SACRAMENTO, California - Chicago White Sox rookie Munetaka Murakami homered for the third straight game in Sunday's 7-4 win against the Athletics, achieving the feat for the second time in his brief Major League Baseball career.
The Samurai Japan slugger, who cleared the fences in his first three MLB regular-season games, took his home run tally to eight with a two-run blast in the fifth inning at Sutter Health Park.
With one on and none out, Murakami sent a deep fly an estimated 425 feet (130 meters) out to right field, breaking the rubber game open at 6-1.
"I'm really happy that it led to a win," he said. "I think the most important thing is to keep following my routine and give thought to my hitting every day."
The former Triple Crown winner with the Yakult Swallows crushed his first MLB grand slam in Friday's series opener and followed with a solo bomb on Saturday.
Murakami's eight home runs in his first 22 games are the most by any Japanese-born player, according to MLB.com. Two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani had five in his first 22 outings.
Elsewhere in MLB, fellow Japanese rookie Kazuma Okamoto launched his third home run for the Toronto Blue Jays as they snapped their four-game skid with a 10-4 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Okamoto's solo homer in the top of the third at Chase Field was part of a 2-for-4 outing with three RBIs. He also drove in two runs with a bases-loaded double in the top of the first.
"It wasn't perfectly on the sweet spot, but I hit it solidly," Okamoto said of his homer. "I hope this will be a good starting point. I want to work hard to hit as many more as possible from here on out."
At Coors Field, Ohtani extended his on-base streak to 51 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in their 9-6 loss to the Colorado Rockies.
The four-time MVP went 2-for-5 with an RBI and has now reached base every time he has been in the lineup dating back to Aug. 24, 2025.
Roki Sasaki got the start but did not factor in the decision after giving up three runs on seven hits over 4-2/3 innings. The 24-year-old right-hander is still looking for his first win of the year.
