The MLB posting deadline day for Munetaka Murakami is nearing, with the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays, both of whom were in the ALCS last season, linked to the Japanese star.
Murakami appeared in only 56 games this past season due to an oblique injury, but still managed 22 home runs, posting a .273/.379/.663 slash line. Nonetheless, the buzz around the 25-year-old has been relatively quiet heading into the December 22 deadline.
With only a handful of days left for an MLB team to sign Murakami, Bob Nightengale of USA Today shared the latest insider news during a December 17 appearance on “Foul Territory.”
“I think it’s more on behalf of what [Murakami] wants. He wants it to be quiet. Roki Sasaki is pretty quiet, too. Everybody assumed it was going to be the Dodgers. Then we heard the Padres, but it wasn’t like he was out there announcing. It was just when he got spotted. For Murakami not to be doing tours and not being spotted on social media, I think, helps him. I bet it’s what he wants.
“I’m sure he told his agency, let’s keep this quiet. For all we know, the Tigers are all lined up on him. Tigers would like to have a third baseman. It would seem like they would get one of these guys. Maybe it’s Murakami; they spend that money. Kudos to him for him keeping it quiet. It may just be out of the blue on Monday. Like, ‘Okay, here it is.'”
Munetaka Murakami Has Several Suitors
With the window to sign Murakami closing, MLB Network insider Jon Morosi shared what he knows on the matter on December 12.
“Murakami is of interest to teams like the Red Sox, the Mariners, the Tigers, the Phillies, the Mets, the Blue Jays, a lot of different teams,” Morosi said on MLB Network. “The Pirates, I have been told, are connected to Murakami. If you want to sign Murakami, you only have 10 more days to do it. And so if the [Alex] Bregman market is going to continue into the new year, and if you’re thinking about Bregman or the power of Murakami.
“All the power that he’s had in the past, the 56-homer season, a really intriguing lefty bat. Yeah, there’s some swing and miss, but he’s a guy that a lot of teams like. You can’t wait forever on Bregman because Murakami is no longer a secondary option once you get past December 22.”
The Mariners Could Be the Best Fit for Munetaka Murakami
When it comes to potential landing spots for Murakami, MLB insider Mark Feinsand sees Seattle as the most logical destination. Feinsand recently shared that the Mariners stand out as the best match for the free-agent slugger.
“I know everybody loves to connect Japanese free agents to the Mariners because of the Ichiro [Suzuki] connection, but they haven’t really dipped into that market very heavily in the last 10 to 15 years,” Feinsand said in a video from the MLB Network posted on December 5. “They had some guys earlier in the century, but not recently.
“That said, Murakami is a great fit there. They need to replace Eugenio Suárez at third base — big power bat. Murakami was one of the best home run hitters in Japan. It seems like a good fit.”
Mariners Get Major Munetaka Murakami News Amid Blue Jays Link