With the news of Munetaka Murakami signing with the White Sox, we asked MLB insider Mark Feinsand to examine the contract and how the White Sox proceed from here.
Murakami’s two-year, $34 million contract with the White Sox is significantly shorter with a lower average annual value than the one Red Sox left fielder Masataka Yoshida signed three years ago (five years, $90 million). Given Yoshida’s power numbers haven’t translated to the Major Leagues as well as expected, has the industry become skeptical of NPB hitters?
I don’t know if the industry has become skeptical of NPB hitters; this strikes me as teams being a little more wary of the type of hitter Murakami is. Yoshida was an elite contact hitter with a high average (.326) and on-base percentage (.419) during his seven years in Japan. Yoshida landed a much longer deal with a slightly higher AAV, though many at the time thought it was a bit of an overpay by Boston.
Murakami has elite power that most MLB talent evaluators believe will transfer over here, though there is concern about his swing-and-miss and how that could become even worse with the pitchers he will face here. He now has a two-year opportunity to prove he can. Murakami had longer offers with smaller AAVs, but he decided to go with the two-year deal and bet on himself.
The White Sox weren’t necessarily on anyone’s radar as a front-runner to sign Murakami, but given the direction the team seems to be headed, this makes sense. Where does Murakami fit in with a young Sox roster?
The White Sox are in a position that many contenders are not, namely that they can afford to take a chance on a high-risk, high-reward player like Murakami. If he strikes out twice a game for the first month of the season, there won’t be the pressure to bench him that would come with playing for a contender with great expectations. Chicago can give Murakami time to figure things out, and if he does, the Sox will either have a potential building block or a prime trade candidate.
Would this signal that the White Sox might not be done adding to their roster?
I don’t believe this will be the end of Chicago’s moves this offseason. Having added a much-needed power bat in Murakami, the White Sox are now focused on adding pitching, both in the rotation and bullpen. They’re unlikely to be in the market for top starters such as Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez and Tatsuya Imai, but there are a number of arms out there for Chicago to pursue.
What might this mean for Kazuma Okamoto, whose deadline to sign is approaching on Jan. 4? At 29, he’s older than 25-year-old Murakami, but his power numbers in the NPB have been steady since he entered the league in 2018. Is he also looking at a shorter contract?
It’s possible that Okamoto will be looking at a shorter deal than the five years Yoshida signed for, though he’s considered a more polished hitter than Murakami, which makes sense given that he’s three years older. It wouldn’t surprise me if Okamoto was able to find a four- or five-year deal with an opt-out or two, possibly from a team looking to add an impact bat that isn’t in on the likes of Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Alex Bregman or Bo Bichette. Could a team like the Pirates or Reds roll the dice on Okamoto? If Okamoto’s skills translate to the Majors, he could wind up being a difference-maker.