CHICAGO - Munetaka Murakami blasted two home runs and plated a career-high six runs while going 3-for-5 as the Chicago White Sox whipped the Houston Astros 12-3 on Sunday.
Murakami had a game to remember on the day his parents threw out the ceremonial first pitch and bobblehead dolls of him were given out to the fans at Rate Field, going deep for the first time since returning from a right hamstring strain on July 10.
The rookie slugger from Kumamoto Prefecture got his game's first homer in the bottom of the first inning, connecting on a 3-2 slider from Ronel Blanco (0-1) for an opposite-field, two-run shot to left to give his team a 2-1 lead.
After getting an RBI with a ground out in the third and singling in two runs in the seventh, Murakami scored the game's last run in the eighth as he pulled Miguel Ullola's high 1-0 four-seamer.
"All my trips to the plate were good. The best thing was managing to stay concentrated in the batter's box," said Murakami, who despite his layoff of more than a month, tied Shohei Ohtani's 22 home runs in his debut 2018 season with the Los Angeles Angels.
The White Sox were last in the American League Central last season after losing 102 games but are in the lead this year.
"I don't know about last year. I think this is normal," said the 26-year-old Murakami, the Rookie of the Month for May.
Seiya Suzuki had his 18th home run, a two-run shot in the ninth inning, but it was not enough to prevent the Chicago Cubs from losing 8-7 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
