Tim Anderson, former Chicago White Sox All-Star and AL batting champ, retiring after 10 seasons
Tim Anderson, a two-time All-Star and former American League batting champion with the Chicago White Sox, announced his retirement on Monday, after 10 seasons in Major League Baseball.
Anderson, 33, made the announcement on Monday.
"I fought for the last two, three years. You know, I trained and I just couldn't get the body to operate like it used to," Anderson said. "So I mean, I'm not one of those guys that's going to just continue to try to get back to somewhere where I just, you know, I couldn't get it back there."
Anderson finished his career with a .276 average, 98 home runs, 350 RBI, and 122 stolen bases. He played for the White Sox for eight seasons before finishing his career with injury-plagued stints with the Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels.
In eight seasons with the White Sox, he earned All-Star nods in 2021 and 2022, and won the AL batting title in 2019 with a .335 batting average. He finished in the top five in the AL in batting average the next three seasons.
He also won a Silver Slugger Award in the COVID-shortened 2020 season with a .322 average, 10 home runs, and 21 RBI in 49 games.
His most iconic moment with the White Sox came when he hit a walk-off home run into the corn against the Yankees in the inaugural Field of Dreams game in Iowa in 2021.
The White Sox will honor Anderson before their Sept. 17 game against the Detroit Tigers at Rate Field. Anderson will throw out the ceremonial first pitch, and the White Sox will wear their "Southside" City Connect jerseys which he helped popularize in 2021.
Anderson hasn't appeared in a major league game since May 25, 2025, with the Angels.
"I want to be open as I can, but the game (brought) a lot of pain, a lot of great moments," he said. "But just throughout playing, it definitely was a lot of dark moments. ... And it just got to the point where I really couldn't enjoy it. Just being in that setting, it just wasn't the same."
Anderson played with a heavy heart after a close friend was shot and killed in Alabama in 2017. During an interview on "The Pivot Podcast" in 2023, Anderson acknowledged having a child out of wedlock and going through therapy with his wife, Bria.
The White Sox said they will honor Anderson before their Sept. 17 game against Detroit. As part of the tribute, the team will wear its Nike City Connect "Southside" uniforms for the only time this season. The black-and-white uniforms with Gothic script and pinstripes were worn by Anderson and the White Sox when they won the AL Central in 2021.
Anderson said he's in a good spot now.
"I get to wake up and do whatever I want to. And that makes me happy," he said. "But as far as thinking about baseball, man, it's just, it's a lot."
Anderson was selected by Chicago with the No. 17 overall pick in the 2013 amateur draft. He made his big league debut in 2016 and quickly became one of baseball's bright young stars.
He hit a major league-best .335 with 18 homers and 56 RBIs in 2019. With the Alabama native sparking the lineup from the leadoff slot, Chicago made the playoffs in 2020 and 2021. But the team was never able to deliver on its potential.
Hampered by a sprained left knee and right shoulder soreness, Anderson hit .245 with one homer and 25 RBIs in 123 games with the White Sox in 2023. He also was suspended by Major League Baseball after he got into a fight with Cleveland slugger José Ramírez.
After Chicago finished with a 61-101 record in his final year with the team, Anderson had a $14 million option that was declined by the organization.