Brewers’ Jon Singleton notches hit in first MLB game since 2015

First baseman Jon Singleton returned to the major leagues for the first time in eight years after being promoted by the Milwaukee Brewers — and got a hit in his first game back.

Singleton notched an infield single to shortstop in the fourth inning of the Brewers’ game Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds.

The Brewers called up Singleton and outfielder Blake Perkins from Triple-A Nashville on Saturday and put first baseman Darin Ruf and outfielder Tyrone Taylor on the 10-day injured list. Ruf has a right knee laceration and Taylor has a right elbow sprain.

“It’s been a long journey,” Singleton told reporters before the game. “Right now, I really can’t even describe my emotions, my feelings. Definitely grateful.”

The 31-year-old Singleton started at first base for the Brewers in Saturday’s game.

Singleton was such a heralded prospect that he signed a $10 million long-term deal with the Houston Astros in 2014 before ever playing a big-league game, but off-field issues hampered his development.

Singleton told reporters he learned about his promotion from Nashville Sounds manager Rick Sweet during the ninth inning of their game Friday night.

“When Rick told me, I was just mind-blown, to be honest,” Singleton said. “It was something that came so unexpectedly at that moment. It was definitely a long time coming.”

Brewers manager Craig Counsell praised Singleton for the work he did to get back to the majors after such a long time away.

“He’s shown a lot of perseverance in his career,” Counsell said. “The journey of his career has been amazing. It’s been hard, but he’s played and kept going. He’s gone through some tough times, but he figured out ways to get through it, and he’s been rewarded.”

Singleton’s only previous major league experience came when he batted a combined .171 with a .290 on-base percentage, 14 homers and 50 RBIs with the Astros from 2014-15. The Astros released Singleton in 2018 while he was serving a 100-game suspension under baseball’s minor league drug program after a third positive test for a drug of abuse.

He told The Associated Press in 2014 that he was battling an addiction to marijuana and had been to a rehabilitation center.

But he’s made a remarkable comeback since.

“Once I had time to step away and consider what life really was and what it meant to me, it helped maybe put things in perspective,” Singleton told reporters Saturday.

The Brewers signed Singleton to a minor league contract in 2021, after he had batted .321 with 15 homers and a 1.196 OPS in 46 games in the Mexican League earlier that year.

He was hitting .258 with a .384 on-base percentage, .483 slugging percentage, 10 homers and 29 RBIs in 49 games with Nashville this season. That followed a 2021 campaign in which he batted .219 with a .375 on-base percentage, 24 homers, 87 RBIs and 117 walks in 134 games with Nashville.

Now he’s back in the big leagues.

“It’s definitely rewarding,” Singleton told reporters. “There’s been a lot of hard work that I’ve put in. There’s been a lot of things I’ve done emotionally, physically and spiritually to get to this point. Very, very grateful.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.