The name Rinku Singh might not mean a lot to the average American, but in India, the man is incredibly well known for his improbable journey to Major League Baseball.
Singh was one of two winners on the Indian TV show The Million Dollar Arm, in which he won $100,000 and a chance to be signed to an MLB team. In November 2008, the Pittsburgh Pirates took the bait, signing Singh to a minor league contract, and the following summer, Singh became the first Indian ever to pitch in a professional baseball game in the United States.
He kicked around the Pirates farm system for the next seven years but never made it to the major leagues. However, his story did inspire Disney’s 2014 film Million Dollar Arm, starring Jon Hamm and Aasif Mandvi.
Now, Singh is ready to begin a brand new journey, this one with WWE. According to MLB.com, the 29-year-old has signed a developmental deal with WWE; he will arrive at the WWE Performance Center this Tuesday to officially begin his training, says WWE.com.
He has no prior experience with professional wrestling, but don’t let that scare you — Singh had no prior experience playing baseball before signing up for The Million Dollar Arm TV show, and that seemed to work out relatively okay for him. The real question is whether this means No Way Jose will have to change his current finishing move, the baseball wind-up punch. I mean, how do you not give Singh the High, Stinky Cheddar as his finisher?
