The Astros have released Jon Singleton

When guys like Scott Kingery sign contracts before they ever take the field, many blast them for taking team friendly deals in exchange for a quick pay day. However, not all of those deals work out and one need only look at the case of Jon Singleton.

At one time, Singleton was a top 100 prospect and the Astros had big plans for him on their roster. As a result, they were happy to sign him to a deal that guaranteed him $10 million in exchange for lowering the amount they could have potentially having to pay him in arbitration as well as gaining an extra year of control. There were plenty of pundits and players that cried foul at such a deal.

However, Singleton just did not do much in the major leagues, posting a .171/.290/.331 line in 114 games in the major leagues and striking out over a third of the time. To complicate matters, Singleton had some off the field demons which was likely the last straw.

Singleton received a 100 game suspension this season for failing a third test for a drug of abuse and has not played a game in 2018 as a result. While he may be well-off due to his contract for a little while in terms of his finances, hopefully he can get his life turned around even if continuing a career in baseball is going to be a stretch at this point.

In 881 games in the minor leagues, Singleton has slashed .256/.376/.452 with 135 home runs. While his contract was ridiculed at the time for selling himself short and creating a bad precedent for other players, it looks like at the very least, it was a positive outcome for him given how his career turned out.