H. Darr Beiser – USA TODAY Sports
As the top first base prospect in the game today, Jonathan Singleton has struggled this year since returning from his 50-game suspension for violating the league’s drug policy. Hitting at .221 with six HRs and 24 RBIs is no cause for promotion, but this may be a unique occasion, and here’s why:
Bo Porter has already made it known that George Springer is not coming up because of what it would do to the Triple-A Oklahoma City RedHawks and their playoff chances, so maybe he is hesitant to bring up Singleton for the same reason.
Here’s what debunks that. First of all, current Houston Astros‘ first baseman Brett Wallace tears up Triple-A hitting, so he’d be boosting the team immensely. He’s been completely ineffective at the MLB level, however, so it would benefit both the pro-league club and the Triple-A club to flip-flop Wallace and Singleton.
Singleton is going to be on the Astros eventually, and while it has been strict policy not to rush any players to the pros, Singleton should be an exception. He’s got the talent, he’s starting to hit at triple-A and in the end, he cannot do any worse than the current Wallace/Chris Carter platoon.
Plus it would give Astros fans a brand new face to cheer for, a face of the future. It’s been awhile since their last promotion, and it’s incredibly noticeable that the only players that are playing exciting baseball and carrying the team are the most recent call-ups. Robbie Grossman and Jonathan Villar surely wouldn’t mind sharing the load with another future star of the club.
It may be slightly out of the usual Astros’ policy, but the situation is unique and fits perfectly for both squads involved.
