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Could Singleton Call-Up Ignite Houston Astros Rally?
It’s been an exciting past 48 hours for the Houston Astros.
One day after visiting the White House, the Astros brass called up former top prospect Jon Singleton to join the club in Baltimore on Tuesday.
Could this latest call-up be exactly what Houston needs to ignite a rally past the first-place Texas Rangers?
It very well could be.
Many Astros fans know the back story to Singleton, who worked his way to the Majors with Houston in 2014 only to have a fall from grace before persevering and returning to a Major League uniform with the Milwaukee Brewers organization this season.
After the Brewers released Singleton, Houston snagged him up and signed him to a minor league contract on June 24.
Since that time, Singleton's been lighting it up in Sugar Land — slashing .333/.446/.692 with a 1.138 OPS, 28 RBI and 12 home runs over 32 games —ultimately resulting in a promotion to the Majors.
Singleton, who is a 31-year-old left-handed batter and plays first base, joins an Astros club currently sitting 3.0 games behind their American League West rival Rangers as the hunt for October heats up.
And Singleton made an immediate impact on the team, despite not getting a hit on Tuesday night.
Down 6-3 in the top of the ninth inning, Astros manager Dusty Baker called on Singleton to pinch hit for Martín Maldonado to start the frame.
After Singleton worked his way to first base on a tough walk, José Altuve followed with a single, Alex Bregman struck out and Yordan Álvarez drilled a ball all the way to the wall that was almost caught to load the bases with just one out.
That brought up Kyle Tucker, affectionately known as King Tuck, who launched a grand slam after fouling off numerous pitches to give Houston a 7-6 lead.
And that was all it took.
Closer Ryan Pressley shut the door in the bottom of the ninth to secure the come-from-behind victory, as Houston celebrated one of its biggest wins of the 2023 regular season.
Both Houston and Texas return to the diamond on Wednesday, with the Rangers facing the Athletics in Oakland at 2:37 p.m. CT and the Astros slated to battle the Orioles in Baltimore at 6:05 p.m. CT.
Right-hander Christian Javier (7-2, 4.39 ERA) takes this hill for Houston, as Baltimore counters with right-hander Jack Flaherty (8-6, 4.28 ERA).
At this time, it's unclear if Singleton will be in the lineup for Wednesday night's game, but one thing is certain: he's eagerly been awaiting this return, and it could be just what the doctor ordered for an Astros team that has been struggling to find their groove offensively.
Tuesday night was a great start, and hopefully it will begin a streak that will allow the Astros to leap the Rangers in the race for the AL West.
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