Munetaka Murakami breaks out of his slump leading White Sox over Tigers

Chicago White Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Munetaka Murakami breaks out of his slump leading White Sox over Tigers

By Alan Rubenstein | Last updated Sep 18, 2026 12:19 AM ET

Munetaka Murakami might have broken out of his month-plus slump with a home run, a triple, a run scored and three RBI in the Chicago White Sox's win over the Detroit Tigers on Thursday night. The White Sox moved back into first place in the American League Central, tied with the Cleveland Guardians after their win on Thursday.

Murakami entered the game on Monday night with five hits in 61 plate appearances, two home runs, six runs batted in and 31 strikeouts in September.

In August, Murakami hit .147 with five HRs, eight RBI, 22 walks and 46 strikeouts in 125 plate appearances. The White Sox need Murakami hitting to earn a playoff berth in the final 10 days of the regular season.

Murakami hit a three-run HR in the first inning, which was all the scoring the White Sox needed on Thursday. The White Sox had one hit in 12 at-bats with runners in scoring position on Thursday. Murakami's HR was the lone hit with runners in scoring position.

Munetaka Murakami crushes his 32nd home run pic.twitter.com/1TWLe2UwQH
— MLB (@MLB) September 17, 2026

Murakami hit his HR with two outs. Murakami's triple came with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, but the White Sox could not drive him in. Brenton Doyle struck out and Jake Rogers flied out to center field to end the eighth inning.

Prior to that home run, Murakami was 5-for-52 with two homers and 6 RBIs in September and 20-for-154 since the start of August with 77 strikeouts.
— Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) September 17, 2026

White Sox offense sputtered, except for Munetaka Murakami

The White Sox finished with five hits against Detroit. Chase Meidroth hit a leadoff infield single to open the game, followed by Murakami's HR later in the first inning. The White Sox began Thursday hitting .209 with 14 HRs and 56 runs scored in 15 September games.

Entering Thursday, Detroit was fifth in MLB with a 3.64 earned run average. The White Sox might have to manufacture runs and continue relying on HRs with three games remaining this weekend against Detroit. The White Sox finish 2026 at Kansas City, 25th in MLB with a 4.63 ERA and against Colorado, last with a 5.62 ERA.

Alan Rubenstein

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