Anderson showed some promise in his first game back with the Braves organization Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Braves Ian Anderson Shows Promise in Return to Organization

Originally posted on Atlanta Braves on SI
By Harrison Smajovits | Last updated May 6, 2025 5:26 PM ET

Ian Anderson took the mound in his return to the Atlanta Braves organization on Tuesday. It was a short outing, but he made the most of it. He pitched three innings of one-run ball allowing five hits and a walk while striking out two.

Some things went his way. A runner was thrown out at home to get the third out in the first inning. He got into trouble again in the second inning, but he limited the damage to the lone run. He also had a runner in scoring position in the third but he got two lineouts to end the inning.

It wasn’t the cleanest outing. Baserunners remain an issue. However, there are some hopeful indicators. The first is the lone walk. The other is that he threw 34 of his 56 pitches for strikes (60.7%).

Both go hand in hand and were an issue when he last pitched for the Braves in Spring Training. He allowed 20 walks in 20 innings pitched in Grapefruit League action.

Anderson now has to make sure he’s not leaving pitches over the plate when attacking the zone, but the idea is that he can figure it out.

He had similar troubles during his brief time as a reliever in Anaheim with the Los Angeles Angels. He gave up 17 hits in 9 1/3 innings pitched. His opponent’s average was .386, which is virtually the same as it was for Durham hitters in his return (.385).

A big indicator if he can find that return to form is his fastball. According to Baseball Savant, when Anderson was a shutdown pitcher in 2020 and 2021, his fastball had a putaway rate of 21.1% and 19% and a whiff rate of 15.2% and 21.3%. This season, he has a 9.5% putaway rate and an 8.9% putaway rate.

The spin rate on his fastball is down a tad, and in turn, it doesn’t have as much movement. The result is a lower strikeout rate and groundball rate with the pitch.

Fortunately for him, he’ll have the chance to work on it in the developmental minor league setting. The Braves will work to stretch him out more as he restarts his comeback arc that began in the Spring.