Voting for MLB’s Franchise Four has closed, but I’m going to finish out my series of posts highlighting the four greatest players for each MLB franchise. Today, I’ll be looking at the White Sox and the Twins.

Chicago White Sox Franchise Four

Here are the White Sox nominees:

• Luke Appling
• Nellie Fox
• Eddie Collins
• Harold Baines
• Frank Thomas
• Minnie Minoso
• Paul Konerko
• Luis Aparicio

It’s surprising that a franchise as storied as the White Sox don’t have a single pitcher among their eight nominees. I mean, Ted Lyons is a Hall of Famer after all. It’s also impressive to recount the number of great middle infielders the Pale Hose have developed. Here are my votes:

• Frank Thomas. Franchise leader in HR, RBI, and runs.
• Paul Konerko. Second in HR and RBI. Did you know he only stole 9 bases over his 18 year career? Unbelievable.
• Eddie Collins. One of the best keystoners to play the game.
• Harold Baines. Never the best player in the game, even on his own teams. But he was very good for a very long time. I suppose you could argue for another player (like Appling).

Minnesota Twins Franchise Four Another long-time franchise, another fantastic set of players. Take a look at this group of nominees:

• Bert Blyleven
• Rod Carew
• Walter Johnson
• Jim Kaat
• Harmon Killebrew
• Joe Mauer
• Tony Oliva
• Kirby Puckett

I didn’t expect this one to be so difficult. But here’s my vote:

• Walter Johnson. No brainer. 417 wins. It was a different time, sure. But you have to respect these numbers.
• Harmon Killebrew. All-time leader in games played, HR, RBI, and walks. One of the greats.
• Kirby Puckett. I don’t care what the numbers say; Puckett is on this list. If you saw him play, you know.
• This final spot was hard for me. Blyleven was only 9 games above .500 for this franchise, so I couldn’t go there. I think you can argue for either Mauer or Carew. I went with Carew. Check back in another 10 years and maybe Mauer has my vote. But for now, it’s Carew.