Munetaka Murakami lands in AL Central for price Tigers could've easily paid

The Detroit Tigers have had a relatively quiet offseason thus far. They reunited with Gleyber Torres, added a couple of relievers including Kenley Jansen now, and they took a flyer on Drew Anderson. If the Tigers are going to at least try to keep their promise of pushing for a World Series, they are either going to have to spend some real money and/or take some risks. Unfortunately, a prime opportunity seems to have just slipped away.

One of the more intriguing free agents this year hails from Japan in Murataka Murakami. Depending on who you talk to, he is either a MLB-caliber slugger with 80 grade raw power or he is a guy with crazy power, but is a defensive liability and will strike out too much against big league velocity. Given the uncertainty, the bidding for Murakami seemed to be relatively quiet and the Tigers felt like a fit for the young Japanese star.

Well, Murakami has finally signed, but it was not with the Tigers. Multiple reports now have Murakami getting a deal from the White Sox to the tune of two years and $34 million. To say that this feels like a deal Detroit should have been more involved in is an understatement.

Tigers miss out on Munetaka Murakami after he lands with rival White Sox on very reasonable deal

Now, reasonable people can disagree as to exactly how much Murakami was worth on the open market. If he had going a longer term deal for big money, the Tigers would have had a strong case to sit out of the bidding. The track record of Japanese hitters coming over to MLB is pretty suspect and Murakami does have some questions that could limit his ceiling stateside.

However, two years and $34 million feels suspiciously reasonable and it feels like Scott Harris was asleep at the wheel. Yes, Murakami has some risk, but he also may have top 10 raw power in MLB right now and he was an absolute menace over in Japan. If Detroit is only going give lip service to the top free agents and not jump on deals like Murakami's that have huge upside, exactly how does this front office think they are going to compete in a loaded American League? Wishing on a star isn't going to get it done, Scott.

At this point, it is what it is. Murakami is now with the White Sox who may be slowly figuring out how to be a functional baseball team gain. The Tigers will be rumored to be interested in a couple impact names and then end up getting outbid. You can add Murakami to the list of disappointments from this front office that will probably only get longer as the offseason drags on.