Whatever happened to the second Big Unit from the Seattle Mariners?

DeutscherGeist

I recall they had a very tall lanky guy that threw like the Big Unit in their farm system. He got hurt, but then made a comeback. Where is he? Is this another Brien Taylor story?

softparade

You mean Ryan Anderson? "Little Unit" and "Space Needle"

Torn rotator cuff in 2000, torn labrum in 2002, released by the Mariners in 2005.

STORY

Flip to page 415 in the Baseball America Prospect Handbook 2005 and you’ll find the Seattle Mariners “Organization Review.” (If you don’t have the Handbook, just click here)

The list at the top names the Seattle Mariners’ top prospects for each year since 1992. If you look at the past decade you’ll notice there are only five players: a fella named Alex Rodriguez, Jose Cruz Jr., Ryan Anderson, Rafael Soriano, and uber-prospect Felix Hernandez.

The five year stretch from 1998 through 2002 is dominated by just one name: Ryan Anderson. Yep, the Mariners’ top draft choice in 1997, Anderson rated as the team’s top prospect every year for five years.

All this makes the following line from Monday’s Associated Press wire service that much harder to believe:

The Mariners also released Ryan Anderson, a 6-10 lefty once compared to Randy Johnson.
The “Little Unit,” the “Space Needle,” a former first-round pick and highly-rated prospect, reduced to a throwaway line at the end of a story.

It’s remarkable, considering the hype that followed this kid – now 25-years old – for so many years.

He was the top pitching prospect entering the Major League Baseball draft in 1997, but his hometown team, the Detroit Tigers, passed on him because of signability issues, instead selecting college pitcher Matt Anderson (a move that also has failed). Other teams passed on the 6-foot-10 high schooler as well, worried about money and his attitude. So when he fell to the Seattle Mariners at 19, it seemed like destiny. The Mariners already had Randy Johnson, the Big Unit. Now they had their Little Unit.

So before he had thrown a pitch in the minors, much less the majors, Anderson had two nicknames, a $2,175,000 signing bonus and a questionable reputation.

And at first, none of that slowed him. Anderson tore through the minor leagues, making it to Class AAA Tacoma in 2000; he seemed poised to join the Mariners for the stretch run. In 349 minor league innings, he struck out 460 batters and allowed only 300 hits.

Three times, Baseball American named Anderson the top pitching prospect in all of baseball. And in 2000, he started in the Futures Game.

Surely, someone in your fantasy league had drafted him. There was no way folks were going to miss on the next Randy Johnson.

Then in July 2000, the day after one of the best games of his seemingly promising career, Anderson felt a twinge in his shoulder while playing catch with a teammate. He didn’t think much of it, until he felt it again the next day. Turns out Anderson had a torn rotator cuff in his throwing shoulder that required surgery.

That injury kept him out all of 2001, and then he tore his labrum in Spring Training of 2002, which wiped out 2002 after surgery. Anderson’s problems with the shoulder continued, he had more surgery and missed all of 2003.

All said, the Little Unit hasn’t pitched in a competitive game since an aborted attempt to play on Sept. 4, 2000.

All of a sudden the attitude problem that raised red flags early in his career became a very serious problem. Mariners officials groused that the crown jewel of their farm system wasn’t working hard enough in rehabilitation, claiming that caused the lingering shoulder problems. They even set up a meeting with Anderson’s idol, Randy Johnson (at that point with the Arizona Diamondbacks), to talk about hard work and preparation.

It hit home for the Little Unit, who, while still a prospect, was no longer a kid.

"You take things for granted,'' Anderson told ESPN.com’s Jim Caple in 2003."I thought I was invincible. That was wrong, but I was young and dumb.''

Meanwhile, the braintrust was getting impatient. "At some point," manager Bob Melvin told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in March of 2003, "the scholarship is over and you have to earn something."

But he still hadn’t done enough to play in 2004, and he spent the season working out in Arizona, mostly working out and playing catch. The Mariners thought Anderson had made enough progress that they might get finally see some return on their big-money, long-term investment, and they signed him to a one-year minor league deal. Anderson would get another chance in Spring Training to show the Mariners what he had to offer.

Evidently, the Mariners were not impressed and gave up, finally releasing him on Opening Day, 2005. The Space Needle, once one of the surest of sure things among baseball prospects, out of baseball just months before his 26th birthday.

"We've been through the ups and downs with Ryan," Benny Looper, the Mariners' director of player development, told the Seattle Times on Monday. "It came down to the fact it was time for us both to move on."

The Fool wasn’t ready to move on.

I selected Anderson in the final round of last year’s fantasy draft and signed him to a three-year contract for $1. When healthy, he was the type of player I’d always lusted after – a power pitcher able to blow hitters away, racking up wins and strikeouts with impeccable control. Another guy in our league had kept Anderson for three years, expecting him to join the Mariners at any time. In 2004, I thought he was ready to come around and might make the majors. Of course, he didn’t. This year, I took another flyer on Anderson (we drafted in early March), again in the final round, because he was even cheaper than last year and I thought he might get a chance. At best, both draft selections were gambles. (A related note: in 2004 The Fool also drafted Josh Hamilton and Rick Ankiel; the franchise was feeling desperate)

Turns out The Fool had more faith in Anderson than the Mariners did. Of course, it’s only a buck of fantasy cash for me. To the Mariners, it was time, money, trainers, lingering disappointment . . . you name it. As Looper said, it was time to move on.

The Fool, however, has no such plans. Not this year. We haven’t heard from the Little Unit yet. What are his feelings, what does he want to do now? We should know soon. He’s available to every team in Major League Baseball. Will the Detroit Tigers take a flier on their former hometown prodigy? They’ve had a chance to do so before, but we’ll see. Perhaps a team with patient management and a great pitching coach, like the Atlanta Braves? It would seem like a nice fit, especially for this tomahawk-chopping Braves fan.

Until then, The Fool will refuse to admit the Ryan Anderson era has ended. The Little Unit still has a roster spot on my team. And maybe, just maybe, my dedication will pay off. Then won’t the Mariners feel silly?

Wabittwax

They say that Dave Duncan of the Cardinals can do wonders with pitching prospects. Maybe they would benefit from taking a chance on him.

DeutscherGeist

Thanks for informing me.


It sounds like another MLB is allowed to take him now. If he has a stubborn attitude, forget it. If he wants to work hard and prove himself, perhaps signing him to a one year Minor League contract is worth a gamble.


I agree, Dave Duncan can work miracles with pitchers. When Andy Benes was signed by the Cardinals, I knew he would do well and he did. He may had a inconsistent season, but he retired on his own terms as a strong pitcher.

I wish Jim Abbott was coached by him....we would have seen something special then.

Brian48

Isn't Ryan Anderson suppose to be a cook or something like that today?