Books and articles about Brady Anderson

The most unlikely fifty home-run hitter in baseball history, Brady Anderson struggled for years to fulfill the potential he showed as the onetime prize of the Red Sox farm system. In 1988 Baseball America tabbed him as the top rookie prospect in the AL East, but after a three-for-five Opening Day performance against the Tigers' Jack Morris, Anderson soon faltered at the plate and was sent back to Triple-A Pawtucket.

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Anderson's career took a dramatic turn on July 30th, when Boston traded him and right-hander Curt Schilling to Baltimore in exchange for Orioles starter Mike Boddicker. Given a chance to play immediately on the rebuilding Orioles, Anderson hardly made the most of the opportunity, batting below .200 for the final two months of the season. Still, his hustle and superb glove-work in the outfield left a positive impression on the Orioles and their fans.

The next three seasons Anderson shuttled back and forth between Baltimore and Triple-A, plagued by injuries and an inability to hit consistently. The Orioles wanted Anderson to develop into a traditional leadoff batter, to shorten his swing and utilize his formidable speed by hitting the ball on the ground. Anderson, however, preferred to swing for the fences, infuriating the club with numerous warning-track fly balls sandwiched around occasional flashes of power.

Not until 1992, when Baltimore had all but given up on him (and stopped trying to alter his batting technique), did he finally break through to the level of production the Orioles had hoped for. In addition to making his first All-Star team, Anderson became the only player in AL history to reach 20 home runs, 50 steals and 75 RBIs in the same season. He drove in 80 runs from the top of the lineup, the seventh-highest total ever for a leadoff batter. With the Orioles moving into Camden Yards, Anderson took advantage of the new stadium's low left-field wall to make spectacular catches on a seemingly nightly basis, pulling back several sure home runs with leaping grabs at the fence.

An overnight sensation after four years, Anderson quickly became a favorite of Oriole fans and something of a celebrity. He received as much attention for his prominent Luke Perry sideburns as for his newfound success on the diamond, and he endeared himself to Baltimore with eccentricities like roller-blading to Camden Yards from his downtown apartment. The spotlight suited him well, and Anderson never shied away from his adoring public. On a bet one night, Anderson raced and beat a local track competitor in the parking lot of a Baltimore nightclub.

While Anderson's production from 1993 to 1995 didn't quite match his 1992 standards, he proved that his sudden improvement was no fluke. Anderson became a reliable leadoff hitter with strong extra-base pop and good speed on the bases. In 1994 he stole 31 bases in 32 attempts, setting a single-season record for the highest percentage of any player with at least 25 steals. From May 13th, 1994 through July 3rd, 1995, Anderson set an AL record (since broken by Tim Raines) by stealing 36 straight bases without getting caught.

No one, though, with the possible exception of Anderson himself, was prepared for the spectacle of his 1996 season, when he became a poster boy for the year of the home run. In the previous three years he had managed just 41 homers and had hit only 72 in 945 major league games. In 1996, however, Anderson went deep with astonishing regularity. His eleven round-trippers in April tied a league record, and from April 18th to April 21st he established a new major league mark by leading off four consecutive games with a home run.

By the All-Star break, when an injury to Ken Griffey Jr. pushed him from reserve to the first of two consecutive All-Star starts, he led all of baseball with thirty. Although his production slipped during the middle of the season, he finished strong, launching nine round-trippers in September. On the final day of the regular season, he led off the game with home run number fifty against eventual Cy Young winner Pat Hentgen. For good measure, he added three more in nine post-season games against Cleveland and New York.

During his magical mystery season, Anderson set or tied a host of records. 35 of his home runs came while batting leadoff, tying a record set by Bobby Bonds in 1973. Anderson broke another of Bonds' 1973 records by leading off twelve games with a home run. With 21 steals he became the first player to own a 20-homer, 50-steal season as well as a 50-homer, 20-steal season. His 50 home runs set an Orioles record, as did his 92 extra-base hits.

