Tyler Anderson has been here before.
Growing up in Las Vegas, the high school Anderson attended — Spring Valley — opened its doors for the first time during his freshman year in 2004. In college at the University of Oregon, Anderson was one of several Ducks players who helped the program return to NCAA competition in 2009 following a 26-year hiatus.
Anywhere the left-handed pitcher has been baseball-wise, it seems that establishing or building a culture has been the focal point. It should be no different with Anderson’s new team, the Pirates, who signed him to a one-year, $2.5 million deal that was finalized Wednesday morning.
“I love the idea because I’ve been through it a few times, and it’s fun,” Anderson said of getting in on the ground floor. “Guys are searching for something, and it’s really easy to create that identity together.”
Anderson may have experience in this sort of situation, although manager Derek Shelton said that had nothing to do with why the Pirates signed the 31-year-old who has made 82 career starts for the Rockies and Giants.
The two biggest reasons why the Pirates added Anderson to their starting rotation involve his ability to command four pitches and the type of character they believe he has.
“There are a couple things I like,” Shelton explained. “Number 1, he’s left-handed. He has the ability to locate all four of his pitches, and he’s also a guy who’s pitched in the National League for a little bit. He threw nearly 60 innings last year. That’s a good chunk of innings in a 60-game season.”
Anderson technically logged 59 2/3 innings with the Giants in 2020, going 4-3 with a 4.27 ERA in 13 games (11 starts). He was 3-0 with a 2.75 ERA over his last four starts.
The highlight was a complete-game victory over Arizona on Aug. 22, when Anderson gave up just three hits, and he was one of only five pitchers in Major League Baseball to have four or more games of least five innings pitched and no earned runs allowed.
But again, as Shelton said, the ability was only part of the equation.
“We did some research on the person and came back with really positive stuff,” Shelton said. “I had the opportunity to talk to him at length [Wednesday]. It’s nice to add him to the mix.”
Anderson will bring a couple of important things to the Pirates, but the biggest might be his health. He’s dealt with left knee ailments throughout his career, but surgery to correct a cartilage issue in 2019 seemingly fixed the problem.
After passing a physical to finalize the deal, Anderson talked a little about what he was thinking while his knee throbbed and how that limited his ability to pitch.
“To be able to go out there and be healthy and take the mound, you just have freedom of mind, some clarity, and you can go out there and focus on the things you need to focus on, instead of worrying, like, ‘Can I walk back to the dugout after that?’” Anderson said. “You just go out there and worry about executing pitches.”
To his credit, Anderson has proven at various points in his career that he can be extremely effective when he’s healthy. A first-round pick by Colorado in 2011 (20th overall), Anderson was worth 3.2 Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball Reference, during his debut season in 2016.
That year, Anderson made 19 starts and totaled 114 1/3 innings, pitching to a career-low 3.54 ERA with 99 strikeouts and just 28 walks. Once the injuries kicked in, Anderson’s performance dipped. It also probably didn’t help that he was pitching in hitter-friendly Coors Field.
Between 2017-19, Anderson made 52 starts and gave up 54 home runs, including a National League-worst 30 in 2018. Thankfully for the Pirates, the home run balls have seemingly gone away, with Anderson giving up just five in his 59 2/3 innings with the Giants, producing a career-low home run rate of 0.8 per nine innings.
When Anderson is most effective, it does not involve him overpowering hitters. His four-seam fastball averaged just 90.3 mph in 2020. With a unique hitch in his delivery, Anderson is most effective by using his four-seamer, changeup, cutter and curveball in various counts and being precise with his location.
Nibbling burned Anderson at times in Denver, where walks could grow costly in a hurry. He saw the opposite of that in San Francisco last season and should enjoy similar, pitcher-friendly benefits in Pittsburgh.
“You have an opportunity to pick your spots to pitch a little more, so for me it’s fun,” Anderson said.
The Pirates building a winning culture isn’t the only thing that reminds Anderson of home. He’s staying this spring with left-handed reliever Chasen Shreve. The two grew up together and played on youth baseball teams in Nevada.
In Pittsburgh, Anderson and Shreve are amazingly two of the veteran voices at Pirate City, guys entrusted with setting an example for pitchers and also stabilizing what figures to be a young — but talented — group.
“Honestly, I’ve had this my whole life,” Anderson said. “I know they want to create a winning culture. It will be fun to go through this together, create that and see what we can do.”
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: February 17, 2021, 8:51 p.m.