take that

Tim Anderson flipped the bat again on Friday night. This one seemed more appropriate for the moment. Anderson, the former East Central Community College star, belted his first career walk-off home run to give the Chicago White Sox a 12-11 victory over Detroit. Anderson generated a little — a lot? — of controversy with his bat-flip on April 17 (see previous post). Friday’s flip, a virtual replay of the other, set off a wild celebration of a wild comeback win by the ChiSox. “I knew I had to do it,” Anderson told mlb.com. Anderson went 4-for-6 with three runs, two RBIs and his MLB-best 10th stolen base. He also made two sterling defensive plays at shortstop in the top of the ninth inning, setting the stage for his two-out game-winning bomb. “I want those moments,” he said. Anderson led ECCC to an MACJC championship in 2013 and then was picked in the first round of the draft by Chicago. He reached the big leagues in 2016 and may well be blossoming as an All-Star this season. He is batting .402 with five homers, 16 RBIs and 20 runs. For the record, Richton High product JaCoby Jones hit his first home run of the year for Detroit, which led 9-2 at one point, and ex-Mississippi State standout Hunter Renfroe hit a game-winning homer for San Diego. But from a Mississippi perspective, this night belonged to Tim Anderson.