Swallows’ Murakami hits 56th homer, breaks Oh’s record
20:44 JST, October 3, 2022
TOKYO (AP) — In a season of home run milestones in American baseball by Albert Pujols and Aaron Judge, 22-year-old Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami has also gotten into the act.
Murakami, playing for the Tokyo-based Yakult Swallows, hit his 56th home run of the season on Monday, pushing him alone into second place on the single-season list. It was the Swallows’ last regular-season game.
The hit came in the seventh inning against the DeNA Bay Stars at the Swallows’ Jingu Stadium.
Murakami passed Japan’s career home run leader Sadaharu Oh, Tuffy Rhodes, and Alex Cabrera, who all hit 55 in a season.
Wladimir Balentien holds the Nippon Professional Baseball’s record of 60 home runs in a season, which he set with the Swallows in 2013.
Oh hit 55 home runs for the Yomiuri Giants in 1964, Rhodes did it with the Kintetsu Buffaloes in 2001, and Cabrera matched it with the Seibu Lions in 2002.
Murakami had gone 13 games without a home run after hitting his 54th and 55th on Sept. 13.
"News Services" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
EU Ratchets up Pressure on TikTok’s New Rewards App over Risks to Kids, Warns of Suspension
-
Japan’s Nikkei Ends 1% Higher after Sharp Fall; Chip-Related Shares Weigh (Update 1)
-
Japan’s Yen Hits 155 Per Dollar, Weakest Since 1990
-
Japan’s Nikkei Stumbles as Yen Gains, Mixed US Peers (Update 1)
-
Strong Solar Storm Hits Earth, Could Disrupt Communications and Produce Northern Lights in US
JN ACCESS RANKING
- Weakening Yen Adds Complexity to BOJ’s Rate Hike Decisions; Rising Commodity Prices may Impact ‘Virtuous Cycle’ Efforts
- 70% of Japan Companies to Raise Pay Scales in FY 2024
- Japanese Seafood Exports to China Sink 57% in FY23; U.S. Becomes Largest Seafood Export Destination
- 48.6% of Global Patent Applications Related to All-Solid-State Batteries Came from Japanese Firms; Panasonic Tops List
- Core Consumer Prices Rise 2.8% in Fiscal 2023