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White Sox: Top 5 First Round Draft Picks in Franchise History

By Etheria Modacure

CHICAGO - APRIL 13: Designated hitter Frank Thomas
CHICAGO - APRIL 13: Designated hitter Frank Thomas /
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – APRIL 26: Tim Anderson #7 of the Chicago White Sox celebrates after hitting a walk-off home run in the 9th inning against the Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field on April 26, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. The White Sox defeated the Tigers 12-11. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – APRIL 26: Tim Anderson #7 of the Chicago White Sox celebrates after hitting a walk-off home run in the 9th inning against the Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field on April 26, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. The White Sox defeated the Tigers 12-11. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Tim Anderson

Tim Anderson was drafted with the 17th overall pick in the 2013 draft. Coming out of East Central Community College, Anderson was considered raw when he was drafted as he hadn’t played baseball for that long. Anderson was a point guard in basketball in high school but an injury would change the trajectory of his career afterward.

Anderson made his MLB debut in June of 2016 after an impressive minor league career. He hasn’t looked back ever since. In his rookie season, Anderson would finish seventh in American League Rookie of the Year voting. He had a .283/.306/.432 slash line in his rookie year with nine home runs, 30 RBIs and 10 stolen bases.

While Anderson had some success in his first season in MLB, he would find the adjustment to major league pitching to be very challenging. In his second and third seasons in the Majors, Anderson wouldn’t hit over .260 but he still showed improvement, especially in 2018. Last season, despite finishing with a .240 batting average, Anderson hit a career-high 20 home runs to go along with another career-high of 26 stolen bases.

Entering this season, Anderson not only stepped up as an emotional leader for the Sox, but he’s also proving to be one of the better first-round draft picks for this franchise. Through the first two months of this season, Anderson is hitting over .300 and already has over 10 stolen bases. He’s playing his way into his first All-Star Game appearance as well.

Not many Sox fans would have considered Anderson as one of the top first-round draft picks for the franchise before this season. But after his start to the 2019 season, it’s hard for any Sox fan to not agree that he should be considered as one of the top first-round draft picks for the Sox.

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