Overview
- The White Sox completed a two-game sweep of the Houston Astros with a 7-3 win on Wednesday to take the American League Wild Card Series and advance to the AL Division Series.
- Rookie Munetaka Murakami, who struggled in the two-game series with one hit and multiple strikeouts, became the dominant story off the field after a widely shared, alcohol-fueled postgame clubhouse interview in which he said, “I’m drunk.”
- Murakami finished the regular season with 35 home runs and 77 RBIs after joining the White Sox from Japan under a reported two-year deal, a performance that put him firmly in Rookie of the Year conversation despite his quiet wild-card showing.
- Chicago’s series win follows three consecutive 100-loss seasons and marks the franchise’s first playoff-series victory since 2005, a rapid turnaround that has energized the team and grown its national profile.
- The White Sox will open the ALDS in Cleveland on Saturday, a matchup that shifts focus to pitching matchups and lineup adjustments and will test whether Chicago’s momentum and clubhouse chemistry carry into a longer postseason series.