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White Sox's Munetaka Murakami: Strikes out twice Saturday
Rotowire
Murakami went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts during the White Sox's 2-0 loss to the Royals on Saturday.
Murakami opened his first MLB season strongly with three home runs in three consecutive games and was up to four homers and seven RBI through eight contests. However, he has cooled off at the plate of late, going 1-for-20 with six walks, three runs scored and nine strikeouts in his past seven games. These types of growing pains are to be expected for Murakami, but he'll have plenty of runway to work on his game after signing a two-year, $34 million contract with the White Sox in December.
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White Sox's Munetaka Murakami: Receiving first day off
Rotowire
Murakami is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Orioles.
The 26-year-old started the White Sox's first 10 games of the season but will take a seat after going 2-for-16 in the past five contests. Murakami has showcased his power upside already with four homers, but his swing-and-miss propensity has also been evident in the form of a 31.0 percent strikeout rate. Lenyn Sosa is taking over at first base Tuesday for Chicago.
Murakami went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk Saturday against the Brewers.
Murakami has kicked off his MLB career in style, homering in both of his first two starts. He led off the fourth inning with a home run Saturday, which came after he worked a walk in his initial plate appearance. While it's a small sample, Murakami has struck out only once in eight plate appearances.
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White Sox's Munetaka Murakami: Stays hot with another homer
Rotowire
Murakami went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored during the White Sox's 9-7 loss to the Brewers on Sunday.
Murakami continued his excellent start to his MLB career Sunday with a solo home run off Brandon Sproat in the second inning. All three of Murakami's hits through three games have resulted in solo homers, and he's also shown discipline at the plate with four walks across 13 plate appearances. The 26-year-old has clearly brought his power over from Japan, where he recorded 246 home runs over an eight-season span in Nippon Professional Baseball.
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White Sox's Munetaka Murakami: Homers in MLB debut
Rotowire
Murakami went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and two walks in Thursday's 14-2 loss against the Brewers.
Murakami made a great impression in his big-league debut, reaching base three times and launching a 384-foot solo shot to lead off the ninth inning for his first career MLB home run. The 26-year-old also showed strong plate discipline, drawing two walks in the contest and looking comfortable at the plate on a day when Brewers pitchers recorded 20 strikeouts. The homer, which he pulled into the right-field corner, offered an early glimpse of the power that Murakami showcased in Japan, where he hit 246 home runs across eight seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball.
White Sox's Munetaka Murakami: Homers in return from WBC
Rotowire
Murakami went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 6-4 Cactus League win over the A's.
It was the first Cactus League home run for Murakami, who now owns an even 1.000 OPS through 17 plate appearances with the White Sox this spring after joining the club on a two-year, $34 million contract in December. Back from the World Baseball Classic, Murakami told Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, "Compared to when I left Arizona, I feel much better as far as conditioning, as well. I'm seeing the ball better, I'm swinging better, so I'll keep that approach up and try to hit as much as possible." The 26-year-old is slated to open the season as the starting first baseman on the South Side.
