John Schriffen is apparently on some thin ice with the highers-up in Chicago.<\/p>\n
The Chicago White Sox<\/a> television play-by-play announcer Schriffen has gotten himself into trouble with the nickname that he recently bestowed upon first-year White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami<\/a>, Jeff Agrest of the Chicago Sun-Times reported this week<\/a>. During a recent game against the Miami Marlins<\/a> at loanDepot Park in Miami, Fla., Schriffen referred to Murakami as the \u201cSouth Side Samurai\u201d after an RBI single in the third inning.<\/p>\n Munetaka Murakami has recorded a hit in each of his first five career games! pic.twitter.com\/5aGmiunXlF<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 MLB (@MLB) March 31, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Agrest reports that Schriffen \u201csent shockwaves\u201d through the White Sox\u2019 offices with the \u201cpotentially racist\u201d nickname. Sox officials reportedly were not excited about the possibility of offending viewers (with Agrest noting that fans should not expect to hear the nickname on the air again).<\/p>\n The 26-year-old infielder Murakami, a two-time home runs leader in his native Japan, signed with the White Sox over the offseason. Murakami is off to a strong start in Chicago thus far, producing three home runs, four RBIs, and five walks through his first seven games.<\/p>\n As for Schriffen, he is now in his third season as the play-by-play voice of the White Sox. Schriffen already went viral a couple of years ago over his heated call of an incident with the Milwaukee Brewers<\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n Agrest notes that Schriffen is in the final guaranteed year of his contract in Chicago. It remains to be seen if the Murakami nickname incident will factor into the team\u2019s decision on whether or not to bring Schriffen back beyond the 2026 season.<\/p>\n