Tim Anderson, shortstop, Chicago White Sox
Entering 2016, we knew that Anderson would be a good speed guy if nothing else. During the 2015 season, he swiped 49 bases in AA Birmingham in only 125 games.
The steals were there upon getting called up to the White Sox in 2016. In 410 at-bats, he stole a solid 10 bags and was only cut down twice. But surprisingly, Anderson showed a fair amount of power, slugging nine home runs. In 1,374 MiLB at-bats, he hit only 19 bombs.
Might that be a sign of things to come? Hitting in a powerful lineup at a home run friendly park, is Anderson only just now finding his power? This is a guy who consistently ranked as a top prospect in the minors when he was barely ever hitting the ball over the wall.
If Anderson bats up in the order, don’t expect him to steal too many bases. The lineup is just too powerful to risk losing runners on base to steals. But if he bats down in the order, 40 steals is in play. If not, he won’t steal that many bags, but something like 20/20 is realistic. Batting early in the Chicago order, Anderson would get good pitches to hit.
Either way, Anderson is in line to have a big statistical season, improving on an impressive rookie year.