Munetaka Murakami celebrates after hitting a home run against the Cleveland Guardians. Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images
By Tyler Lauletta on

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The Chicago White Sox have been on an incredible run to start the MLB postseason, sweeping the Houston Astros out of the Wild Card round and then taking a 3–0 win on the road in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday.

While everyone from the everyday sports fan of Chicago to the actual pope are cheering on the White Sox, it’s possible that no one in the city is enjoying the run more than White Sox rookie Munetaka Murakami, who is playing his first MLB season after a decorated career in Japan.

Murakami got to play hero on Saturday, smacking a two-run home run out of the park to give the White Sox a 2–0 lead in the fourth inning.

Here’s how it sounded to the American viewing audience.

That’s a fine enough call by Alex Faust for the Fox broadcast. Really everything you could ask for in a playoff home run call from a neutral party.

But in playoff baseball, not all parties are neutral.  Take for instance, the Japanese call of the game. The Japanese announce crew was ready to jump on anything impressive from Murakami, and boy oh boy did they deliver in the moment.

That will get your heart rate going a bit.

For any baseball fans whose favorite team is out of the race for the World Series, consider adopting the White Sox as your rooting interest this October. They are a great story, they’ve got the Pope on their side, and the longer their run goes, the more epic calls like this one we’re likely to get.

About Tyler Lauletta

Tyler is a editorial contributor at Awful Announcing, with previous stops at Sports Illustrated and Business Insider during his career covering sports in digital media. He is, begrudgingly, a Truster of the Process and general Philly sports sicko.

View all posts by Tyler Lauletta