Tim Anderson Is Here to Save Baseball From Itself

If he wants to be the best he needs to learn the strike zone. 15 walks in 500 plate appearances is not efficient.

I understand that Tim Anderson won the AL batting title, but why is there no mention of his predecessor at SS??? Marcus Semien, another African American player who manned the shortstop position before Anderson took over, had a far more successful 2019 campaign than Anderson did, by finishing 3rd in the AL MVP Award voting. Its silly that the only mention of the A's, by Tyler Kepner, is of the White Sox SVP Ken Williams's memories of sneaking into the Oakland Coliseum in his youth. Perhaps, the headline should be, 'White Sox produce 2 standout African American shortstops', or 'Times' Baseball Writer Fails to Recognize the A's More Successful African American Shortstop'. Until Anderson achieves Semien's success, the story should've been about the former White Sox shortstop!

Isn't this probably just a bought and paid for promotional article for the MLB after the cheating scandal and just before the regular season starts?

Did Reggie Jackson ever lead the league in errors?

The poor simply can't afford to play youth baseball any more. First and foremost, it's a 10,000 hour sport akin to golf or tennis. I read stories every year about the football star from X who came to America and played football for the first time his junior year of high school. This doesn't happen in baseball. Raw strength and speed don't translate to the diamond like they do on the gridiron. Baseball also requires a heavy investment of time. 8-10 hours of practice a week is not unusual in youth baseball. Additionally, if you're going to keep up with the Joneses who fantasize about college scholarships, you're going to need an outside batting coach and pitching coach. They don't come cheap. You're also going to need a $400 bat. ....And if you really think your kid has it what it takes, you're going to join a travel team with a paid coach. Many weekends are going to be spent on the road -- and hotels and food are not included. With white kids playing a lot less football and basketball these days, it's easy to see how the sport has become much less diverse.

I like this piece and it's focus on a brash player but the discussion of race while accurate is omitting important information. It's true that there are fewer African-Americans in baseball, but there are many black players. Tim Anderson may be the only black Americans but there are many black/brown Latinos including slugger Jose Abrehu. I think this is important because it points in my opinion to issues of ethnicity and culture more than race in the trend. Baseball is more color diverse than ever.

Even though I’m a stoogie old-timer, I appreciate Tim’s style and passion for the game. I like him. However when he says baseball is a white man’s game he is seriously overlooking the rise of the Latino and to some extent Asian players now proliferating in MLB. That being said, if Tim and the MLB can increase the number of African Americans playing in professional baseball it would be a great blessing to those that enjoy the game.

After multiple years of losing seasons I waa really looking forward to this season for my beloved Chicago White Sox. But the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox cheating scandals have left a sense of dread and forboding that they were not acting alone. That said I will style and wear my White Sox hat and Tim Anderson jersey with hope and pride. While Anderson is the only White Sox player who has African and North American roots. He is not the only one with African roots.

I must say, the pitcher taking offense at the bat toss says a lot, and not much good, about the pitcher. Man up.

I think it's shameful that a celebrated black player has to say other "cross-cultural" players give flavor to the game. Like salt and pepper, just a taste enhancer to the white players? Ridiculous. Other measures to speed up baseball , catering to attention-challenged fans, include the new rule about walking a batter. Pitcher signals a walk, player takes first base, no pitching required. They're also limiting the number of mound visits a pitcher can have with his coach or manager. What's next? A time clock on how long a fielder can take to catch a fly ball? Tennis is another sport that is on the shorten-the-game bandwagon. A time clock was recently introduced to regulate the amount of time a server has to prepare and deliver his serve. Many stars - Nadal and Djokivic particularly - have been guilty of time faults over the years, bringing this measure onto the courts.

This article leaves the question of why there has been such a decline in black MLB players. Is it only because black kids see baseball as uncool? Meanwhile well over half of NFL and NBA players are black. But Tim Anderson is on the right track by reaching into inner-city communities to promote baseball. MLB needs to expand what he is doing to the whole country.

Hey. Old head here who thinks maybe he's going to be the Ali of baseball: winning attention, making it exciting; convincing a younger Gen that baseball has drama.

Do you want to know how to take back Chicago, Mr. Anderson? Win. Just win baby.

