Brian James Anderson (born April 26, 1972) is an American 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) ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, who attempts to e ...

, who played 13 seasons for five teams, as well as a sports broadcaster and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. Currently, Anderson is the

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and th ...

on the Rays TV crew on Bally Sports Sun.

Early life and education

Anderson was born on April 26, 1972, in

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an independent city in southeast Virginia and across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,915. It is part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Naval ...

. At

Geneva High School (Ohio) Geneva High School is a four-year comprehensive school and an institute of secondary education located in Geneva, Ohio, USA. It is a member of the Geneva Area City School District and is the largest school within the system. History The settleme ...

, Anderson was a four-year letterman in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

, a three-year letterman in

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

, and a two-year letterman in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

. He went on to attend

Wright State University Wright State University is a public research university in Fairborn, Ohio. Originally opened in 1964 as a branch campus of Miami University and Ohio State University, it became an independent institution in 1967 and was named in honor of aviatio ...

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater ...

. In 1991 and 1992, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operate ...

with the

Wareham Gatemen The Wareham Gatemen are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Wareham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Gatemen play their home games at Clem Spillane F ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thous ...

. Anderson was selected by the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

in the 1st round (3rd pick overall) of the

1993 Major League Baseball draft The 1993 Major League Baseball draft began with first round selections on June 3, 1993. Alex Rodriguez was selected first overall by the Seattle Mariners. Other notable draftees included Chris Carpenter, Torii Hunter, Jason Varitek, Scott Role ...

Professional career

Anderson began his major league career with the

in 1993. Between 1993–1995, he was 13–13 with a 5.46 ERA. He was traded prior to the 1996 season to the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...

for pitchers

Jason Grimsley Jason Alan Grimsley (born August 7, 1967) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for seven teams during a 15-year career. He was a member of both the 1999 and 2000 World Series champion New York Yankees. Major League career ...

and Pep Harris. Anderson went 7–3 in two seasons with the Indians. He was on the 1997 playoff roster, in which he made six relief appearances, going 1–0 with 1 save. Roughly a month after a solid performance during the 1997 World Series, Anderson was the second pick by the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. ...

in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft. In his first full season in the Majors, this time as a starter, Anderson went 12–13 with a 4.33 ERA in 32 starts and also pitched 2 complete games. The following season, he switched between the bullpen and the rotation, totaling 31 appearances to go along with 19 starts. In 2000, Anderson was back in the rotation full-time, finishing 11–7 with a career high in innings pitched (213.1) and in strikeouts (104). In 2001, Anderson went 4–9 with a 5.20 ERA, in the postseason, he went 1–1 in 4 games. Anderson was a swingman in 2002 for the Diamondbacks, pitching 35 games while starting 24 of them. His record was 6–11. In 2003, Anderson signed with his former club, the Cleveland Indians. In his 24 starts with the Tribe, Anderson permitted 27 unearned runs due to errors the Indians committed. Anderson was acquired by the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expa ...

during the 2003 season for three minor leaguers. Between Cleveland and Kansas City, Anderson won a career high 14 games while also having a career low 3.78 ERA in 31 starts. Anderson regressed in 2004, pitching poorly throughout the season. His record was 6–12 with a career high 5.64 ERA in 166 innings. Anderson's season ended prematurely when he tore an elbow ligament, necessitating

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's ...

. He attempted a comeback in with the Texas Rangers. He re-injured it during his rehab program and had to undergo a second Tommy John surgery. During his

convalescence Convalescence is the gradual recovery of health and strength after illness or injury. It refers to the later stage of an infectious disease or illness when the patient recovers and returns to previous health, but may continue to be a source of ...

in 2007, Anderson was a fill-in broadcaster for the Cleveland Indians. On February 1, 2008, the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

signed Anderson to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. During spring training however, Anderson left the mound in the middle of a game, and followed that with an MRI. The MRI revealed he had a torn ulnar collateral ligament (for the third time), as well as a torn flexor mass muscle, both in his left elbow. Rays manager Joe Maddon commented by saying, "It can't be repaired; he's done. It's really a big disappointment."

Post-playing career

Following the second Tommy John surgery, Anderson was out of baseball for the 2007 season, during which he occasionally filled in as a broadcaster for the Cleveland Indians on SportsTime Ohio, as well as doing several

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

games and a weekly highlight show. In

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

, he served temporarily as a

color analyst A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and th ...

for Rays television broadcasts during a ten-game West Coast road trip, teamed with play-by-play announcer Dewayne Staats while regular Rays broadcast partner Joe Magrane was away on assignment as an analyst for

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and it ...

coverage of

at the 2008 Summer Olympics. During the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Anderson was an assistant to the

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

and worked in the front office for the Rays. In

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

and

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, Anderson again worked as a part-time TV analyst for the Rays, calling about 50 games for which Magrane's successor, Kevin Kennedy, was unavailable. In October 2010, the Rays announced that Anderson would become the team's full-time TV analyst beginning in 2011.

Personal life

Anderson and his wife Jessica Marie married on November 1, 2014. They reside in St. Petersburg, Florida with their daughter, Harper Marie, born November 2015, and son Baker James, born November 27, 2018. Anderson also has two children from a previous marriage, Rylyn Mae (14) and Jackson James (12).

References

External links

Brian Anderson
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Brian 1972 births Living people American sports announcers Arizona Diamondbacks players Baseball players from Virginia Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players California Angels players Cleveland Indians announcers Cleveland Indians players Kansas City Royals players Lake Elsinore Storm players Major League Baseball broadcasters Major League Baseball pitchers Midland Angels players Omaha Royals players People from Geneva, Ohio Sportspeople from Portsmouth, Virginia Tampa Bay Rays announcers Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Tucson Sidewinders players Vancouver Canadians players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Wright State Raiders baseball players Wichita Wranglers players People from St. Petersburg, Florida All-American college baseball players Wareham Gatemen players