No real explanation could be found for his season-long power surge. Although always a health and fitness buff, an off-season a weight-training program and use of the muscle enhancer creatine had added considerable bulk to his previously slender frame. Some people offered the friendly dimensions of Camden Yards as a cause, but Anderson actually hit 31 of his 50 home runs on the road. Others suggested the addition of All-Star second baseman Roberto Alomar behind him in the lineup and the steady diet of fastballs that ensued. For his part, Anderson was nonchalant about his sudden long-ball propensity. "I always had the ability to hit home runs for two or three weeks at a time," he said. "But I never sustained it like this year. When you do, the homers really add up."

Whatever planetary alignment had produced such a memorable season wouldn't carry over into 1997. Although he put together a strong year (.288, 39 doubles, 97 runs and 73 RBIs), a cracked rib suffered in spring training hindered his swing and dropped his home runs to 18. One season after having the second-biggest one-season home run increase in baseball history (behind his manager Davey Johnson, who had hit 43 homers in 1973 after hitting just five in 1972) Anderson had posted the second-biggest decrease. Only Hack Wilson -- who hit just 13 homers in 1931 after swatting 56 in 1930 -- had suffered a greater fall.

Once again, however, Anderson turned in another exceptional post-season, batting .294 with a home run as the Orioles beat Seattle in the Division Series, and .360 with two homers as the Orioles fell to Cleveland in a six-game ALCS. In Game One of the ALCS, Anderson recorded the final out of the first inning by leaping at the right-centerfield wall to take a home run away from Manny Ramirez. Leading off the bottom of the first, he launched Charles Nagy's first offering over the out of town scoreboard in right field. In a span of two pitches he had saved one home run and hit another.

Following the season, Anderson engaged in a lengthy holdout with the Orioles, seeking a long-term deal to stay in Baltimore. Anderson had become a senior statesman of the Orioles, second in both longevity and popularity only to Cal Ripken Jr. (In fact, Anderson appeared in the same lineup with the Iron Man more often during his consecutive-games streak than any other player.) When the potential of losing Anderson as a free agent to the rival Yankees arose, owner Peter Angelos sensed a public relations disaster and anted up a five-year, $33 million deal.

Unfortunately, a miserable start to 1998 all but ended Anderson's season before it began. He collected just four hits in his first 63 at bats, and never managed to climb out of the hole he had dug himself. Anderson was snakebit by his admirable desire to play through pain and stay in the lineup. (In 1996 he had ignored a doctor's recommendation to undergo an appendectomy during the season.) Attempting to play a full 162-game season, Anderson began the year with a sore right shoulder and a strained neck muscle that never fully healed. Eventually he had no choice but to go on the disabled list for the first time since 1993.

With so much time off the field, Anderson took to more intellectual pursuits, launching a reading campaign inspired by his discovery of a list of the top 100 English-language novels of the twentieth century. "I hadn't read many of the top 100," he said. "So I decided to start with number one, which was Ulysses. I got through about 25 pages of that, then decided I would go to number two. A couple of days later I saw an article in the New York Times entitled 'Why They Invented Cliff's Notes'. There was a picture of Ulysses, so I didn't feel that bad about not completing it."

