Wayback machine: Konerko had bad hips?

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On Nov. 16, 1998, Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune examined reports that Paul Konerko was traded from Cincinnati to Chicago as "damaged goods."

Specifically, there was a concern that the then-22-year-old Konerko's hips would force him into an early retirement. A lot of that concern stemmed from the position Konerko originally played -- catcher -- and when he moved to the outfield and eventually third base (he wasn't a first baseman yet with Cincinnati, as that position was filled by the up-and-coming Sean Casey) the problems went away.

At least, they went away for Konerko. The questions about his hips followed him to Chicago, and a note from Greenstein toward the end of the article is certainly interesting:

"Peter Gammons' weekly column in the Boston Globe stated that 'as (Dodgers Vice President) Tommy Lasorda knows, the slow-footed Konerko has a hip problem that may not be curable.'"

Thirteen seasons and 389 home runs later, I think Konerko's hips aren't a problem.

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