Murakami streaking
- Munetaka Murakami hit his 10th homer of the season in the team's 24th game, breaking Shohei Ohtani's fastest-to-10 mark for Japanese players. (x.com) - It was his fifth straight game with a homer, pushing him to solo second in the MLB home-run rankings. ( ) - Fans are buzzing about a possible sixth consecutive homer tomorrow against the Giants as Suzuki and Yoshida also draw attention. ( )
Munetaka Murakami reached 10 home runs in his first 24 Major League games on April 23, doing it faster than any Japanese-born player in MLB history. (sports.yahoo.com) The Chicago White Sox rookie hit a 451-foot shot to right-center against the Arizona Diamondbacks for his fifth straight game with a homer. The Associated Press report carried by Yahoo said the streak tied the Major League rookie record. (sports.yahoo.com) MLB’s game account said Murakami’s 10 home runs were the most by any Japanese-born player through 24 career MLB games, ahead of Shohei Ohtani’s six. ESPN’s player page lists Murakami at 10 homers, 19 runs batted in and a 1.026 OPS through 24 games. (mlb.com, espn.com) The home-run pace has moved him near the top of the league leaderboard before the end of April. ESPN’s batting leaders page showed Yordan Alvarez first with 11 homers and Murakami tied for second with Aaron Judge at nine before Murakami’s latest blast was reflected in the nightly update. (espn.com, espn.com) Murakami did not arrive as an unknown power bat. MLB.com said the 26-year-old signed a two-year, $34 million deal with Chicago after a posting process that opened all 30 clubs to negotiations. (mlb.com) In Japan, Murakami had already won Central League Most Valuable Player awards in 2021 and 2022, and Baseball-Reference’s Bullpen says he set the Japanese-born single-season home run record with 56 in 2022. That season also brought the Triple Crown, according to his player record. (mlb.com, baseball-reference.com, baseball-reference.com) The surge has come even as Chicago’s season has opened unevenly. ESPN listed the White Sox at 9-15 and fourth in the American League Central on April 23, while Murakami’s five-game homer streak covered games against the Athletics and Diamondbacks. (espn.com, mlb.com) Chicago’s next game after the Arizona series is not against San Francisco. The White Sox schedule shows a home game against Washington on April 24, while the Giants are at home against Miami that night. (mlb.com, mlb.com) That leaves Murakami chasing a sixth straight homer on April 24 against the Nationals, with 10 homers already on the board before the calendar turns to May. (mlb.com, espn.com)
