Former All-Star shortstop Tim Anderson is competing for a roster spot on a minor league contract as he seeks to revive his career with the Los Angeles Angels. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
TEMPE – In 2019, Tim Anderson hit .335 with the Chicago White Sox and won the American League batting crown, the first of four straight seasons that he would rake above .300 for Chicago.
He seemed to be entrenched at shortstop for the White Sox and even finished seventh in AL MVP voting in 2020.
Now, after two subpar seasons with Chicago and the Miami Marlins, the 31-year-old Anderson finds himself competing in the Cactus League on a non-guaranteed minor league contract just hoping to land a job with the Los Angeles Angels.
He believes he’s in the right place to turn his career back around.
“Over the offseason, I have been working in the lab and sharpening my brain because I wasn’t in the right headspace in Miami,” Anderson said. “But now coming here with the Angels, I feel like I can succeed, especially with this coaching staff.”
The former first-round pick in the 2013 MLB Draft played high school baseball at Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and then played at East Central Community College for a year before being drafted by the White Sox with the 17th pick.
From 2016 to 2023, Anderson started at short for the White Sox, batting .282 with 1,021 hits, 179 doubles, 98 home runs, 338 RBIs, 117 stolen bases, a .735 OPS, and a 16.2 WAR.
Last season with the Miami Marlins, in only 65 games, he slumped to 214 with no home runs and a .463 OPS.
The nine-year MLB veteran has always wanted to be on the same team with Angels manager Ron Washington and is getting that opportunity. He felt the Angels were the best fit for him this season, a place where he can prove that he is still capable of playing at a high level.
“I’m just excited to be here and finally get to be with Ron Washington,” Anderson said. “I’m just so thankful for this opportunity. (I’m) just 31 and still feel in my prime, so we all know what I’m capable of. So it’s on me to play my tail off and try to get back to the level I know I can play at.”
Washington spent 10 years with five teams as a player in the majors, and this season marks his 30th year as a coach or manager in the big leagues. He likes what he has seen from Anderson this spring.
“He is in the right frame of mind and is peaceful, mentally, and when you’re peaceful mentally, I think his skill set is working well and he has been working hard,” Washington said of Anderson. “He has been doing everything we need him to do to be a part of this squad, and I am very pleased with his progress.”
Coming to the Angels organization has been comfortable and welcoming for Anderson, who is trying to lead by example among the younger guys. He is the oldest among the club’s middle infielders and is putting pressure on a lot of the young guys, getting the best out of them.
The Angels have an open spot for a middle infielder and Anderson can play both second base and shortstop. But he also has taken on a mentor’s role to the younger guys.
“Christian Moore has been a guy I have been around and he has been asking me a lot of questions, and I can tell he is a true pro who acts professional and goes about his business the right way,” Anderson said of the Angels’ top prospect. “All I can do is pass on the wisdom I know and pass it down to the younger guys and be here for them whenever they have a question, so it’s been good.”
Adding a player like Anderson is crucial for the Angels because he has at least had a taste of what it takes to get to the playoffs, having played in seven postseason games with the White Sox. The Angels haven’t made the playoffs since 2014, when they were swept by the Kansas City Royals, and haven’t won a playoff game since 2009.
Anderson would love nothing more than to help the Halos get back to playing October baseball.
“All the boys around me here for the Angels are all here ready to compete at 9 a.m. every morning and I love to work,” Anderson said. “So to be around all the guys here and having the same mindset that we all come here ready to put work in makes us all better at the end of the day.”
Moore, a 2024 first-round pick, is looking to put his name on the map, but is young and striving to get better each day in his first spring training. He is thankful for Anderson, who is the infielder on the team with the most experience.
“Tim Anderson was one of my favorite baseball players growing up, and I wore No. 7 on my jersey freshman year because of him,” Moore said. “He is such a dynamic player and is in a similar situation like myself, who beat all odds and has definitely been a role model for me.”
Anderson is ready to flush everything about last season out of his mind and is looking forward to the 2025 campaign. He has been a great hitter and defender throughout his career and aims to put the mental and physical pieces of the puzzle back together and return to what he believes is the picture of his true form.
“I’m in a really good spot mentally,” he said. “My body feels good, and I’m ready and excited about it.”