Leslie

Anderson

“He looks really good.” Maddon said. “He’s a different player than the last time I saw him.” A Cuban defector, Anderson homered Saturday and had a pair of hits Sunday. The 30-year-old batted .309/.355/.450 with 14 homers last season at Triple-A and will offer the Rays another option at first base should James Loney not work out.

Anderson is set to sign with a team in Asia. The 31-year-old Cuban defector batted .292/.372/.459 with 14 homers and 74 RBI last season at Triple-A Durham.

A Cuban defector, Anderson signed a four-year, $3.75 million deal with the Rays in March and had a batting line of .302/.359/.442 with 11 homers over 422 plate appearances across three levels, which included a .328/.359/.418 showing at Triple-A. He’ll turn 29 in March, so Anderson isn’t a young prospect despite being new to MLB. He’s a long shot but worth keeping an eye on this spring.

Anderson was removed from Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster last week after the Rays completed their free agent deal with Manny Ramirez. He passed through waivers, though, and is now back within the depths of the organization. The first baseman did not fare too well at the Triple-A level last season.

Anderson, 29 in March, got the boot to clear a 40-man roster spot for one of the Rays’ newest free agent signings -- either Manny Ramirez or Johnny Damon. The first baseman posted a rough .777 OPS in 30 games at Triple-A last year.