Although a solid second half in 1998 made Anderson's final numbers more respectable, he finished up hitting a disappointing .236 with just 51 RBIs. Putting his poor year behind him, Anderson spent the offseason continent-hopping from Japan to Australia to South Africa with his girlfriend, tennis pro Amanda Coetzer. The travel seemed to suit him well, as he rebounded to post one of his best seasons in 1999, scoring 109 runs while hitting 24 homers, stealing 36 bases, and posting a .404 on-base percentage. During the season, he joined Willard Schmidt (1959) and Frank Thomas (1962) as the only players in baseball history to be hit with pitches twice in an inning. (AGL)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » July 29, 1988: Baltimore trades veteran pitcher Mike Boddicker to the Red Sox for minor leaguers Brady Anderson and Curt Schilling. » July 9, 1992: Baltimore's Brady Anderson and Mike Devereaux lead off the game against the Twins Scott Erickson with back-to-back homers. The Orioles go on to a 4–2 victory. » April 17, 1993: In the Orioles' 7-5 loss to the Angels, Baltimore winds up with three runners on 3rd base in a rare display of dumb baseball. With the bases loaded and one out, OF Mike Devereaux hits a fly ball which is trapped by CF Chad Curtis. Curtis throws home. Jeff Tackett, the baserunner on 3rd, returns to the base after running halfway home. Brady Anderson, who was on 2nd, advanced to 3rd. Chito Martinez, the baserunner on 1st, rounded 2nd and headed for 3rd. Angel C John Orton walked to 3rd where he tagged all three runners. Tackett was called out on a force, and Martinez was called out, completing the inning-ending double play. » April 26, 1994: Baltimore OF Brady Anderson gets four extra-base hits in his first four trips to the plate in the Orioles' 10-4 win over Oakland. Anderson's two doubles and two home runs all come while leading off an inning. Rafael Palmeiro and Chris Hoiles both homer to back Arthur Rhodes. » April 21, 1996: Dean Palmer's grand slam and 2-run homer lead Texas (13–4) to a 9–6 win over the Orioles and a sweep of the 3-game series. The O's Brady Anderson lead off the game with a home run, the 4th straight game he's socked a lead-off home run, and believed to be a major league record. » April 28, 1996: Visiting Texas scores four runs in the 10th and holds on for a 5–4 win over the Orioles. Baltimore's Brady Anderson cracks his 11th homer of April, joining Gary Sheffield, who hit his 11th of Friday, Willie Stargell (1971), Graig Nettles (1974), and Mike Schmidt (1976) as the only players to hit that many in the month. » May 1, 1996: The Yanks and Orioles continue their marathon play, this one going five hours and 43 minutes before ending at one a.m. Tino Martinez, whose homer snapped yesterday's tie, slugs a grand slam in the 15th to give reliever Andy Pettitte the win. Bernie Williams has five hits while Gerald Williams collects 6—just the 2nd Yankee to get six in a game; Myril Hoag in 1934, is the other. The O's and Yankees strand 15 runners in extra innings, as both teams squander scoring opportunities, and New York survives four errors by two second basemen. Jim Mecir strikes out Brady Anderson with the bases loaded in the 10th after going to a 3–0 count. Cal Ripken is lifted for a pinch runner in the 8th—who is promptly picked off—and sits for the last seven innings, the longest stretch he's rested in 2,180 games. » May 25, 1996: Oakland's Pedro Munoz belts the longest home run in the 5-year history of Camden Yards to lead the A's to a 6–3 win over the Orioles. The 463-foot shot to dead center comes in the 6th inning with two on, and breaks a 2–2 tie. Mark McGwire also homers for Oakland. The O's get two more homers from Brady Anderson, and a dinger from Mike Bordick, but that's all the scoring. » May 28, 1996: Cal Ripken powers three homers, good for eight RBI, to lead the Orioles to a 12–8 win over Seattle. Ripken hits a pair of two-run homers and a grand slam, tying him with Eddie Murray as the O's career home run leader with 333. Brother Billy Ripken also homers in the same inning with Cal, and Brady Anderson (19), Rafael Palmeiro, and Ken Griffey, Jr. (18) add homers as both teams total 24 hits. » September 15, 1996: Baltimore C Mark Parent homers in the 3rd inning of his team's 16-6 win over the Tigers. The homer gives the Orioles a new major league record of 241 for the season. The Birds have four