Munetaka Murakami clutched two water bottles in his hand as he sprinted onto the field to help douse Tokyo Yakult Swallows rookie Kazuya Maruyama, who clinched the Central League pennant for Yakult with a sayonara double on Sunday at Jingu Stadium.

Murakami later wrapped Swallows captain Tetsuto Yamada in a hug as his teammate sobbed into his chest. He then helped direct traffic when the players grabbed manager Shingo Takatsu and flung him skyward during the celebratory victory toss. Takatsu went airborne seven times and said he was scared each time he went up.

“I wondered if we could toss him into the heavens,” Murakami joked later.

A jubilant Murakami was right in the middle of the pennant celebrations after Yakult's 1-0 win over the DeNA BayStars. It was only natural because the slugger who has 55 home runs — five away from NPB’s single-season record — helped carry the team to this point.

"The season is 143 games long, and so many things happen," Murakami said. "It is very difficult. There are days where you are able to win, there are days you lose, there are days you hit and there are days you don't hit. It's day to day, at-bat to at-bat, and it is hard because your emotions come out.

"But we won the title in the end, and everyone shared that joy. I can endure the tough times because of this moment."

The Swallows made a surprising run to the pennant in 2021. This year they overcame the weight of expectation and various challenges down the stretch to win it again and repeat for the first time since 1992 and 1993. Yakult went from last-place finishes in 2019 and 2020 to back-to-back pennants.

“Winning the title is hard, repeating is even harder,” Takatsu said.

Murakami is a major reason the club celebrated deep into Sunday night in front of fans who stayed past 11 p.m. to bask in the festive atmosphere.

The 22-year-old cleanup hitter is batting .322 and has 132 RBIs in addition to his home run total. He will win the Triple Crown if he maintains his lead in the race for the batting title.

When the Swallows were at their lowest, as COVID-19 infections swept through the clubhouse and sidelined a number of players — including Yamada and the manager — Murakami put the team on his back and kept taking his game and his home run total even higher.

“He gave it his all fighting by himself during the tough period in July,” Takatsu said. “He carried the team with just his bat. Mune, you did a great job, congratulations.”

While it is often said that repeating is one of the hardest things to do in pro sports, the Swallows made it look easy earlier in the season. After getting off to a sluggish start, the team began May in second place. Yakult went into first place for good on May 21.

The club kept rolling through the interleague season until COVID-19 infections decimated the roster in July and led to a big dip in the team's performance on the field.

The Swallows struggled to get back on track even after the players who contracted the coronavirus returned and nearly lost all of their double-digit lead in the standings. The team’s lead was down to four games when it arrived in Yokohama on Aug. 26 for a series against the second-place BayStars.

Murakami took center stage in the most important series of the season and fueled a three-game sweep with four home runs and nine RBIs. Yakult left Yokohama with a seven-game lead and never looked back.

The Swallows wrapped up the pennant by a comfortable margin and lead the BayStars by seven games.

Yakult was the class of the CL for the second straight year with the explosive Murkami in the middle of the lineup.

The Swallows lead the CL in runs scored and home runs, while their pitchers have a 3.56 team ERA.

While Murakami was the constant at the plate, closer Scott McGough was the constant on the mound at the end of games. McGough, the winning pitcher on Sunday night, is tied for the CL lead with 37 saves. The American has a 2.09 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 51⅔ innings.

Yamada gritted through a difficult season to still hit 23 home runs, and the Swallows got contributions up and down the roster. They had to dig deep at times to cover for COVID-19 absences and injuries during the season. The Swallows bent on occasion, but never broke.

In addition to Murakami, Jose Osuna, Yasutaka Shiomi and Domingo Santana are currently hitting above .270 with at least 15 home runs.

On the mound, Yasuhiro “Ryan” Ogawa leads the team with a 2.75 ERA in 150⅓ innings and reliever Noboru Shimizu is having another good year.

“They are a very balanced team in pitching and hitting,” Yomiuri Giants manager Tatsunori Hara told Nikkan Sports on Sunday. “Their pitchers are not afraid to throw strikes and they are an aggressive team.”

The Swallows set a goal in the spring and despite a few unexpected bumps in the road they reached their destination on Sunday.

"We said our goal was to repeat from the start of camp," Ogawa said. "We had some tough moments but the entire team was united, and when we had tough times, we moved forward and got past them."

Yamada was overcome by emotion once the title was secure.

“I just felt relieved, he said. “It was really hard, but we managed to achieve our goal, and I was so happy.”

Yakult will get to rest before hosting the final stage of the CL Climax Series next month — and will start that series with a 1-0 advantage.

“We want to win the Japan Series again,” Yamada said. “That is the fight in front of us. “We will fight one game at a time and not look ahead but focus on the opponent in front of us.”

The biggest thing left until then is Murakami’s bid to break the single-season home run record set by former Swallows slugger Wladimir Balentien in 2013.

He has six games left to hit five home runs — or six to set a new mark. Murakami has 12 multihomer games this season — and five in five at-bats at one point. So while it’s a steep mountain to climb, it rests within the realm of possibility.

He will have to break out of a slump first, however. Murakami has just three hits since connecting on his 55th homer to move into a tie for second place on the single-season list.

Yakult will host Game 1 of the CL Climax Series final stage on Oct. 12