Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Japanese infielder Munetaka Murakami was posted to come to the United States recently, and teams across baseball have been looking into signing him. Murakami is seen as the Japanese “Babe Ruth,” and he has real potential as he makes his way to MLB.

The infielder brings over an impressive collection of accomplishments and numbers from his time in the NPB. Murakami won the Central League MVP at just 21 years old, and then he followed that up with one of the best seasons in NPB history.

In 2022, Murakami won the Triple Crown, hitting .318/.458/.710 with 56 home runs, breaking a record for most home runs by a Japanese player. However, in the past few seasons, Murakami hasn’t been able to keep up the pace.

The infielder has still put together strong seasons, but his numbers have dipped a little. Additionally, his inability to consistently hit pitches with higher velocity has some teams wary of giving him a large deal.

But in the end, there will be some team that takes a chance on Murakami, much like any player coming over from Japan. It’s always a gamble, but Murakami does have talent, and he could be the next big thing in the United States.

This is just a prediction, NOT a report!

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Munetaka Murakami Joins Los Angeles Angels

As Murakami looks around the league for his next team, we can’t discount the Los Angeles Angels. Despite all the failures of the Angels over the years, this team did land the biggest fish of all, coming over from Japan, Shohei Ohtani.

This may have been due to reasons outside of other teams’ control, but the Angels are an intriguing landing spot. This team does play in Southern California, which is an optimized area for Japanese stars due to its proximity to the country of Japan.

The Angels have also missed the plkayoffs for a decade at this point, and it seems that owner Arte Moreno is at his wits’ end. This could see the Angels operate like a team contending for a title, and he could look to throw a bag at Murakami.

While the Los Angeles Dodgers have been dominating both on the field and within the Japanese market, the Angels have to do something to counter this. Adding Murakami to the mix would at least help their case in the country, and it could reestablish their presence within one of the better baseball prospect sites.

Japanese players are going to continue to come to the United States, and the Angels have to find a way to make themselves appealing. Murakami could turn the narrative around with this franchise, and he could become the face of the organization if his talent were to pan out.

Learning from Mike Trout could also be a strong advantage for the Angels to use in meetings with him. But we also have to remember that this team just hired former Japanese player Kurt Suzuki to be their next manager.

This could impact things for the Angels, and maybe it will help get them over the finish line with Murakami. Many Japanese players want to be on a team that has someone who can help them transition to the new country, and who better than the manager?

While other teams will be in on Murakami, we can’t fully sleep on the Angels. This pairing does make sense, and Los Angeles could slot him into third base since they can no longer count on Anthony Rendon moving forward.