Murakami's massive slam

Munetaka Murakami hit a 431-foot grand slam over the batter’s eye on Friday night, capping the Chicago White Sox’s 9-2 win over the Athletics in West Sacramento. (apnews.com) The homer came in the seventh inning with two outs and gave the White Sox a 9-1 lead at Sutter Health Park, the Athletics’ temporary home before their planned move to Las Vegas. Murakami was batting second and playing first base. (apnews.com) Japanese reports and Statcast-style figures published after the game put the drive at 114.1 mph off the bat and 431 feet, or about 131.4 meters. MLB’s game clip labeled it Murakami’s first career grand slam and his sixth home run of the season. (sponichi.co.jp) (mlb.com) The swing landed hard because Murakami entered the night in a slump despite his early power. Sponichi reported he had gone 3-for-29 over his previous 10 games, with 13 strikeouts, before breaking out with three hits against the Athletics. (sponichi.co.jp) Murakami’s start in Major League Baseball has been unusual from the beginning. He homered in each of his first three games on March 27, 28 and 29, a streak Sponichi said made him the fourth player in MLB history to open a career with homers in his first three team games. (sponichi.co.jp) He arrived in the majors with a résumé few hitters his age can match. On April 4, in a game against Toronto, he reached 250 combined home runs across Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball at age 26 years, 2 months, 2 days, according to Sponichi. (sponichi.co.jp) Friday’s blast also turned into a social-media clip because of where it went. The ball cleared straightaway center and the batter’s eye — the dark backdrop beyond the pitcher that hitters use to track the ball — on a line that made the park look small. (mlb.com) (sponichi.co.jp) The White Sox needed the outburst as much as Murakami did. The club snapped a three-game losing streak, collected a season-high 15 hits, and got seven innings from starter Davis Martin, who allowed three hits and one run. (apnews.com) Murakami’s grand slam was the loudest swing of the night, but it also fit the shape of his first month in Chicago: long stretches of swing-and-miss, then one ball hit so far that everybody stops to watch. (apnews.com) (sponichi.co.jp)