other homers in the game, including Brady Anderson's 10th leadoff home run of the year, to total 243, three more than the 1961 Yankees. » September 29, 1996: The Blue Jays beat Baltimore on the final day of the season, 4–1, behind Pat Hentgen. Hentgen wins his 20th, joining Jack Morris as the 2nd Blue Jay pitcher in history to win 20. The O's only run is Brady Anderson's lead off home run, his 50th home run of the year. The Orioles end the year with a major-league record 257 home runs. Both the Mariners (245) and the A's (243) surpass the old record of 240, set by the 1961 Yankees. » November 1, 1996: The major league All-Star team opens their 8-game series in Japan with a 6–5 loss to the Japan All-Stars. Players include Cal Ripken, Sammy Sosa, Steve Finley, Brady Anderson, Barry Bonds, Mike Piazza, Hideo Nomo, Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, and Shane Reynolds. » September 16, 1997: Jimmy Key, 0–7 in his last nine starts at Camden Yards, beats the Cleveland Indians 7-2 to give the Orioles a split in a day-night doubleheader. Roberto Alomar has three hits and three RBIs and Brady Anderson and Rafael Palmeiro homer in the win. In the opener, Charles Nagy pitches five-hit ball into the seventh inning and Matt Williams drives home two runs to lead the Indians to a 4-2 victory. » October 2, 1997: The Orioles defeat the Mariners by a score of 9-3 for the second day in a row. Brady Anderson and Harold Baines hit home runs to lead the way. » October 8, 1997: The Orioles take Game one of the ALCS as Scott Erickson and Randy Myers combine to limit Cleveland to four hits in a 3-0 win. Brady Anderson and Roberto Alomar homer for Baltimore. » October 12, 1997: The Indians again score the winning run in their last at bat, coming back from a 4-2 deficit to defeat the Orioles, 8-7, for their 3rd straight win in the ALCS. Sandy Alomar drives home the winner with a single after hitting a 2-run homer earlier in the contest. He also scores from 2B on a wild pitch in the 5th. Brady Anderson, Harold Baines, Rafael Palmeiro hit homers off Jaret Wright in the 5th while Manny Ramirez goes deep for the Tribe. Jose Mesa blows his 2nd save in two days, but receives credit for the win. » August 7, 1998: The Orioles pound the Twins, 16–9, as OF Brady Anderson gets five hits, including two doubles and two homers, drives home four runs and scores 3. » September 16, 1998: Ken Griffey Jr. steals his 20th base of the season in a 4–1 victory over Oakland. He becomes just the 3rd player in history to record at least 50 home runs and at least 20 stolen bases in the same season. Willie Mays and Brady Anderson are the others. » May 23, 1999: The Orioles defeat the Rangers, 15-6, scoring 10 runs in the 1st inning. Baltimore OF Brady Anderson is hit by a pitch twice in the 1st to set an AL record. » May 23, 1999: The Orioles Brady Anderson joins Willard Schmidt (1959) and Frank Thomas (1961) as the only batters hit by a pitch twice in one inning. The O's beat Texas, 15–6. » August 21, 1999: In a doubleheader with the White Sox, Orioles Brady Anderson leads off each game with a homer. This is the 3rd time in ML history and the first since Rickey Henderson on July 5, 1993. It's little help, however, as the Sox win both, 4–3 and 8–5. » September 28, 2000: The Orioles roast the Blue Jays, 23-1, to eliminate Toronto from any possible spot in the playoffs. The 23 runs scored is a O's team record. The Orioles score 10 runs in the 4th inning, highlighted by Brady Anderson's 200th career home run. Darrin Fletcher hits his 20th homer of the year for Toronto, giving the Blue Jays seven players with 20 or more home runs on the season. That ties the AL record set by Baltimore in 1996. » April 7, 2001: In the 10th against the Indians, the Orioles shift LF Delino DeShields behind 2B with one out and the bases loaded. RF Brady Anderson moves to shallow LF and CF Melvin Mora moves to right center. Jolbert Cabrera hits a fly near the LF line to Anderson who fires a strike to get the surprised runner Ellis Burks trying to score. The O's score two in the top of the 11th to win, 4–2. » May 16, 2001: Rickey Henderson leads off with a home run, extending his major-league record for leadoff home runs to 79. This more than twice the total for the #2 and #3 players on the list: Brady Anderson (44), and Bobby Bonds (35). » December 7, 2001: The Orioles sign free agent OF Brady Anderson to a 1-year contract.