On the 24th (local time), the White Sox routed the Royals to clinch their first playoff berth in five years. During the postgame champagne celebration, Munetaka Murakami was pulled in front of a local broadcast camera and asked, “On a scale of one to ten, how do you feel?” He instantly fired back “One hundred!”, then screamed “I’m Japanese!”, sending his teammates into a frenzy. On 5channel, many posters welcomed the moment warmly, while others pointed to his underwhelming batting numbers this season and said his celebrating felt out of place — opinions were split.
“Royals vs. White Sox” (24th, Kansas City)
The White Sox routed their opponents to clinch their first playoff appearance in five years. A champagne celebration broke out in the postgame clubhouse, where infielder Munetaka Murakami was grabbed for an interview by the local broadcast crew. He screamed “I’m Japanese!”, drawing roars of delight from his teammates.
The champagne fight kicked off with a speech from manager Venable. When the local broadcast interviewer asked him, “Celebrating here in the clubhouse — on a scale of one to ten, how do you feel right now?” he screamed back “One hundred!” Then, throwing in hand gestures for emphasis, he doubled down: “No ten — one hundred!”, letting his emotions explode.
He's a second-generation "Munerin" (a nickname sharing the "Mune" reading with Tsuyoshi Nishioka, a flashy Japanese MLB import who had a mixed reception in the majors)
15AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:05
Re: #13
Ugh, this is so depressing~~~~
17AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:06
If he were a key contributor, fine, but he's not even hitting well right now — kind of embarrassing.
The "hundred" part is one thing, but there's no need to shout "I'm Japanese." You can only say something like that if you're buying into the myth that Japanese players get special treatment.
19AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:07
White Sox got themselves a good bargain with him
20AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:08
Where did things diverge between Murakami and Tsutsugo?
21AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:08
Kind of like shouting "Hanshin Tigers, Number Oooone!" lol (a classic chant from Hanshin Tigers fans)
23AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:09
Don't pop champagne over just making the playoffs
26AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:17
And here I thought Ichiro, Matsui, and Ohtani were all the aloof, do-their-own-thing type…
27AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:18
Of course speaking good English helps, but I'd rather see someone wear their emotions on their sleeve, even if it looks a bit dumb, than play it cool and detached. Japanese people always get told their feelings don't show on their face, so nobody knows what they're thinking. That's a problem if you're a student or a businessman, but for a baseball player, being a little dumb is totally fine.
74AnonymousSep 26, 2026 00:41
Re: #27
I wish Ohtani could hear what you just said
29AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:18
A .200 batting average is just too bad. At least get it up to .240 or .250.
40AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:29
Re: #29
Yeah, overseas fans have been pointing that out too. Hope he steps it up before fans lose patience with him.
30AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:19
Been seven years already since I was floored seeing Kiyoshi Hikawa (a veteran enka/pop singer) throw the ceremonial first pitch at Jingu Stadium…
32AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:20
Even I can understand "I'm Japanese," you idiot lol
34AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:20
Wasn't Murakami a consolation first-round pick? (a "hazure" pick — when a team loses the lottery for its top target and drafts a fallback player instead) Who are the recent first-rounders who actually turned into stars? Guess "turned into a star" means different things to different people though.
46AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:38
Re: #34
Well, the headliner of that draft class was Kotaro Kiyomiya from Waseda Jitsugyo High School.
Even so, he was rated highly enough that multiple teams fought over him as their "if we miss out on Kiyomiya" fallback pick.
52AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:45
Re: #46
Wait, is Murakami seriously the only guy from that draft class who's thriving right now?
77AnonymousSep 26, 2026 00:43
Re: #46
Guess Yasuda was also fought over by three teams in the lottery.
35AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:20
Everybody loves a cheerful extrovert type hamming it up in broken English, right?
39AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:28
He's got something Ohtani's missing
42AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:30
His OPS is technically over .800, good for 10th in the AL. He's 5th in home runs too, though there's a big gap to 4th place. But he cooled off a lot in the second half, so his current image isn't great. Who knows what next year holds.
45AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:37
Re: #42
Still impressive when only about 20 guys across both leagues hit 30+ homers. Though fading down the stretch might not sit well with contenders.
43AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:31
Being asked to rate it 1-to-10 and answering "100" — perfect comedic timing
44AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:35
Ichiro: "If .220 is good enough, I could hit 40 home runs too."
48AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:41
I don't get this part lol
>Asked "What does it mean to celebrate with the team?", he screamed "I'm Japanese!" and the team erupted in cheers
51AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:45
Re: #34
If we're talking lottery picks, that'd be Roki Sasaki, Teru Sato, and maybe Yanagi.
53AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:46
I've heard that line somewhere before… what was it again?
58AnonymousSep 25, 2026 23:56
You do a champagne fight just for clinching a playoff spot? Is this time special since it's their first in five years?
64AnonymousSep 26, 2026 00:06
I feel like I've heard the phrase "I'm Japanese" before… wasn't that Munenori Kawasaki?
67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 00:12
Glad he's having fun. Making the playoffs in his very first year with the team — not bad at all.
68AnonymousSep 26, 2026 00:15
Do his teammates even know the original reference?
Background and discussion points
It’s easy to misread this: the White Sox hadn’t actually won a title — the champagne fight came just from clinching a playoff spot. In MLB, it’s customary to pop champagne in the clubhouse not only for a league championship or World Series title, but also for winning a division or securing a wild card berth, and this marked the team’s first such moment in five years. The thread was split: some praised Murakami’s outburst, while others, pointing to his so-so batting numbers, questioned whether he’d “earned the right” to celebrate so loudly. Opinions were also divided on Japanese players showing emotion so openly in general — making this less a snapshot of one moment and more a window into differing attitudes toward how Japanese players are expected to behave.
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