A small, wry smile crept across general manager Chris Getz’s face as public-address announcer Gene Honda read off Munetaka Murakami’s accomplishments from Japan.
Two-time MVP. Home run record-breaker. Players of Murakami’s pedigree simply don’t sign with the White Sox, especially as they are approaching the prime of their careers.
“With regards to finding the left-handed bat, we found our guy,” Getz said.
Murakami was officially introduced as a Sox player on Monday afternoon, signing his two-year $34 million contract. That Murakami was signing a short-term, modest deal was a surprise given that many predicted a more long-term arrangement for Murakami.
“My main priority was to find the best fit,” Murakami said through translator David Yamamoto. “Whether the contract was long or not wasn’t really a factor for myself. I just really believe in the city and the organization.”
But Murakami’s swing-and-miss, low in-zone contact rates and playing an undervalued defensive position — Getz said Murakami will play first base, but that the team will work with him on his defense at third base — didn’t deter the Sox from the upside of a 25-year-old with immense power.
Murakami will slot in the middle of the order, lengthening the lineup. Getz said that with exposure to high-velocity pitches and other training techniques, the Sox can improve his contact rate. Murakami doesn’t have any trepidation about transitioning to the MLB.
“I am pretty confident I can succeed in the states,” he said.
The last time the Sox held a press conference for a free-agent signing was when they inked Andrew Benintendi to a five-year, $75 million contract, the largest in team history. If Murakami is able to improve his in-zone contact rates and his power is prevalent, he will certainly garner more interest and cost more than Benintendi’s deal two years from now.
“It’s an opportunity for us to provide a runway to a really talented player in the city of Chicago,” Getz said of the two-year pact. “That was really attractive to us. Knowing that there’s only upside in this because you’re looking at someone that’s going to help our young players develop, it’s a chance for him to show Major League Baseball what he’s capable of doing and positive things will come from that.”
Getz said Monday that he’s confident in the organization’s hitting infrastructure with hitting coach Derek Shomon and director of hitting Ryan Fuller. Murakami posted a 14.3% walk rate last season, which indicates that he makes quality swing decisions.
“We’re on the constant pursuit to find ways to get better,” Getz said. “We feel like we just found a way to accelerate this perhaps to rate we really didn’t anticipate going into this offseason.”
Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf was involved in discussions once discussions with Murakami were becoming imminent. After picking up Luis Robert Jr.’s contract, it doesn’t sound like the organization has much payroll flexibility to beef up the pitching depth. But signing Murakami is a notable step forward for the organization after a 60-102 season.
“The more we talked about it, talking about [Murakami] and what he’s capable of doing on the field, the international connection, [Reinsdorf] got more and more excited,” Getz said.
For the first time under Getz’s stewardship, the Sox seem to have a tangible reason for some measured optimism from its fan base.
After winning the 2026 draft lottery and signing Murakami to add to a talented position-player core, the Sox have some momentum heading into spring training.
“I really believe in the vision of this organization and would love to be a part of this,” Murakami said.