What happened to Tim Anderson?

Time is a fickle mistress, especially if you’re a professional athlete. Miami Marlins shortstop Tim Anderson found this out the hard way as his hitting stats fell off a cliff and he was designated for assignment by the team. How did we get here? Read on to find out.

There was a time when Anderson was one of the best hitters in the league, and a highly sought after prospect following his departure from the Chicago White Sox in 2022. In 2019, Anderson was hitting over .330 with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs. He continued this streak until 2022, when he spent some time on the injured list. His batting average dropped to .301 and by 2023 he was hitting .245.

“It’s never an easy day when you have to DFA one of your everyday players,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker told ESPN. “Tim was awesome in the clubhouse. I didn’t know him before this year and he was one of the harder workers I’ve ever been around.”

The Marlins signed Anderson to a $5 million one-year deal following his release from the Sox, and Anderson chose the fish after turning down several other offers.

“It’s one thing if the guy’s not putting in the work and that’s an easy move. This was not one of those cases,” Schumacher said. “Tough day for us and I hope he lands on his feet somewhere because he’s still young and still has a lot to give to the game.”

Anderson’s latest issues may stem from a 2023 knee injury where he sprained his MCL after only 11 games in that season. He started hot but when he came back from the injury the magic was gone. At the time, Anderson blamed the injury for his sluggish at bats and said he had to change his swinging mechanics in his front leg and never quite felt comfortable at the plate again.

Anderson is just 31 years old and while that’s young to us civilians, it’s much older in the world of professional sports when 18 year olds are nipping at your heels. Anderson’s fall is especially tragic considering he was once an MLB All-Star.

One of the harsh realities of professional sports is that it’s littered with the bones of “could have beens” and “might have beens.” Unfortunately for Anderson, it looks like he might fall into one of those categories. There is always the possibility that he could rebound and come back, but that seems unlikely. Just like the quote from Barry Moss as Scout Barry in the 2011 hit movie Moneyball:

“We’re all told at some point in time that we can no longer play the children’s game, we just don’t… don’t know when that’s gonna be. Some of us are told at eighteen, some of us are told at forty, but we’re all told.”