Astros option Jon Singleton to Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, keep Tyler White
As the Houston Astros’ opening day roster begins to take shape, so too does the Fresno Grizzlies’.
The Astros optioned slugger Jon Singleton to Triple-A Fresno on Monday and reassigned top prospect A.J. Reed to their minor-league camp, presumably opening the door for Tyler White to open the season as Houston’s starting first baseman.
Manager A.J. Hinch told White that he had made the team. The moves left utilityman Marwin Gonzalez and White, a 25-year-old rookie, as the only first basemen on Houston’s roster.
Key members of the 2015 Grizzlies club that captured the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A national championship, White and Singleton had disparate springs. While White surged to .366 with two home runs and 10 RBIs, Singleton hit .151 with three homers and seven RBIs.
Barring a trade, Singleton would start at Triple-A for the third straight season.
Reed, meanwhile, was hitting .311 with two homers and nine RBIs before being sent down. The 23-year-old has yet to play above Double-A.
Pitcher Michael Feliz was optioned to the minors along with Singleton. Pitchers Jake Buchanan and Cesar Valdez, catcher Tyler Heineman, outfielder Eury Perez and infielder Joe Sclafani were reassigned to the minor league camp.
Also, according to multiple reports on Twitter, the Astros traded right-hander Dan Straily to the San Diego Padres for catcher Erik Kratz. Straily was Fresno’s No. 1 starter last season.
The Grizzlies begin the season April 7 with an eight-game road trip before their Chukchansi Park opener April 15.
▪ Bill Gorman, the Grizzlies’ general manager during the Triple-A baseball club’s first years at Chukchansi Park, died last weekend in Arizona. He was 76.
Gorman served as Fresno’s GM from November 2001 to September 2004 after spending 31 seasons with the Omaha Storm Chasers, who posted news of his death on their Web site. Gorman also spent the 1969 season with the Visalia Mets.
Gorman, who lived in Fresno for several years after the Grizzlies terminated him, is survived by his wife Linda, daughter April and son Wil.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 28, 2016 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Astros option Jon Singleton to Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies, keep Tyler White."