HOUSTON — Munetaka Murakami watched the World Series in past years when he was in Japan.
“But right now, as I’m here inside of the postseason, I feel really excited,” Murakami said through an interpreter Monday at Daikin Park. “It’s a feeling that I always dreamed about. I’m just truly excited to be here and really happy.”
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Murakami will get his first taste of the MLB playoffs Tuesday when the Chicago White Sox face the Houston Astros in Game 1 of an American League wild-card series at Daikin Park.
Murakami played a major role in helping the Sox reach the postseason, hitting a team-leading 35 home runs. After some second-half struggles, he had some big hits down the stretch and batted .263 with four home runs and 12 RBIs over his final 10 games.
“He works so hard and he’s so smart,” general manager Chris Getz said Monday. “He’s so determined that you knew he would come out of it at some point. He has and he’s back to what he was earlier in the year. If you look at the year as a whole after he signed here, and if you would have told us he has the numbers he has now and obviously the impact in the clubhouse, yeah, we would have taken it.
“Now every season is its own journey, its own story. There were some second-half struggles. Now that we are here and he’s playing the way he has, it looks like he has the confidence to really carry this and help us in the postseason.”
When Murakami signed a two-year deal in the offseason, he joined a team coming off its third consecutive 100-plus loss season.
“When I signed in December, came here to win,” Murakami said. “And I knew that this was going to be a winning team. Obviously, I don’t really know what kind of team atmosphere it was the last (three) years when we did lose 100 games. But I’m right here at this moment in time.
“So this is our culture. It’s a winning culture, as you can see, and that’s how we have been proceeding throughout the years. This is not the end. This is just the start of our, let’s say, postseason run.”
Murakami made quick connections in the clubhouse, including third baseman Miguel Vargas.
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“We both have a really good relationship since day one,” said Vargas, who later referred to Murakami as one of his best friends. “He’s a special guy. He’s a guy that you want to be around and learn from.
“His work ethic is unbelievable, and he cares about winning. He is a winner. He has won in Japan. He won (the World Baseball Classic in 2023), and then he came here, and now we’re in the playoffs.”
Murakami hopes to benefit from those past experiences.
“The eight years of my Japanese career I have experienced so much,” he said, “so obviously this experience that I had in Japan will come into play when I get into this postseason run here in the majors. I hope it really helps my game this postseason.”