Who will be White Sox's next leader?

Officially, he was the White Sox' captain from 2006-14.

Unofficially, Paul Konerko established himself as the team's undisputed leader in 2002.

It was a blazing hot Sunday in July that year, the final game before the all-star break. The White Sox were floundering under .500, and most were looking forward to some needed rest and a recharge.

But there was batting practice scheduled that Sunday, and Frank Thomas decided to take a pass.

As the best hitter in franchise history and well on his way to the Hall of Fame, Thomas' decision, though ill-advised, figured to go unchallenged.

Konerko didn't see it that way.

He called out Thomas for blowing off b.p., and used another veteran teammate as an example during the confrontation. "Sandy Alomar Jr. is out there taking batting practice," Konerko said of the oft-injured catcher, "and he's being held together by tape and band-aids."

Konerko's spat with Thomas took place behind the scenes and just happened to leak out.

And before he played his final game for the Sox last Sunday - wrapping up a 16-year career on the South Side - Konerko preferred staying out of the spotlight both on the field and in the clubhouse.

But he was a near perfect leader, and the White Sox need a replacement in 2015 and beyond.

Maybe a veteran newcomer slides into the key role, but the Sox might have some holdover players who can step up and show the way.

"I don't know who we have," manager Robin Ventura said. "There will need to be somebody that can lead that can show them how to do it. Baseball seems to move on in that way, but it doesn't ever stop just because Paul is leaving.

"Paul has been one of those guys that stepped up for this organization at the right time and did it his way, and also did it as a leader. Eventually you will need to find somebody like that. Right now, I don't know who that is. Hopefully we get that by next year."

Adam Eaton has the leadership qualities to replace Konerko, but he's still a young player (25) and only has played one season with the White Sox.

Ditto for Jose Abreu, who will be coming off a phenomenal rookie year (.317, 36 home runs, 107 RBI).

This winter Abreu said he is going to continue learning to speak English. That would have a huge impact on his ability to communicate with all of his teammates, as well as the media.

"I feel that if the team feels like I should be the leader, I'll take that with great strides and with much respect that comes with that," Abreu said through a translator.

Konerko didn't produce much with the bat (.207, 5 homers, 22 RBI) in his final season, but he feels good about what he accomplished with his young teammates.

"I had fun with this year," he said. "There are a lot of guys on this team that I feel like I helped. Some of that came out this year. Some of it might come out down the road. I had fun with it."

Said Sox general manager Rick Hahn: "Part of the reason we brought him back was to sort of set that tone and show that example of what a leader is and what he does on and off the field. The impact that Paul had is certainly not felt just in 2014, but it's going to be felt over the next several years as the Adam Eatons and the Chris Sales grow into those roles, as Jose Abreu continues to grow into that role.

"There's going to be benefits for years to come as they sort of model some of their behavior after Paulie's example and what Paulie taught them."

sgregor@dailyherald.com