White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami’s mind was racing after his first postseason home run on Saturday.
His exact thoughts, however, seemed to be a bit too lewd to share publicly.
Following Chicago’s 3-0 ALDS Game 1 victory over the Guardians, Murakami was asked what he felt when he turned and yelled to the White Sox’s dugout after hitting the blast.
“I can’t really explain it in words right now, but it was something a little bit dirty,” Murakami said through an interpreter.
It’s not clear what exactly the Japanese slugger meant by his comments, but they did draw a few chuckles from the press.
Murakami’s two-run homer in the fourth inning helped propel the White Sox to a shutout win over the Guardians as the club looks to reach its first ALCS since winning the World Series in 2005.
“I really wanted the first run at a very important game, so I’m just really happy that I got one,” Murakami said.
Murakami, who is in his first MLB season after playing eight seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, has received nothing but praise from both his teammates and his opponents this postseason.
“That dude can swing it, and that’s No. 1,” Chicago catcher Kyle Teel said, according to MLB.com. “No. 2, I say as a guy in the clubhouse, a guy in the locker room, he’s a guy you want around for the culture as well.
“It’s rare you find superstars that also bring that to the table. It’s an honor to play with him.”
Even Guardians catcher Austin Hedges couldn’t hold back when talking about Murakami’s play.
“He’s just a stud,” Hedges said. “He can hit a home run in every pitch in every spot, so you’ve got to keep him off-balance as best as you can.
“Man, he’s fun to watch hit. Just not when he’s playing against us.”
Across 127 games this season — he missed 35 with a hamstring strain — Murakami posted a slash line of .207/.347/.478 with 35 home runs and 77 RBIs, earning an MLB All-Star appearance.
