Brady Singer and Jonathan India Won an NCAA Championship but Baseball Business Ironically Keeps them Apart

Brady Singer left the game on April 11 against the Pittsburgh Pirates with his third straight win.

Jonathan India completed the game on April 12 against the Cleveland Guardians with a .208 batting average. India has one hit in his last 17 at-bats but was 10-for-36 in the 10 games before that. As of April 12, India has three doubles and three runs batted in.

Trades, ideally, should be good for both teams, Cincinnati and Kansas City. It is very early but likely that this deal will be one of them.

The irony is that Singer and India were teammates at the University of Florida from 2016 through 2018. They were key contributors to Florida’s 2017 National Championship team.

India hit .247 with 15 doubles, six home runs, and 34 RBI. Singer was 9-5 in 19 starts with a 3.21 ERA and 126 innings.

The pair who are just four months apart in age, keep in contact often.

“I was at Florida for three years. We had three really good years of baseball,” Singer said. “I met my wife there. Just being on campus and being part of that group was really special.”

“Being on the College World Series champion was a favorite memory. It was something we talked about when I was recruited. It was the first one in school history. Dog piling with all your best friends is memorable.”

“I wanted to play with India. He is one of my favorite teammates,” Singer continued. “I loved playing with him. He was always a gamer and competed like crazy. It was really fun to have a teammate like him. It was a little bit weird swapping there.”

The Reds needed pitching depth and the Royals needed a leadoff hitter to get on base in front of Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino and Salvador Perez.

While Singer has been collecting wins for the Reds, India has been on base at a .333 clip. The Reds have a surplus of middle infielders and India, who played thirdbase in college and amateur ball, was not as good at turning double plays as Matt McLain, Santiago Espinal, and Gavin Lux are. In fact, Kansas City placed him at third and left field.

“He works quick. He throws strikes,” Francona said. “He is an easy guy to play behind.”