As a UofAlabama grad and having the White Sox as my favorite AL team, this article made me so happy. The Anderson/Moncada pairing may be my favorite 3B/SS duo now that Tony is in Anaheim.

"On the south side of Chicago"

The New York Times “sports page” demonstrates its contempt for fans of our local teams every single day. Personally, I’m tired of it.

Go get 'em Tim!

The "unwritten rule" that you can't celebrate a home run ("showing up" the pitcher) simply shows that MLB players, for all their swagger, are as egocentric and emotionally fragile as an equal number of little children. If I wanted to watch children play the game, I'd watch t-ball. Anyone throwing bean balls (i.e., trying to maim the batter) in "retaliation" should be immediately suspended for two weeks. Second offense, make it a month. Pitchers would grow up in a hurry.

You GO Tim!!!!

Mr. Anderson...if you feel you have to flip or fling your bat after yanking a fastball into space? Please do so. Pitchers are so dang touchy aren't they? We need a breath of fresh air in baseball. Fans need to see you are having fun out there...most players I see (Goldschmidt) look like someone forced them to be playing a kid's sport for millions. Best of luck this season, as I see the South-enders are revamping for a serious run. One more thing: can you ask ownership for another park? The one you play in is the worst in baseball.

As Yanks fan, I was sorry that Anderson beat out DJ for the batting title, but his winning is good for the sport--he's an exciting, daring, energizing hitter and player, fun to watch, fun to follow. Just one thing: if Keller had hurled the n-word at Anderson, would he have been suspended only 1 game? And what would the social media blowup have been like?

Never bothered to count the number of blacks,whites,Latinos,Pacific islanders ,or Asians on any team.It is a futile exercise that detracts from the game.

Tim Anderson is far and away my favourite player on the White Sox. He's such a great player and person that you can't help but pull for him.

Lifelong White Sox fan here and it has been exciting to see Tim Anderson's journey these past few years. There's was a definite change last season and it was electrifying--he's is truly one to watch on a team full of talent. I'm grateful for what he is bringing to the game. You do you, TA7!

As a black boy growing up loving baseball in Brooklyn in the late '80s and early '90s this resonates so strongly with me. To watch players like Darryl Strawberry (from Crenshaw, LA) and Bobby Bonilla (from the Bronx!) allowed me a connection with the game--I could imagine myself out there...But beyond representation, and I think that is what Anderson's rise exemplifies--it was also their skill and excellence that made the biggest impact.

“The game isn’t for me and my generation or generations that have come before me,” Williams said. “The game is for the kids playing now and the kids that are watching. And to keep it fresh and young, sometimes that conflicts with old-school ideas.” Yes, baseball -- like the climate, the economy, civil society, politics and young people -- is certainly changing. Goodbye to "old school" ideas and values like breathable air, face-to-face conversations, stable sea levels, equality (political, economic, social), and a respect for truth. As Williams implies, we need to embrace the very idea of "change." It keeps young people engaged. Hah!

never heard of him before as I dont follow baseball. I admire whatever he intends to do. but DEREK JETER is the best shortstop and he was doing way before age 26!!!

Love this kid's love for the game. I love his approach at the plate. Loved the article. Well done.

Having grown up in Chicago and having lived there 64 years on the West, South and North sides I had the impression that in the city itself there are more Sox fans than Cubs fans, especially so with people who have roots in the city or are "regular guys". The Cubs are undoubtedly more popular with tourists and transplants in the city's youth and yuppie ghettos. I ran into far more Sox fans on the North Side than Cubs fans on the South Side.

This article has left me wondering. Other than the bat flip, what has made Anderson flamboyant? I admire his assumed work effort, determination, and talent, but what is it that he is doing to turn the game on itself?

What baseball needs to do to stop its ongoing slide into irrelevance is simple: batter remains in the box between pitches, does not wander around the field, does not reattach his equipment. Pitcher gets the ball, gets the sign, checks the runner and makes the pitch, does not stand staring at the ground staring at the sky, resting his arm. A pitch clock to enforce this, like delay of game in football and shot clock in basketball. Yes, ideally you don’t want a clock in baseball, but unfortunately you need one.

Winning the batting title is no small accomplishment. Keep swinging.

Good luck with it all Tim!!