Chris

Anderson

Jim Callis of Baseball America reports that he will receive a bonus of $2,109,900, which matches the slot value assigned to the No. 18 overall pick. Anderson, drafted out of Jacksonville University, relies on a fastball-slider combination and has the potential to be a mid-rotation arm.

The hope with Anderson is that he’s a workhorse middle-of-the-rotation guy with his sinker-slider combination. He’s probably not going to come as quickly as the college pitchers drafted ahead of him, but the Dodgers took him right where he was expected to be drafted.

Anderson was taken by the Dodgers in the first round of the 2013 Draft, but he hasn’t panned out and was released by them earlier this month. He holds a career 4.37 ERA over parts of four seasons in the minors.

Anderson, the club’s first round pick from 2013 has never progressed as hoped and sported a 4.37 ERA and 1.50 WHIP across four minor league seasons.

Anderson allowed just two hits (both singles), but walked four batters. His 10.4 K/9 are great, but his 8.6 BB/9 is troubling, as it leads to a 1.841 WHIP for the season. Anderson has the potential to be a solid mid-rotation workhorse starter, but his command is bordering on unacceptable and he will have to make significant improvements before he can be discussed by the indomitable Vin Scully.

The right-hander struck out four batters and walked one in the outing. In his previous start, Anderson allowed three unearned runs on three walks and failed to escape the first inning. The No. 18 overall pick in the 2013 draft, Anderson has pitched to a 4.82 ERA, .285 BAA and 77-37 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 71 innings this season for Rancho Cucamonga.

Anderson, the team’s first-round draft pick last June, struck out seven and walked two. After struggling through his first three starts with an ugly 10/10 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 8 2/3 innings, the right-hander has put things together over his last three outings, with a 2.25 ERA and 22/6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 16 innings. The 22-year-old has the potential to be a mid-rotation innings eater that can also miss his share of bats, but he’ll need to simply his delivery (especially from the stretch) and improve his overall control and command along the way.

The Dodgers made Anderson the No. 18 overall pick in the 2013 draft, and the 23-year-old went on to have a solid professional debut at Low-A Great Lakes, posting a 1.96 ERA and 50/24 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 46 innings (12 starts). The right-hander’s outing on Tuesday was a step up from his season debut on April 3, when he allowed three runs on three hits and two walks and failed to escape the first inning.

The 23-year-old was making his third appearance in Cactus League play and performed reasonably well, allowing four hits and a walk while striking out two. The Dodgers are simply getting a better look at the right-hander, as he spent a full season at Single-A for the first time last season.

Anderson, 22, has had a challenging season in the hitter-friendly California League, as his inconsistent fastball command has produced a 1.62 WHIP behind 136 hits (.290 BAA), 60 walks (4.5 BB/9) and nine hit batsmen over 120 2/3 innings. That being said, the right-hander still has shown an ability to miss bats (9.3 K/9) and made each of his starts. Anderson projects as a mid-rotation innings eater at maturity with the floor of a hard-throwing, late-inning reliever.