Chris Singleton homers in batting practice with Yankees, throws out first pitch
Jeff Hartsell
Aug 17 2015 11:59 am
Chris Singleton admitted to a bit of stage fright when it came time for batting practice at Yankee Stadium on Monday afternoon.
And for good reason. Yankee Stadium is only the most storied venue in baseball, and Singleton was taking BP with Yankees All-Stars Brett Gardner and Brian McCann.
“I was a little nervous,” the Charleston Southern sophomore said. “I thought, if I was a left-hander, maybe I’d have a chance to hit one out.”
As it turned out, Singleton didn’t need Yankee Stadium’s famously short right-field porch. The right-handed batter impressed the Yankees by depositing a couple of batting-practice pitches into the left-field seats, then threw out the first pitch before the Yankees’ game against Minnesota.
“Our world needs more people like him in it,” the Yankees’ Gardner said of Singleton. Singleton, the son of Emanuel AME shooting victim Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, was the Yankees’ guest Monday as part of the MLB team’s “Hope Week” event, in which inspiring figures are honored each night at the stadium. The Yankees also have donated $15,000 to the Singleton Memorial Fund at Charleston Southern University.
Singleton made the trip to New York City with his sister Camryn and brother Caleb, and with his Charleston Southern baseball coach, Stuart Lake.
“The whole thing’s been like a dream I just woke up from, and I’m still dreaming,” Singleton said. “It’s been really cool for me.”
Singleton inspired many people, including the Yankees, with his reaction to his mother’s death, along with those of eight others, at Emanuel AME on June 17. A day after she died, Singleton appeared at a prayer vigil and said, “Love is always stronger than hate. If we just love the way my Mom would, the hate won’t be anywhere close to what love is.”
Those words hit home for Gardner, a former College of Charleston standout from Holly Hill.
“We’re excited to lift him up and take him to the stadium today, spend some time with him and get to know him and have him be a part of the team today,” Gardner said. “He’s an inspiration to a lot of people, and will continue to be with the way he’s handled this situation. He’s definitely someone we can all learn from.”
Yankees star Alex Rodriguez joined Gardner in surprising Singleton during an appearance on the Today Show on Monday morning.
“It’s hard to describe, an incredible story,” Rodriguez said. “It’s one we can all learn from. Chris Singleton is such a young man, a beautiful-looking kid, and more than anything, a great example for all of us in how to deal with adversity. I’ve never seen such a courageous action.”
After the Today Show, Singleton’s group was joined by other Yankees at One World Observatory for a tour and lunch. Former Yankees great Willie Randolph, also from Holly Hill, met with Singleton there, along with Yankees players Stephen Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Masahiro Tanaka, Justin Wilson and Chris Young.
Coleman-Singleton, Chris’ mother, was a track coach and speech pathologist at Goose Creek High School, and a minister at Emanuel AME.
“She’d be smiling right now,” Singleton said of his mother. “She was happy when we were happy, so she’d be very happy right now.”
