Murakami, 26 in February, arrives in the Majors as perhaps the most anticipated NPB hitter to since move to the United States Shohei Ohtani. The slugger set an NPB record with 56 home runs in a single season at age 22, and continued to make an international name for himself with Team Japan in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. A .270/.394/.557 hitter in 892 Central League games for the Yakult Swallows, Murakami possesses true 80-grade power that could completely transform an emerging White Sox lineup that already has highly regarded young people include, such as Colson Montgomery And Kyle Teel.
That combination of power and unusual youth for a free agent led many to believe Murakami could land one of the most lucrative contracts of the offseason. On MLBTR’s annual Top 50 MLB Free Agents list, released at the start of the offseason, Murakami landed as the fourth free agent available with a projected contract of $180 million over eight years. It was easy to imagine that at least one team would be willing to roll the dice on Murakami’s tempting upside to lock him up for life, but the teams were more hesitant to commit to Murakami than expected. Few teams were publicly linked to the slugger, and reports from all corners of the baseball world indicated that teams felt hesitant about his contact rate in the NPB, which would have been the lowest in baseball in the majors last year if it were transferred.
While teams weren’t willing to reach the high level expected when Murakami was first drafted, it appears he may have left some guaranteed money on the table with this deal. Passing reports that some teams were indeed trying to get involved in Murakami’s market by offering long-term deals with lower annual salaries. That type of deal would have guaranteed Murakami a longer runway to work things out at the big league level, but would have limited the financial benefits available to him. Instead, he entered into a short-term deal that gives him a healthy annual guarantee comparable to the AAV of the five-year deal. Murakami’s compatriot Seiya Suzuki signed with the Cubs in town five years ago.
That comes with just two guaranteed years in the Majors, but if Murakami is able to establish himself, he will hit free agency before his age-28 season. That should put him in line for a much more substantial payday during the 2027-2028 offseason, should he prove his capabilities as the kind of mid-range power player he has the potential to be. For a player looking to adapt to the majors, it’s hard to imagine a more forgiving environment than the south side of Chicago. The White Sox averaged 108 losses per season over the past three years and posted perhaps the worst season in MLB history in 2024. While young players like Montgomery and Teel are starting to make an impact on the Major League roster, expectations for the club could hardly be lower at this point.
While any dreams Murakami may have had about hoisting a World Series trophy in his rookie season as a major league player will likely be dashed by his decision to sign with the White Sox, playing on a team with low expectations for this year should provide him with a low-pressure environment to make any adjustments to his game that may be necessary to maximize his success without risking losing his spot in the lineup to another player in the middle of a pennant race. The White Sox appear to want Murakami to focus on maximizing his offense as much as possible as the longtime NPB third baseman moves to first base in Chicago. Scouts have been almost universally skeptical about the ability to handle the hot corner at the big league level, so a move to first base should take the pressure off Murakami to prove himself as a defenseman and allow him to focus more fully on his work on the home front.
Should Murakami prove himself successful in the Majors, he would help anchor a burgeoning core of young hitters for the White Sox. Montgomery and Teel both enjoyed exciting seasons at center positions last year, and they will be joined in the lineup by players like third baseman Miguel Vargassecond baseman Chase milesand catcher/DH Edgar Quero who enjoyed seasons last year that made them look like solid complementary pieces for the future. Luis Robert Jr. also plans to provide the Sox with some star power alongside Murakami if he’s healthy enough to do something that can handle nearly a full slate of games in center field and stay on the team amid lingering trade rumors.
All things considered, it’s easy to see Murakami as the centerpiece of an offseason in which the White Sox have taken small steps toward a return to competitiveness at the big league level. The NPB star isn’t the only player the White Sox are looking to add to the roster this winter; left-handed Antonius Kaij signed a two-year, $12 million contract following his own successful stint in Japan, and the club is reportedly among the teams interested in former Rays closer Pete Fairbanksalso. These moves are unlikely to propel Chicago to a playoff spot on their own, especially in a competitive AL Central where the Tigers and Guardians made it to October and gave Kansas City a very aggressive offseason on its own.
However, an immediate battle for the play-offs is probably not the expectation; It’s not often that a team qualifies for the playoffs the year after losing 100 games, let alone two years after losing 120. Instead, these additions should allow the White Sox to create a more competitive environment for their young core as they reach the Majors and, if all goes well, build to the playoffs in 2027 and beyond while retaining fans left wanting by the team’s latest rebuild, which saw the club said goodbye to beloved players such as Luke Giolito And Garrett hook.
These steps forward also allow the White Sox to lift their payroll out of the league’s cellar. After Murakami’s signing, Grid source expects the club to earn a salary of $84 million in 2026, a figure that could rise to almost $102 million for luxury tax purposes. That roughly matches last year’s $85 million payroll and currently just puts the White Sox out of the bottom five in the majors. Of course, that figure is still extremely modest and leaves plenty of room for a team in a major market like Chicago to add additional salary, whether that means a late-inning arm like Fairbanks or perhaps a veteran starting pitcher who can help anchor the club’s rotation. It should also be noted that the White Sox will pay a posting fee to the Swallows as a result of signing Murakami. That postal cost is about $6.6 million, considering the relatively modest total guarantee that Murakami landed.
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