Japan’s Munetaka Murakami gets into home run act, too

Advertisement

Advertise with us

TOKYO (AP) — In a season of home run milestones in American baseball by Albert Pujols and Aaron Judge, 22-year-old Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami has also gotten into the act.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Monthly Digital Subscription

$0 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

Monthly Digital Subscription

$4.75/week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

No thanks

*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/10/2022 (1133 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TOKYO (AP) — In a season of home run milestones in American baseball by Albert Pujols and Aaron Judge, 22-year-old Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami has also gotten into the act.

Murakami, playing for the Tokyo-based Yakult Swallows, hit his 56th home run of the season on Monday, pushing him alone into second place on the single-season list. It was the Swallows’ last regular-season game.

The hit came in the seventh inning against the DeNA Bay Stars at the Swallows’ Jingu Stadium.

FILE - Japan's Munetaka Murakami hits a home run during the gold medal baseball game against the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Aug. 7, 2021, in Yokohama, Japan. Murakami, playing for the Tokyo-based Yakult Swallows, hit his 56th home run of the season on Monday, Oct. 3, 2022, pushing him alone into second place on the single-season home run list. It was the Swallows' last regular-season game. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, file)
FILE - Japan's Munetaka Murakami hits a home run during the gold medal baseball game against the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Aug. 7, 2021, in Yokohama, Japan. Murakami, playing for the Tokyo-based Yakult Swallows, hit his 56th home run of the season on Monday, Oct. 3, 2022, pushing him alone into second place on the single-season home run list. It was the Swallows' last regular-season game. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, file)

Murakami passed Japan’s career home run leader Sadaharu Oh, Tuffy Rhodes, and Alex Cabrera, who all hit 55 in a season.

Wladimir Balentien holds the Nippon Professional Baseball’s record of 60 home runs in a season, which he set with the Swallows in 2013.

Oh hit 55 home runs for the Yomiuri Giants in 1964, Rhodes did it with the Kintetsu Buffaloes in 2001, and Cabrera matched it with the Seibu Lions in 2002.

Murakami had gone 13 games without a home run after hitting his 54th and 55th on Sept. 13.

—-

More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Report Error Submit a Tip

Baseball

LOAD MORE