thomas a shoo-in to remain the White Sox all-time leader in homers? Konerko would need 82 round-trippers from this point out in a White Sox uniform to catch Thomas.
That's a tall order for a 35-year-old veteran. However, it's not out of the realm of possibility.
If Paulie retains his stroke throughout the length of his contract, it's possible that Chicago could see a change at the top of this list in a few seasons.
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