January 23, 2010

Top 50 Twins Prospects 2010: #28 Steve Singleton

2010 Top 50 Twins Prospects | #28 | Steve Singleton

Position | Second Base

Bats/Throws | Left/Right

Born
| September 12, 1985 (San Francisco, California)

School
| University of San Diego

Height
| 5'11''

Weight
| 180 lbs.

2009 Ranking | 31




Breakdown
Steve Singleton was drafted by the Twins in 2006 after three years at the University of San Diego. The talented shortstop signed shortly thereafter and hit .340 in 156 plate appearances with Elizabethton in the summer of 2006. He moved up to Single-A Beloit in 2007 and hit a disappointing .271/.294/.346 in 391 plate appearances. In an interview with Seth Stohs, Singleton admitted that he was hampered with a shoulder injury throughout the 2007 season. He didn't blame his poor offensive production on the injury, although we can safely assume it did impact his bat, he did say why the Twins ultimately moved him from shortstop to second base, "my arm just couldn't handle shortstop."

He returned to Beloit in 2008 and was promoted to Ft. Myers after hitting .302/.348/.421 through 259 plate appearances. He spent the rest of the '08 season and beginning of the 2009 season in Ft. Myers hitting .281/.348/.437 in 608 plate appearances. He was promoted to Double-A New Britain in July after the organization designated utility man Danny Berg for assignment. Singleton finished off the season strong with the Rock Cats, hitting .291/.319/.418 in 241 plate appearances while switching between second base and shortstop.

After the season, Singleton was invited to participate in the Arizona Fall League. He primarily played shortstop and hit .289/.291/.500 in 19 games with the Mesa Solar Sox. As his days in Arizona were coming to a close, the Twins had to decide whether or not to add Singleton to the 40-man roster. They took the the chance of leaving him off, making him vulnerable of being taken, but the gamble ultimately paid off in the end as the Twins retained Singleton. Despite a fluctuating on-base percentage, Singleton has been a good hitter when healthy. His defense at second base is outstanding and he is also an adequate defender at both shortstop and second base.

2009 Statistics
          Level      G     PA     AVG     OBP     SLG     XBH     HR   wRC+
          A+        80    235    .269    .329    .424      28      5    115
AA 46 241 .291 .319 .418 15 1 100

2010 Outlook

Despite his success in the Arizona Fall League, Steve Singleton will still start the 2010 season in New Britain. Unless the Twins make room in an already crowded Rochester infield, Singleton may be stuck in New Britain all year.

Video


Estimated Time of Arrival
2011

1 comments:

Beat Blackjack said...

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