First baseman Munetaka Murakami and manager Will Venable are two of the key figures in the White Sox’ surprisingly winning season. General manager Chris Getz would like both to stick around past next year.
But before the Sox begin working out new deals with Murakami and Venable, they have other goals to achieve. In Friday’s 4-1 win over the Twins, two Sox players reached the same milestone and helped them keep some distance from the second-place Guardians.
Both third baseman Miguel Vargas and shortstop Colson Montgomery hit their 30th home runs, becoming the first pair of Sox teammates to achieve that mark in the same game.
“Sitting on 29, I’m sure they were thinking about it a little bit, so great to see it,” Venable said. “Now they can move past it and continue to hit.”
That would be welcome news for the Sox. The Guardians swept a doubleheader from the Tigers, rallying in both games. Even with their win, the Sox’ lead in the AL Central diminished slightly to 2 1/2 games.
At least they recovered from a rough series in Houston, when the Sox lost three of four to the Astros.
“We all know this is a tough game, especially late in September,” Vargas said, “and we know how important these games are, and we just have to turn the page and think about the next day and do the best we can.”
The Sox are in this position partly because of Murakami and Venable.
Murakami injected life into a sputtering franchise, hitting tape-measure home runs and giving the Sox an international star. Venable, in his second season as manager, has been credited with creating an atmosphere conducive to success.
After his free-agent market collapsed, Murakami signed a two-year, $34 million contract in December. In hindsight, the deal looks like a bargain for the Sox, even though Murakami hasn’t hit a home run since Aug. 18 and went 3 for 24 and struck out 12 times on the recent seven-game road trip.
Getz said Friday that the Sox and Murakami’s camp will “continue to have those conversations” about extending the relationship.
“He’s been part of the success that we’ve had this year. It’s helped us win games,” Getz said. “It’s helped others gain confidence up here and belief that you can win games. That’s certainly something that we’re grateful for and thankful that we’ve gotten the opportunity to get to know him further.”
The Sox are pretty familiar with Venable, and they know they’d like him to be part of their future. Venable’s contract terms were never confirmed, but the franchise has traditionally given managers three-year deals. If that’s the case, Venable would enter 2027 on the last year of his contract if he’s not extended.
In his second year, Venable and the Sox are in first place with under a month left. Clearly, Venable hasn’t been perfect: the August gaffe when his second first-inning mound visit forced the Sox to remove Noah Schultz was a demerit, and his game management and bullpen moves have been questioned.
Getz praised Venable, saying he’s been “fantastic” and done what the Sox have wanted and beyond. The Sox GM said he “definitely” wants Venable to be part of what they’re building, but added that they’re too focused on winning games to talk contract, and isn’t concerned about that topic because of the duo’s relationship.
“He’s been a great partner to me. He’s been a great teammate to the coaching staff and the players,” Getz said. “So, he’s definitely a guy of high value to us and want to continue to find ways to nurture that relationship.”