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Anderson went 2-for-5 in his return to the lineup in Friday's 4-2 loss to the Orioles. He had been given a rest day Thursday.
Anderson's two singles Friday raised his average to .207, the second time this season he's crossed the Mendoza threshold. After making a nice splash in 2016, it appears the league has caught up to the 23-year-old shortstop the second time around. Pitchers are feeding him more sliders and it's resulting in more soft contact. Additionally, he's hitting just .171 against right-handers. Right-handers that throw sliders are pretty common in the majors. Anderson and the White Sox have seen a steady dose of AL Central foes, teams that may know Anderson better than others. Perhaps Anderson's bat can come alive when the schedule features more teams outside his division, but word about a hitter's deficiencies circulates pretty quickly around the league. Anderson will need to adjust to the increased diet of sliders he's seeing.
