By: Tobey Schulman
A big question many baseball analysts had on their mind following the 2023 season was where White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson was going to end up. Anderson’s production had taken a massive dip since 2019, and his attitude towards the club showed to have taken a negative turn as well.
Anderson, who finished 7th in MVP voting in the shortened COVID-19 2020 season with a Silver Slugger award, was a shell of himself in 2023. The two time all star hit for a .245 batting average, with a slugging percentage of .286 and an on base percentage of .296 to combine for a .582 OPS, almost 200 points below the American League average.
While Anderson recorded 121 hits in 123 games played, he struck out 23.3% of the time, striking out 122 times and walking just 26 times. Anderson also only hit one home run in 524 plate appearances.
Anderson’s attitude on the field could be looked at as a direct correlation to his statistics. In an early series against the Houston Astros last year, Anderson can be seen mouthing the words “I hate this place” to former teammate Jose Abreu, who won an MVP in 2020 with the White Sox. Between that and getting knocked out by Cleveland Guardians Jose Ramirez in an on field brawl, it’s no wonder that Anderson’s statistics were taking dips.
While his 2023 campaign was nowhere near a successful one, Anderson has shown plenty of signs of being a great big league shortstop. Anderson’s batting average in 2024 was the first time in four seasons that he didn’t hit above the .300 threshold. While his numbers have seemed to decrease slightly every year since 2019, the change of scenery could be good for him to get back to his former self.
Anderson signed with the Miami Marlins for a deal worth $5 million for one year. Anderson will enter a middle infield containing himself and one of the league’s best pure contact hitters: Luis Arraez.
The change of scenery could be a great thing for Anderson. It was obvious he was no longer happy in Chicago and wasn’t in their plan for the future whatsoever. Miami is a great fit for Anderson as it gets him out of the American League Central and into a new division on a team that’s looking to compete for a spot in the postseason.
It’ll be interesting to see how Anderson plays with Miami this season, and after a rough 2023, we’ll see if Anderson can get back to his previous form.
