"My advice to Paul Konerko is to put an index finger in each ear and to start humming.

A lot of people are talking about him and That Which He'd Rather Not Hear.

And it's not just us civilians who are talking about it.

"He's right there for MVP of all of baseball," White Sox teammate A.J. Pierzynski said.

Konerko doesn't even want to see the initials, let alone the words "most valuable player," associated with his name. That's understandable. It's too early to be talking about postseason awards in his world. And he's the kind of guy who would rather have sinus surgery than talk about individual honors.

But he went into Wednesday's Cubs-Sox game hitting .331, second in the American League. He had 21 home runs (tied for first), and 59 runs batted in (second).

Those are the kinds of numbers that lead to midseason discussions about the MVP award. And they lead to certain inquiries from certain columnists.

"I'm not even answering any questions about that stuff," he said. "It's June. I mean, that's ridiculous, sorry."

No need for him to apologize. If you've paid attention to Konerko in his 12 1/2 seasons in Chicago, then you know he'd be the last guy to acknowledge his MVP candidacy. There are times when you're not even sure if he'd acknowledge his existence.

I asked Pierzynski if he'd be surprised if Konerko was thinking about the award."