Chicago White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami will be swinging for the fences in the 2026 Home Run Derby in Philadelphia, and it was a rule change that allowed it to happen.
Murakami, who has blasted 20 home runs in 60 games with the White Sox so far this season, missing more than a month of action with a hamstring injury, and just a few days after returning to the lineup, he will be competing in the Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park on Monday night.
While some fans were questioning the decision of Murakami to compete so soon after returning from injury, he said that this year’s rule changes actually convinced him he could participate in the event.
“The rules have changed. If it was the past rules in the past seasons, I probably wouldn’t have been able to make it, but since the rules changed, I was able to be more optimistic to be out there and participating,” Murakami said through an interpreter during an interview on ESPN’s Pat McAfee Show on Monday.
Since 2015, the Home Run Derby had been governed by a timer, with players getting as many swings as they wanted during each round of the competition until the time ran out.
This year, players will instead only receive a limited number of swings. Under MLB Home Run Derby rules, players will get 20 swings in the first round of the event, with all eight players competing against each other in a pool play round.
The second round and the championship round will then feature head-to-head matchups, with each player getting 15 swings. If a player hits a home run on their final swing, they will be allowed to keep going until they fail to hit a home run.
In the event of ties in the first round, the cumulative distance of a player’s home runs will be used to break that tie. The top-seeded player will then face the fourth-seeded player in the semifinals, and the second and third-seeded players will compete in the other matchup.
In the semifinals and final, a three-swing swing-off will be used to break any ties.
Murakami will be aiming to become the first White Sox player to win the Home Run Derby since Frank Thomas captured the crown in Texas in 1995. He is the first White Sox player to compete in the event since Paul Konerko did so in 2006.
Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper of the Phillies will both be in the derby in their home ballpark, along with Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero, New York’s Ben Rice, Kansas City’s Jac Caglianone, St. Louis’ Jordan Walker and Boston’s Willson Contreras.
The derby will get underway at 7 p.m. on Netflix.
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