🔗 Share this article

In a notable move for their overhauling roster, the American League club have officially added Japanese star Munetaka Murakami, agreeing to a two-year contract for the accomplished player.

Contract Details and Incentives

The deal features a $1 million signing bonus, payable within 30 days, alongside compensation of $16M for the 2026 season and seventeen million for the 2027 year.

Additionally, Murakami's final-year pay may grow based on award achievements in 2026:

• A seven-figure bonus for being named the league MVP award.
• $500K for placing second or third in MVP voting.
• A quarter-million for ranking in the top ten.
• $250,000 for winning the top rookie honor.

His deal provides that he cannot be assigned to the farm system without his consent and grants him a free agent at the end of the deal. Further benefits include a club-supplied interpreter and travel costs between the U.S. and Japan.

Posting Fee and Team Legacy

As part of the acquisition, Chicago is obligated to provide a posting fee of $6,575,000 to the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, Murakami's former team in Japan's professional league. The Yakult organization get a 15% cut of 15% triggered incentive payments.

Murakami is set to become the fourth player from Japan to suit up for the Chicago franchise, in the footsteps of reliever Shingo Takatsu (2004-05), infielder Tadahito Iguchi (2005-07), and outfielder Kosuke Fukudome (2012). Of note, Takatsu once managed Murakami back in Japan.

Career Highlights

Murakami, a left-handed hitter who turns 26 on February 2nd, bolsters a promising lineup in Chicago that contains prospects like Colson Montgomery, Kyle Teel, and Chase Meidroth. The club are finished with a 60-102 season, placing at the bottom in the American League Central but representing a significant improvement from the previous campaign.

A two-time Most Valuable Player honors in '21 and '22, Murakami is renowned for a record-breaking 2022 season where he belted 56 homers, breaking the all-time record for a NPB hitter previously held by icon Sadaharu Oh. That feat also made him the youngest player ever to achieve Japan's elusive batting Triple Crown.

His most recent NPB campaign was limited to a partial schedule due to an muscle issue. Even with recording 64 Ks, he hit .273 with 22 home runs and 47 runs batted in.

Over his eight-year tenure with the Swallows, Murakami has posted a .270 career batting average with 246 HRs, 647 runs batted in, and 977 Ks in 892 contests. He started playing mostly at first, he has since transitioned to the hot corner.

WBC Heroics

Murakami's heroics were on global view during the 2023 WBC. In the semi-final against Mexico, he delivered a walk-off two-base hit that scored teammates for a dramatic 6-5 win. The very next day in the championship game against the USA, he blasted a game-tying homer in the early innings, setting the stage for Japan's subsequent 3-2 victory.

The power hitter is scheduled to be officially presented at a introductory event on the coming Monday.