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EspañolPEORIA, Ariz. — The team that bidets together stays together.
Or at least that’s the mantra of the Chicago White Sox after news that the team is introducing bidets in the clubhouse at the request of Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami.
The jokes write themselves when it comes to the subject of eco-friendly hygiene, but the Sox are using the topic as a way to help Murakami acclimate himself as “one of the boys.”
“Obviously, the western culture, it’s just not as popular over here as in Japan,” pitcher Davis Martin said. “I think it’s hilarious. It’s fun and if anyone wants to try it, it’s going to be good. We’ve already had jokes with it and it has already brought us closer as a team. We had some material, but to talk to Mune about it a little bit, it’s been fun.”
There are no bidets at the Sox’s Camelback Ranch complex in Glendale, so it’s safe to say the Sox are waiting on bidet.
Several players asked Tuesday about the bidet admitted they’ve yet to experience one. A bidet is supposed to provide better hygiene and help the environment by reducing the reliance on toilet paper.
Pitcher Mike Vasil and Martin were both interested in trying it out, while others were more wary.
“I can’t say I’ve ever had one, so I don’t know,” left fielder Andrew Benintendi said. “I’ll have to get some feedback first. But it’s something that’s kind of a conversation starter and lightens the mood a little bit. Obviously, the more camp goes on and the longer we’re around each other, the more comfortable we’re going to get. It’s definitely an interesting way to start conversations.”
General manager Chris Getz said the decision to install bidets at Rate Field “speaks to (the notion) of trying to get Mune as comfortable as possible.”
Getz noted that “there was no demand by any stretch” from Murakami.
“He mentioned it, and I said ‘That seems like something that we can accommodate,'” Getz said. “I said something about it, and someone from (Japanese toilet manufacturer) Toto reached out to me in an email and said, ‘We can help you out with this.'”
Vasil said he heard the Sox would have five bidets in the clubhouse, so there will be no waiting. Getz wasn’t sure about the messy details and deferred to team executives Brooks Boyer and Terry Savarise.
“I just push for the accommodations,” he said.
Murakami has been the focus of Sox camp, and fans watched him intently on the backfields Tuesday morning. Since he wasn’t in the Sox lineup Tuesday for a 12-10 win over the Seattle Mariners at Peoria Stadium, the Japanese media contingent that flocked to watch him Monday at Salt River Field in Scottsdale was largely absent.
“There is a real buzz to it, no question, and that started when we announced the deal,” Getz said. “He had a lot of success in Japan, and everyone is really curious about how this is going to translate. We are as well … Walking around, there are eyes on him. But he’s comfortable with that, it seems.”
Murakami has been having fun, learning how to do Ken “Hawk” Harrelson impressions from Chicago Sports Network reporter Chuck Garfien, and goofing with his teammates.
“When it’s time to play baseball, he’s very serious,” manager Will Venable said. “But there is definitely a lighter side to Mune. He’s got a big personality, funny dude and definitely likes to joke around with the guys. Time and place for everything but he’s doing a great job being locked in on the field.”
Maybe the Sox needed a big character like that in a laid-back clubhouse? It does help take some attention away from the rebuilding aspect of this camp.
But Venable disputed the notion.
“I think that every one of those guys serves their purpose in the clubhouse dynamic and we have some other guys that are similarly ‘personality guys,'” he replied. “I think our group is a special group that way. They have a bunch of different personalities, and most importantly, they all get along.”
There is no jealousy over the media focus on one player, and players know that what helps the White Sox will ultimately help them in the long run.
“It’s great to grow the brand of the Chicago White Sox,” Martin said. “Right now, where we’re at as a team and where we’re going, it’s fun for not only Chicago-based fans but also fans that Mune brings across from Japan.”
Benintendi, beginning his fourth year on the South Side, was the last big free agent signed by the Rick Hahn regime, when the Sox were coming off a poor 2022 season. Benintendi, Lenyn Sosa and Korey Lee are the last position players left from that 101-loss team in ’23 that started the three-year stretch of 100-plus losses, and Benintendi sees a light at the end of the long, dark tunnel.
“Once they kind of started this rebuild thing, you can kind of predict how it’s going to go initially,” he said. “You hope to get out of that rebuild pretty quickly, and last year was a big step for a lot of guys. A lot of debuts, a lot of firsts for a lot of guys. They obviously still have to go through things and learn, but it feels more like we’re prepared to win more games and are prepared to win more.”
Getz said he liked hearing catcher Edgar Quero tell CHSN the Sox will make a push for the playoffs, but he isn’t ready to get ahead of himself in the rebuild. He said to look at where the Sox were a year ago and where they are now, with players from Colson Montgomery to Kyle Teel stepping forward and the additions of Murakami and Serathony Domínguez.
Whether the Sox made enough moves to satisfy fans is debatable. They rank 28th in payroll, according to Spotrac. Getz said Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf has been supportive of the plan, as slow as it has been. So will Reinsdorf be willing to add if the Sox shock the experts and need help at the trade deadline?
“I don’t doubt that,” Getz said. “Let’s put ourselves in that position first.”
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