Where would Mueller play?  He wouldn't really come here to be an 'insurance' player in case Crede got hurt, would he?  That leaves first-base.  If you got Mueller, it probably means that Iguchi moves down in the order to 5th-6th.  But that also means you're losing a helluva lot of power from last year.  And really, the ONLY reason our offense didn't rank last in the league was because they hit 200 homers.

If they can't re-up with Konerko, who do they turn to?  I've brought up Garciaparra, because of his versatility (he can play 3B, SS, and I assume could handle 1B if he had time for a whole spring.  Plus, he could hit second and move Iguchi down in the order, like Ozzie wants), but does he have too much of an ego to move away from his natural SS position for good?  Plus, if you go with Nomar, you're putting the bulk of your offense on the shoulders of two guys who are on the wrong side of 30, and who combined for under 500 ABs last year.

I guess I don't understand the problem.

"Is the Jim Thome deal a good one for the World Champs or a mega-bust? That remains to be seen, though I've heard some convincing arguments on both sides. What it means for the Sox now is that they're working hard to finish up what figures to be an important, but short off-season checklist. They'll likely part ways with Paul Konerko by the time the Winter Meetings close next week, opening the door to Frank Thomas' return at DH. Don't expect much more change, though the Sox will try and sign some better bench players once the market has shaken out.
So where does this leave Konerko? The White Sox offer isn't going to get it done, so the slugger will take his ring and head west. The Angels and Dodgers will compete for him, and the Red Sox could make a late run if they free up salary space with some other deals. The Angels want to be in on the Manny Ramirez sweepstakes and sources think that the Angels would be willing to take on more of his remaining contract than most teams will."

This is the most pessimistic speculation I've seen and, while it isn't sourced, my guess is that Carroll isn't just making it up.  I've seen no reporting anywhere of any serious Konerko negotiations with any team other than the Sox.  

The fact that Williams is essentially setting a deadline for Konerko is an interesting development.  I'm guessing Kenny is reading it this way: Konerko has no serious suitors right now.  Maybe the Angels or Red Sox will want to play but they have to settle the Manny Ramirez thing first and who knows how long that will last.  In his heart, Konerko wants to come back to the Sox, especially with Thome to watch his back.  So if the Sox make a take-it-or-leave-it offer at a legit number, Konerko will have a choice of taking the comfortable bird-in-the-hand or hoping that the cards fall right in gambling on the birds-in-the-bush.  Konerko's desire to stay in Chicago will tip the balance and he will sign with us.  If he doesn't, the Sox made a good faith effort, have a replacement already lined-up and can take the savings to find a replacement DH who may or may not be Thomas.  If I let Konerko drag this out into January and don't sign him, then I've got much less room to find the replacement bat I need.

Conversely, Konerko's agent will be saying: There is a lot of money out there and the supply is still limited.  The BJ Ryan contract is a symptom of this.  Hurrying into a commitment helps the team, because they want certainty, but it does not help the player looking to maximize his choices and income.  Even if the Sox really do walk away from their offer (and they may only be bluffing about that), come late December and January, there are still a number of teams that are going to have money to spend.  The Angels, Dodgers, Red Sox and even the Yankees are all good destinations for Paul and some, if not all of them, will be available to us after Williams' deadline expires.  Therefore, we reject the Sox offer and play the field.

Assuming I'm reading all this correctly, it comes down to Konerko's gut desire to stay here.  I think his agent is probably correct that he can maximize his money by waiting and letting teams drive up the bidding.  (It worked brilliantly for Ordonez last year.)  But I think Konerko would like to stay here if he thinks he's getting comparable value.  So, in early December, he's going to have to decide whether he wants to be comfortable and rich or less comfortable and more rich.  

FWIW, my guess is that Konerko is highly committed to and prepared for this process and that he will not respond to Williams' deadline by re-signing with us.  He'll end up signing a Vladimir Guerrero-type contract with somebody in January and Williams will have to figure out how much he believes in Frank Thomas.  Erubiel Durazo, anyone?

At this point, Thomas for a year or two at 1/4 the salary or so is just a much, much better risk.