CHICAGO (AP) — Munetaka Murakami rejoined the Chicago White Sox on Friday night. The Japanese slugger also has finalized some big plans for next week's All-Star break.
Murakami went 1 for 5 with one run scored and one RBI in a 14-1 victory over the Athletics after being activated from the 10-day injured list. He had been sidelined more than a month with a strained right hamstring. The rookie also was named to the AL All-Star team and added to the field for the Home Run Derby in Philadelphia.
Coaches and teammates clapped after Murakami was informed of the honors during a pregame clubhouse meeting.
“I just want to appreciate to every single player, staff and everybody in this organization to really support me through my rehabilitation process and I'm really glad to be back here with you guys,” Murakami said through an interpreter. “I'm able to participate in this event because of you guys really warming up to me, being a very good teammate and being there every single day. Having those teammates are what made me today, and I really like to appreciate that. And I feel really glad to represent the team and play for the White Sox in the All-Star Game.”
The 26-year-old Murakami started at first base in the opener of a weekend series against the Athletics. The White Sox went 17-18 while he was on the injured list.
Murakami got hurt during a 4-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers on May 29. At the time of the injury, he ranked among the major league leaders with 20 homers, 41 RBIs, 43 runs and a .947 OPS.
The White Sox had dropped three in a row and six of eight overall going into the series against the A's.
Murakami becomes the eighth rookie in franchise history to be named an All-Star, a list that also includes José Abreu (2014), Ron Kittle (1983) and Minnie Miñoso (1951). He is joining Shohei Ohtani (2021) as the only Japanese-born players to participate in the Derby.
Murakami signed a $34 million, two-year contract with Chicago in December. He made two rehab appearances with Triple-A Charlotte, going 2 for 7 with a double.
The White Sox also optioned infielder Jacob Gonzalez to Charlotte before the matchup with the A's. Later Friday, they traded Gonzalez and left-hander Brandon Eisert to the Pittsburgh Pirates for left-hander Jaden Woods and the No. 34 overall pick in the amateur draft, which begins Saturday.
The 24-year-old Gonzalez, a first-round pick in the 2023 amateur draft, hit .244 with two homers and 17 RBIs in 30 games in his first stint in the major leagues.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Pickleball Read morePickleball
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.