Paul Konerko is leading the American League in batting average and is second in slugging percentage but the career .284 hitter will fall back down to earth soon.
Analysis: Konerko’s eleven home runs is not an inflated number. His HR/FB rate is just up a bit this year(19.3%) from his career average(16.9%). In fact, Konerko has averaged 34 home runs over the past two seasons, so the thirty-six year old’s power is not in question. The red flag here is the .406 BABIP which is a shocking .117 points above his career average. Konerko has not had a BABIP over .330 in his career so we cannot count on his .406 mark to hold up much longer. His strike outs are up a bit this year and his walk rate is down from his 2011 numbers, just another thing to keep an eye on.
Konerko is a solid power bat who is not slowing down despite his age. His power is stable and he is one durable guy but he will be lucky to finish with a batting average over .310 this year. If you are one of those owners who are constantly trying to improve your team then you have to think about selling the veteran especially when considering the amount of injuries to power bats that are out there at the moment. Konerko is good, just not this good.