The Boston Red Sox remain one of the few MLB teams most frequently connected to Japanese free agent slugger Munetaka Murakami.
MLB senior writer Andy McCullough of The Athletic linked Boston to the corner infielder on Tuesday morning.
“I placed Murakami with the Red Sox, in part, through the process of elimination. David Stearns says he wants to improve the Mets’ run-prevention machine, and Murakami doesn’t really grade as a defensive upgrade over Pete Alonso. The Dodgers don’t have a place in their lineup for him. I think the Phillies will re-up with another slugger you’ll read about shortly,” McCullough wrote, referring to Kyle Schwarber. “So the best fit for Murakami, a 26-year-old with incredible power but glaring questions about his ability to make contact, might be the Red Sox.”
The lefty-swinging Murakami can play both first and third base, giving the Red Sox options if they were to sign the power hitter.
Boston still doesn’t know whether it will retain free agent third baseman Alex Bregman and has also been linked to longtime New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso.
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Murakami made his Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league debut in 2018 and recorded 246 home runs and a .270/.394/.550 slash line across eight seasons in Japan. He set the NPB single-season home run record in 2022 with 56.
The New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners are among the other teams that have been linked to Murakami this fall.