College or pros? Different paths led Royals pitchers Griffin, Singer to majors’ brink

In June 2014, First Academy graduate Foster Griffin was selected in the first round of baseball’s amateur draft by the Kansas City Royals. The left-handed pitcher from Orlando had committed to play at the University of Mississippi, but he instead decided to turn pro at the age of 18.

A year later, Brady Singer, a right-handed pitcher from Eustis High school, roughly 16 miles from First Academy, was selected in the second round by the Toronto Blue Jays. However, he decided to attend the University of Florida.

Their paths met this spring in Surprise, Arizona.

Griffin, now 24, is on the Royals’ 40-man roster while 23-year-old Singer, drafted by KC in the first round in 2018, was a non-roster invitee this year and has been getting major-league looks.

Neither regrets his circuitous route that led to this point.

“It was a lot,” Griffin said. “When the draft comes around you have to make a split decision and don’t have much time. I was fortunate to land in Kansas City, where they develop pitchers well.”

On one hand, turning pro could lead to a direct line to the MLB club and, of course, a decent paycheck. Scott Grove, Griffin’s high school coach, understood why his former player made the leap and signed with the Royals.

“He can throw three pitches for strikes, has good velocity and is a lefty,” Grove said. “You don’t have unlimited bullets, so I like when pitchers can get to professional ball without much taxing on their arms.”

Grove also mentioned that not everyone is the same and some players need additional help from college coaching.

Future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw didn’t go to college, and that worked out very well for the three-time Cy Young winner.

On the other hand, there are also plenty of stories about high school phenoms who don’t quite reach the top. Colt Griffin, for instance, was selected by the Royals as the ninth pick overall in 2001, but control problems and health issues kept him from reaching Triple-A.

In baseball, fit is a major factor.

“There’s advantages and disadvantages to both, depending on the school where the kids go,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “But we have kids here who pitched in the College World Series, and those are accomplishments.

“You don’t deny it’s a great opportunity to see how they perform in high-leverage situations. A lot of the younger guys don’t get that privilege.”

The college experience works well for many players. It can lead to getting drafted higher, becoming bigger-name prospects and earning more money.

Hall of Famer Mike Mussina climbed from being taken in the 11th round when he was coming out of high school to being a first-round pick out of Stanford.

For Singer, the opportunity to go to a highly decorated college program with a coach he trusted was essential.

“When I went to visit the coach (Kevin O’Sullivan), he had great faith in me and I had great faith in him,” Singer said. “He was great at protecting his pitchers. Health is a big issue in this sport. He was good at developing first-round arms. It wasn’t a difficult decision. Once I went there, I knew where I was going.”

Singer’s Florida experience was about as fruitful as a college career can get.

He was the 2018 SEC Pitcher of the Year, a first-team All-American, national player of the year and a national champion in 2017.

He stood out under the bright lights, making the All-CWS team after tossing seven innings with three earned runs and 12 strikeouts in the championship series.

The college experience can be great, but the wrong team can overwork a pitcher, too. College teams are looking to win, and that can come at the expense of being able to work on intricacies that might better prepare them for the next level.

“We get our hands on the younger guys at an early age and slowly progress them without giving them too much too soon,” Matheny said of the benefits of signing players out of high school.

After school, Griffin played at minor-league affiliates in Burlington, Wilmington, Lexington, Northwest Arkansas, Omaha and eventually the Dominican Winter League.

Through some ups and downs in the minors, he pitched at his best for Tigres Del Licey last winter with a 2.31 ERA and 12 strikeouts per nine innings. He added a cutter and altered grips on his changeup and curveball in the offseason.

It’s easy to think of what could have been. But that does not mean Griffin or Singer would change a thing.

“You talk to people and they all have their own path,” Griffin said. “I was interested to see how college was and their input, but then you share your experiences too.

“Everyone’s different and I definitely talk to the college guys to see how it was. But I think I made the right decision development-wise.”

Singer added: “In college I learned how to win ballgames, but not as much how to use certain pitches in certain spots, and in the minors you learn different pitching styles. They’re both great routes, but I’m definitely happy I went to college.”

Alex Weiner is a junior majoring in sports journalism at Arizona State University. This story is a part of a partnership between the Denver Post and Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.