Munetaka Murakami Compares White Sox Media Attention to Dodgers

Over the last few seasons, the Los Angeles Dodgers have become somewhat of the "hub" for the Japanese market in baseball. After the team signed both two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani and ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles has taken the media market by storm.

Each day, the Dodgers have all sorts of media members covering the team, with a large portion of them being for Japanese outlets. This is part of the experience when a player like Ohtani is on the roster, but being in a large market like Los Angeles also plays into everything.

While the Dodgers do have a few of the bigger Japanese stars in baseball, including pitcher Roki Sasaki, they don't have them all. One of the bigger names just came over to MLB and decided to sign with the Chicago White Sox after a quieter free agency than expected.

This would be slugger Munetaka Murakami, who has enjoyed himself in Chicago so far. But Murakami was recently asked about the difference in media spotlight between the Dodgers and White Sox.

“I don’t really know what the Dodgers are like," Murakami said to USA Today Sports, “but I like the media over here. I’m all good. It doesn’t really affect me at all or change who I am."

The White Sox will never get the media attention that the Dodgers do, but having Murakami on the roster helps bring in a few Japanese reporters. But no matter what Murakami does, he will be linked with Los Angeles due to the Dodgers being at the center of the Japanese market currently.

Murakami has only been in the big leagues for a few weeks, but he has already made a name for himself. The slugger has impressed pretty much everyone around baseball, proving himself early on in his career.

All offseason, the big knock against Murakami was that he wasn't able to hit the velocity in the big leagues, and this was a reason why many teams were hesitant to sign him. But his results so far this season have pushed back against this narrative heavily.

So far this season, Murakami has hit .253 with 10 home runs and 19 runs batted in over 25 games played. His power has shone brightly for the White Sox this season, and he has shown all the teams that didn't believe in him that he is ready for the big stage. He even beat a Shohei Ohtani record in the process.

The Dodgers were a team linked to Murakami over the offseason, but due to his concerns and a lack of need on the roster, they held off making the move. But if Murakami were to keep up his power production, Los Angeles could easily make a play for him either via trade or when he becomes a free agent after the 2027 season.

Murakami only signed a two-year deal with the White Sox, and he could re-enter free agency in two years, with the intent to land a massive contract. But for now, the Dodgers, like other teams, will watch his progression closely to then make a decision on going after him down the line.

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