CLEVELAND -- In a perfect world for Paul Konerko, the combination of having this past weekend off and getting a cortisone shot last Friday will lead to renewed production during Monday's series opener at Progressive Field and beyond.

Konerko also realizes the soreness lying near his right thumb won't instantly disappear. The White Sox first baseman simply is looking to be able to keep the pain from altering his approach at the plate.

"As long as it's not holding you back," said Konerko, sitting in front of his locker prior to his return to the lineup. "Take the swings you want to take and swing at the pitches you want to swing at, then that's all you can ask for. Everyone playing has something nicked up. That's fine.

"You don't want to cater to it and change how you go about your business. That's how it was when I left off. It's all about not worrying about consequences."

That worry overtook Konerko's refined hitting approach over the past three weeks, as he tried to let the webbing between his thumb and index finger heal as he played. The problem wasn't getting jammed, which in and of itself is a necessary evil for a good hitter, as Konerko explained.

Issues arose when Konerko would get jammed in his first trip to the plate, and it would affect how he approached his next three or four at-bats. That pain-induced change of philosophy led to Konerko getting the shot, which can last up to a month or month and a half, and then missing the three-game Angels' series at home.

"At this time of year, it made sense to say, 'Listen, I could keep doing that for more than 100 games with me going around, trying to ham and egg your way out there,'" Konerko said. "Or let's take a couple of days off and try to calm it down to where I can do what I want to do.

"It's definitely calmed down. Having the three days off and having the shot, it definitely helped. Either one probably would have helped, but just in the gripping the bat or gripping anything, even tying my shoes, I noticed it."

While Konerko was inactive, he tried not to do even mundane, everyday things with his right hand. The pain contributed to the slow start for Konerko, who carried a .212 average with five home runs and 23 RBIs into Monday night's contest.

For Konerko to take time off, though, the pain truly was doing more damage than to simply his average. Since 2001, Konerko has played in at least 151 games every year but 2003, when he battled through a season-long struggle on offense.

"I don't mind if it hurts if I get jammed, but it wasn't recouping well," Konerko said. "If I got jammed my first or second at-bat, I was going up there changing my grip or taking my thumb off the bat, doing different things you don't do. It's hard enough when you are locked.

"I've always had this. But I've never had times when I was hurting on deck. It was about not wanting to take swings on-deck or flips during early work or batting practice. I took a couple days off of batting practice.

"There were some good days in there, but the last three weeks, it wasn't pretty...," Konerko added. "Again, these are all thoughts you are having, where the first pitch, that's away, so hit it, because it's away. You just won't do what you want to do."