Jon Singleton was once one of the top prospects in baseball. At 31, he’s still trying to get back to the majors, but there’s no doubt he had prodigious power.
The Astros signed Singleton to a five-year, $10 million contract extension in 2014, the largest ever for a player who had yet to appear in an MLB game. While he made his big league debut later that year, he struggled to make contact and spent most of the following season in the minors. After continued struggles at the plate and a 100-game suspension for a third positive marijuana test, the Astros released Singleton in ’18.
Singleton finally got back to the majors earlier this season with the Brewers after an eight-year absence, but he was released after 11 games. That cleared the way for a reunion with the Astros, who signed him and sent him to Triple A Sugar Land. In Thursday’s game against the Las Vegas Aviators, Singleton hit one of the best homers of the season.
Jon Singleton to the parking lot! 😱
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) July 28, 2023
The @astros farmhand hits his second home run of the night a whopping 466 feet for the @SLSpaceCowboys: pic.twitter.com/eGoFvNzH3p
Singleton’s blast left the bat at 106.5 mph and traveled an estimated 466 feet, according to Statcast. That was far enough to fly clear out of the stadium, over a pedestrian walkway and into the adjacent parking lot.
The homer was Singleton’s second of the game. He also hit a 421-foot shot in the previous inning.
Singleton has been hitting the cover off the ball since getting to Sugar Land. He’s hitting .345 with a 1.219 OPS and 10 homers in 24 games. If he can keep that up, it’ll be impossible for the Astros not to bring him back to the majors.
