Baseball Career
Born in Manhattan, New York City, and raised in nearby Mount Vernon, Singleton played both baseball and basketball in high school. He also played baseball in the Bronx Federation League at Macombs Dam Park, across the street from Yankee Stadium. Singleton was drafted out of Hofstra University by the New York Mets as the third overall pick in the 1st round of the 1967 Major League Baseball Draft. He made his major league debut with the Mets on June 24, 1970 at the age of 23. In April 1972, he was part of a package traded to the Montreal Expos for Rusty Staub.
Singleton's best year of the three in Montreal was 1973, when he led the league in on-base percentage (one of nine top-ten finishes in that category over the course of his career) and collected 23 home runs, 103 RBIs and a .302 batting average (first .300 season). Following the 1974 season, he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for Dave McNally.
During his ten years in Baltimore, Singleton played the best baseball of his career as the Orioles won two pennants, in 1979 and 1983, and won the 1983 World Series. In 1977, he posted a career-high .328 batting average, third highest in the American League. In 1979 he had career-highs with 35 home runs and 111 RBIs. Singleton played in his final major league game on September 25, 1984 at the age of 37.
Read more about this topic: Ken Singleton
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