The Chicago White Sox just lost one of the most dangerous bats in MLB. Now they are turning to one of the hottest hitters in the minor leagues. Munetaka Murakami was placed on the 10-day injured list with a Grade 2 right hamstring strain, and manager Will Venable said the rookie slugger is expected to miss four to six weeks. Murakami suffered the injury while running to first base against Detroit, cutting short a huge start to his first MLB season.

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Big Power Numbers To Replace

Murakami had 20 home runs, 41 RBIs, and an American League-leading 43 runs scored through 57 games. He had quickly become one of the biggest reasons to watch the White Sox, even with the swing-and-miss that comes with his power profile.

The replacement story, though, is interesting.

The Replacement

Chicago selected the contract of Jacob Gonzalez from Triple-A Charlotte, giving the former 2023 first-round pick his first major-league opportunity. Gonzalez entered the call-up hitting .317 with a .419 on-base percentage, .668 slugging percentage, 19 home runs, and 62 RBIs in 52 games. He was tied for the minor-league lead in home runs and led the minors in RBIs and total bases through Friday.

That is not a normal emergency call-up.  Gonzalez had been especially loud in May, posting a .344/.438/.771 line with 11 home runs and 36 RBIs for Charlotte. He has already hit 19 homers in the first two months of 2026 after hitting 16 total across 264 games from 2024-25.

The White Sox cannot replace Murakami’s presence with one promotion. But they can use this injury to find out whether Gonzalez’s breakout is real. Chicago lost a star bat. It may have just gained a very interesting audition.

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