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In a notable move for their overhauling roster, the South Side team have signed Japanese star Munetaka Murakami, completing a $34 million contract bringing in the high-profile player.

Contract Details and Added Benefits

The deal includes a seven-figure signing bonus, issued within 30 days, in addition to salaries of $16 million for the next season and $17 million for the following year.

Importantly, Murakami's 2027 salary can increase based on award achievements in 2026:

• An additional $1M for earning the MVP award.
• $500,000 for placing in the top three in MVP voting.
• $250,000 for placing in the top ten.
• $250,000 for earning the ROY honor.

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

Posting Fee and Team Legacy

As part of the signing, Chicago is obligated to provide a transfer fee of over $6.5 million to the Swallows, Murakami's longtime team in Japan's professional league. The Swallows get a supplemental fee of 15% triggered salary escalators.

Murakami joins the ranks as the fourth Japanese-born to play for the Chicago franchise, in the footsteps of pitcher Shingo Takatsu (2004-05), infielder Tadahito Iguchi (2005-07), and outfielder Kosuke Fukudome (2012). Notably, Takatsu once managed Murakami back in Japan.

Career Highlights

Murakami, a left-side batter who will turn 26 in February, bolsters a emerging core of hitters in Chicago that includes prospects like Colson Montgomery, Kyle Teel, and Chase Meidroth. The White Sox are coming off a last-place season, finishing last in the American League Central but representing a notable improvement from the year before campaign.

Having earned Most Valuable Player honors in consecutive seasons, Murakami is renowned for a monumental 2022 season where he belted 56 home runs, surpassing the longstanding record for a player in Japan previously held by legend Sadaharu Oh. That performance also made him the most youthful hitter ever to achieve Japan's prestigious Triple Crown.

His 2023 season was limited to a partial schedule due to an oblique injury. Even with recording often, he still managed .273 with 22 HRs and 47 driven in.

Over his career tenure with the Swallows, Murakami has compiled a .270 batting average with 246 HRs, 647 RBIs, and nearly 1,000 strikeouts in nearly 900 games. Early in his career playing mainly at first base, he has more recently played to third base.

International Pedigree

Murakami's big-game performance were on center stage during the 2023 World Baseball Classic. In the semifinal against Mexico, he delivered a victory-sealing two-base hit that scored Shohei Ohtani and Masataka Yoshida for a come-from-behind one-run win. The following day in the final against the Team USA, he slugged a game-tying homer in the early innings, setting the stage for Japan's eventual championship win.

The lefty slugger is scheduled to be formally introduced at a press conference on the coming Monday.