Michael Allen Anderson (born June 22, 1951) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

. He is the brother of former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) infielder Kent Anderson.

Career

First round draft pick

The Florence, South Carolina native signed a letter of intent to play

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

for the University of South Carolina upon graduation from Timmonsville High School in

Timmonsville, South Carolina Timmonsville is a town in Florence County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,320 at the 2010 census, an increase of five persons from 2000. It is part of the Florence Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Timmonsville was fou ...

. He changed paths when he was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the first round (sixth overall) of the

1969 Major League Baseball draft The 1969 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft took place prior to the 1969 MLB season. The draft featured future Hall of Famers Bert Blyleven (pick 55) and Dave Winfield (pick 882). First round selections The following are the first round picks ...

. Over three seasons in the Phillies' farm system, Anderson batted .322 with 21

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s & 241

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

to earn a September call up to the Phillies at just twenty years old.

Philadelphia Phillies

In his major league debut, he was struck out three times by the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

Gary Gentry Gary Edward Gentry (born October 6, 1946 in Phoenix, Arizona), is a former right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher. Early years Gentry was a second baseman at Camelback High School in Phoenix, Arizona, and only began pitching while at Phoeni ...

. He rebounded nicely the next day, going three for four with a

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

& an RBI. For the season, he batted .247 with two home runs & five RBIs. During Spring training , Anderson was hit in the head by a pitch from the Cincinnati Reds'

Clay Carroll Clay Palmer Carroll (born May 2, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through , most notably as a member of the Cincinnati Reds dynasty that won three divisio ...

, and carried off the field on a stretcher. He recovered in time to begin the season as the Phillies' everyday

right fielder A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the ...

, but after batting just .194 through May, he was demoted to triple A Eugene, with a platoon of

Roger Freed Roger Vernon Freed (June 2, 1946 – January 9, 1996), was an American professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, Montreal Expos, and St. Louis C ...

Oscar Gamble Oscar Charles Gamble (December 20, 1949 – January 31, 2018) was an American professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 17 seasons, from to , for seven teams: the Chicago White Sox and ...

taking over in right. He played well for the

Eugene Emeralds The Eugene Emeralds (nicknamed the Ems) are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Eugene, Oregon. The Emeralds are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants. Eugene plays thei ...

, batting .298 with seventeen home runs & 56 RBIs, but it wasn't enough to earn him a call backup to the majors that season. He spent all of platooning with

Bill Robinson Bill Robinson, nicknamed Bojangles (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid African-American entertainer in the United States during the f ...

in right field, and took over sole possession of the position in . He managed a career high 34 RBIs, but failed to live up to the promise that made him one of the top Phillies' prospects when he first came up to the majors.

St. Louis Cardinals

Anderson was traded from the Phillies to the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

for

Ron Reed Ronald Lee Reed (born November 2, 1942) is a former two-sport star who spent two seasons as a power forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before spending nearly two decades as a Major League Baseball pitcher. Early life and educa ...

at the

Winter Meetings Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...

on December 9, 1975. He was used primarily as a backup corner outfielder & pinch hitter in . He performed well in this role, batting .333 with four walks in 26 pinch hitting plate appearances. He was used more strictly in right field in , and saw more limited use. He was released during Spring training .

Baltimore Orioles

After being released by the Cards, Anderson signed a minor league deal with the Phillies. Though he played well for the triple A

Oklahoma City 89ers Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

(8 home runs, 34 RBIs, .313

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

), he did not fit into the Phillies' plans. The team released him in order to allow him to sign elsewhere, and he was immediately picked up by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

. His stint in Baltimore did not go well. Used very sparingly by

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Earl Weaver Earl Sidney Weaver (August 14, 1930 – January 19, 2013) was an American professional baseball manager, author, and television broadcaster. After playing in minor league baseball, he retired without playing in Major League Baseball (MLB). He be ...

, Anderson batted just .094 in 32 at bats. He was released after the season, and signed with the Phillies once again.

Phillies

After a brief stop in Oklahoma City, Anderson began his third stint with the Phillies on April 28, with a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

in his first at bat. He received most of his playing time as a late inning defensive replacement for

Greg Luzinski Gregory Michael "The Bull" Luzinski (born November 22, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left fielder from to , most prominently as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies where he wa ...

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

, though his most memorable performance may have been when he made his debut on the mound on June 27. He struck out both of the first two batters he faced, and pitched a scoreless inning in an 11-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs. He spent all of in Oklahoma City, and batted .327 with eight home runs, but it wasn't enough to earn a call up to the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

championship team. He was released after the season. He spent part of the season in the Pittsburgh Pirates' minor league system before retiring.

Career statistics

Anderson is a .316 career hitter in the minor leagues.

Sources

External links

Mike Anderson
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Mike Anderson
at Baseball Gauge {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Mike 1951 births Living people Algodoneros de Unión Laguna players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from South Carolina Dorados de Chihuahua players Eugene Emeralds players Florida Instructional League Phillies players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball right fielders Navegantes del Magallanes players Oklahoma City 89ers players Peninsula Phillies players Sportspeople from Florence, South Carolina Philadelphia Phillies players Portland Beavers players St. Louis Cardinals players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela