The Astros have agreed to a new minor league deal with first baseman Jon Singleton, as first reported by Michael Schwab of The Ice Box Insider. Singleton was designated for assignment shortly before the trade deadline and passed through waivers unclaimed. He briefly became a free agent after rejecting an outright assignment but will now return to the ’Stros and presumably head to Triple-A Sugar Land for the time being.
Singleton was on the Astros’ 40-man roster heading into the season but was released after he didn’t make the club in spring training. He signed a minor league deal with the Mets and has spent the bulk of the season with their Triple-A club in Syracuse but was cut loose in June. Singleton quickly latched back on with Houston on a minor league deal and was briefly selected to the big league roster last month prior to his DFA.
That call to the bigs saw Singleton, 33, get into three games and go 1-for-9 in that tiny sample. He’s logged a combined 306 Triple-A plate appearances between the Mets and Astros organizations this year, slashing .224/.373/.451 with 16 home runs, a massive 18.4% walk rate and a 26.5% strikeout rate.
Singleton was the Astros’ primary option at first base last year, following the release of Jose Abreu. He wound up making 405 trips to the plate in 119 games and turning in a solid, if unspectacular .234/.331/.386 batting line (104 wRC+) with 13 homers. Singleton doesn’t hit lefties well and is a below-average defender at first base, but he draws plenty of walks and can hit for some modest power against right-handed pitching.
The Astros acquired lefty-swinging outfielder Jesus Sanchez from the Marlins prior to last week’s trade deadline, but they’re still very light on left-handed bats — particularly with Yordan Alvarez having missed most of the season due to a fracture in his hand. Singleton will add a lefty-swinging option to the depth chart — one who seems to be a sentimental favorite within the organization. This is the third minor league deal Singleton has signed with Houston since 2023, and he’s spent the vast majority of career in the Astros organization.