Munetaka Murakami had plenty to celebrate after the White Sox punched their postseason ticket with a 9-1 victory over the Royals on Thursday, and the rookie first baseman made sure the postgame interview matched the clubhouse volume.
Key takeaways
- Chicago secured a berth in the postseason by beating Kansas City 9-1 on Thursday.
- Murakami, the 26-year-old rookie from Kumamoto, Japan, embraced his first MLB clinching celebration.
- He answered questions from CHSN reporter Brooke Fletcher in English after interpreter Kenzo Yagi relayed them in Japanese.
- Asked to grade the party from one to 10, Murakami raised the ceiling: “One hundred!”
- The White Sox remain in the hunt with the Guardians for the American League Central crown.
A 100-point clubhouse party
The White Sox had the kind of afternoon that can loosen up even a rookie in his first major league postseason chase. Their nine-run win over the Royals locked down October baseball, then the clubhouse turned into the familiar mix of champagne, beer and players trying to be heard over the celebration.
Murakami was right in the middle of it. Yagi passed Fletcher’s questions along in Japanese, but Murakami elected to give his replies in English.
When Fletcher asked him to put a number on his first big league clinch celebration, using a one-to-10 scale, Murakami did not hesitate.
“One hundred!” he said, quickly clarifying the point. “Not 10 — 100!”
The same number came out when he was asked how many champagne bottles he had opened during the party.
“Hundred!” Murakami said with a smile.
Murakami brings the moment home
The final question was about what it meant to celebrate the clinch alongside his Chicago teammates. It drew the loudest response of the interview, even if it was not exactly a conventional answer.
As teammates sprayed him with beer, Murakami shouted: “I AM JAPANESE!”
It was a loose, memorable ending to a meaningful day for the first baseman and the club. The White Sox have assured themselves a place in the postseason, but there is still work ahead in the division race against Cleveland. For Murakami, though, Thursday offered a first taste of an MLB clubhouse celebration—and by his own accounting, it rated far beyond a 10.
