Munetaka Murakami, the 26-year-old Chicago White Sox slugger, became only the second Japanese player to compete in the Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Game Home Run Derby, but his journey was cut short in the first round.
At Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Murakami managed to launch nine homers in the opening round of the 2026 MLB All-Star Game Home Run Derby. However, this performance landed him in fifth place among the eight competitors, not enough to advance.
This result dashed hopes of seeing the first Japanese player reach the semifinals of the MLB All-Star Game Home Run Derby.
The last Japanese player to compete in the event was Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who made history in 2021 as the first from his country to participate, but also fell in the first round.
This year’s Derby introduced a new swing-based format, moving away from the traditional out and timed rules. Participants were allotted 20 swings in the first round and 15 in both the semifinals and finals, with advancement determined by total home runs hit.
Stepping up to the plate fourth, Murakami impressed with nine home runs, including a mammoth 466-foot (about approximately 142m) blast.
His performance initially placed him third in the standings, behind Wilson Contreras of the Boston Red Sox and Jordan Walker of the St. Louis Cardinals, who both notched 13 homers.
However, Murakami’s position slipped to fifth after Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays and hometown favorite Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies connected for 12 and 10 home runs respectively.
Despite the slide, Murakami still outperformed Jack Caglione of the Kansas City Royals and Bryce Harper of the Phillies (both with 8 homers), as well as Ben Rice of the New York Yankees (7 homers).
In a post-Derby interview, Murakami remained upbeat, stating that he’s relieved he didn’t finish last. The competition was fierce. He’s motivated to climb higher next time.
In his rookie MLB campaign, Murakami has appeared in 60 games, posting a .232 batting average (49 hits in 211 at-bats) with 20 home runs, 42 run batted ins (RBIs), and an impressive .911 on-base plus (OPS) slugging percentage.