Passing on Munetaka Murakami Could Come Back to Haunt the Cleveland Guardians

It was a bit disappointing to see the Cleveland Guardians pass up on signing international star Munetaka Murakami this past offseason.

The 25-year-old slugger signed with the Chicago White Sox on a measly two-year, $34 million deal, making him an instant low-risk, high-reward signing.

And now, to begin the 2026 campaign, he has been one of the league's best home run hitters, making him a true threat for the Guardians' success in the American League Central moving forward.

Munetaka Murakami’s current full-season pace:

66 HR
116 Runs
132 RBI
132 BB
.595 SLG
.979 OPS
163 wRC+
6.0 fWAR

Steal of the offseason. pic.twitter.com/6xKzQGBd9t
— Just Baseball (@JustBB_Media) May 2, 2026

On Monday, May 4, Murakami finally hit something other than a home run after his incredible start to the season. He knocked a double, his first non-home run extra-base hit of the season. He is now up to 30 hits, one double and 14 home runs for 28 RBI, all with a slashing mark of .240/.377/.684 for an OPS of .961.

That streak of 14-straight extra-base knocks being home runs was the longest streak to start a player's career in MLB since at least 1900, making the feat that much more eye-popping.

He is also the only player in the league this season to homer off of multiple pitches thrown over 98.1 mph. Coming to the States, his ability to hit high-velocity pitches was a concern, and to see him put those to rest this quickly is impressive.

Munetaka Murakami has a .660 slugging percentage against big league four-seam fastballs to start his MLB career. The league average SLG against heaters is .432 entering play today. pic.twitter.com/25zQFDHow4
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) May 5, 2026

With somewhat bland expectations after joining the White Sox this offseason, through 35 games, he has been torching MLB. It's hard to imagine that teams across the league aren't kicking themselves for allowing the White Sox to get him on such a cheap deal, with those organizations in the American League Central especially frustrated.

A primary first baseman, Murakami has spent time there and as a designated hitter. That type of role is what the Guardians have been missing to start the campaign.

After bringing back Kyle Manzardo with the hopes that he would be the future at first base, while also adding veteran Rhys Hoskins to the mix, the front office's decision to build around those two seems to be a mistake, at least right now.

Instead of having one of the league's best sluggers on the roster, they instead have two players who have combined for 35 hits, eight doubles and four home runs, good enough for 20 RBI. They both are also barely batting .200.

While it's easy to point and criticize Cleveland's front office for not giving Murakami a chance, especially considering they have one of the lowest payrolls in baseball and also didn't spend much this past offseason, it's hard to imagine that he will keep this up forever.

Munetaka Murakami is tied for 1st in MLB in HRs and ranks top-5 in hard-hit and barrel percentage 🦾

DeRo and @TheMayorsOffice highlight the @whitesox star and how he's found success as a "three true outcome monster". pic.twitter.com/cQjRMQgWcr
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) May 4, 2026

Eventually, Murakami will come back down to earth, but for now, it is hard not to imagine how much of a hotter start Cleveland could have had with him on the roster.

The White Sox are currently 17-18, just on the tail of the Guardians for the top spot in the Central division. The two sides will face in mid-June, with the first meeting of the year set for June 22 at 7:40 p.m. EST at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago.

And there, the Guardians themselves will get a taste of what Murakami has to offer.

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