Home
The Seattle Mariners have picked Kade Anderson as the No.3 pick in this year's draft on Sunday, July 13th. His heroics which saw LSU lift the College World Series title this year was the main reason behind why the Mariners went for him.
Who is Kade Anderson?
LSU were the winner during the 2023 season as well, which saw Paul Skenes get drafted as the No.1 pick. Anderson will be hoping to replicate his performances and follow in the footsteps of Skenes after being acclaimed by the MLB pundits as one of the best pitching prospect heading into the draft.
Since December, Anderson's draft has seen a rise, when he was ranked No. 44. After pitching as a midweek starter to being the reliever during the weekends for most of 2024, he became the Tigers' first choice as their pitching prospect.
He pitched in 16 innings during College World Series, which includes a 1-0 shutout against Coastal Carolina in the first game, where he managed 130 pitches. He recorded a 12-1 record with a 3.18 ERA and 180 strikeouts most in Division-1 for all eligible pitchers. Due to his impressive performances, he was awarded as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Kade Anderson is a native of Slidell, Louisiana. He has been a force to reckon with since his high school days. He started pitching at St. Paul's School in Covington, where he held a 28-1 record with a 0.22 ERA and 212 strikeouts until his senior year, which he had to miss due to Tommy John surgery.
Anderson is a southpaw and has armory in his arsenal. He has a fastball that averages 92-94 mph which is known to be lethal. When it comes to change, he has two breaking balls, a curveball and a slider, that are known to be above average.
What kind of pitcher is Kade Anderson?
After being drafted by the Seattle Mariners, Anderson gave a brief understanding to what kind of a pitcher he is and can bounce back after having couple of bad spells.
I think it's easy to determine a pitcher based on when you're doing good, but I think the ultimate kind of factor for me is when it's not going well, what do you react like? Anderson said. And just to continue to go out there and battle, and that's the kind of pitcher I am.
Anderson signed with the Mariners for a whopping $8.8 million bonus, leaving the team with $700,000 allotted for the No.3 spot, which they can now add to their bonus pool. They have the highest bonus pool after heading into the Day 2 of the Draft at $17,074,400.
ADVERTISEMENT
