The past couple of years have been rough for 21-year-old Chris Singleton. This year's Father's Day is a somber one for him, as it marks the first time he's ever celebrated the occasion without his dad, who passed away this past February. Each Father's Day will be like each Mother's Day the Charleston Southern University student-athlete celebrates, with his mother having passed away as one of Dylann Roof's nine Charleston church shooting victims in 2015. Thus it is a reflective time for Singleton, all the while a joyous one, as he shares great news with his parents in prayer. Singleton, who plays baseball when he isn't hitting the books, has been selected to play in the Chicago Cubs farm system.
The Cubs chose Singleton with their final pick in the 19th round of the MLB Draft on Wednesday, June 14. He was the 585th overall pick, which may sound like an underachievement, but in baseball terms is a notch higher than many who've been taken in the late rounds and gone on to establish Hall of Fame careers, as did Cubs great Ryne Sandberg, who was taken in the 20th round, and Mark Grace, another Cubs great, who was taken in the 24th round. Due to how players can take off after developing in the minor leagues, baseball's draft is a whole 'other animal than that of other sports, thus just getting in gives Singleton as much of a chance to see playing time in the big leagues as anyone who was drafted in the earlier rounds. After all, there were a whole lot of players taken before 11th rd. draftee Andre Dawson, 12th rounder Nolan Ryan and 13th round pick Albert Pujols who never got to see the light of day in a major league stadium.
Hence, congratulations have been pouring in for Singleton, who batted .276 with 4 home runs and snagged 18 stolen bases in 51 games for CSU in 2017. While it would be easy to deny that such numbers make him a shoe-in for a spot on a minor league roster, the Cubs reject the notion that his association with the tragic Charleston shooting had anything to do with their selection and chalk it up to the raw talent they see in the center field prospect. “We certainly understand the backstory there, but what I want to make sure doesn’t get lost is that this guy is a good baseball player,” said senior VP of player development for the Cubs Jason McLeod.
Upon learning that he had been picked up Singleton acknowledged his late parents in a tweet that read, “A LOT of GOD. & a little me. #CantLetMomsDown #RIPDad.”
Source: theshaderoom.com
