Tim Anderson’s big step forward in 2018 is keeping pace with MLB shortstops

Shortstops across all of Major League Baseball have taken a significant step forward in production from last year. In 2017, 22 shortstops merit enough playing time to be considered for the batting title. Other teams either had platoons or suffered injuries not to have a dedicated player at the position. From those 22 players, they averaged out to these results:

After the first half in 2018, shortstops are faring much better as a collective group. The average shortstop is on pace to hit more home runs, score more runs, drive in more runs, steal more bases, increase wRC+ by nine points, and be a full win above replacement better than 2017. 2018 season-to-date average shortstop numbers are below:

Francisco Lindor was tied with Corey Seager last year with the best fWAR total in 2017 at 5.4. After 82 games in 2018, Lindor is already at 5.0 fWAR. Andrelton Simmons is at 3.5 fWAR, Jean Segura is at 3.1 fWAR, and despite his poor defense at the position, Manny Machado is at 2.9 fWAR. Lindor, Simmons, and Segura are on pace to crush last year's season bests, and Machado is on pace for a 5.8 fWAR season. The quality of play from shortstops, except for Alcides Escobar, has taken a big step forward.

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One of those shortstops stepping up his game is Tim Anderson. If you listened to the Sox Machine Podcast earlier this week when we gave out our first half awards, you already know that both Jim Margalus and I declared that Anderson was the White Sox best position player after 81 games. For me, it was a pretty easy decision. Anderson was the team leader in WAR displaying an increase ability to hit home runs while still being a pest for opponents swiping bases. He has improved his on-base percentage where it's better than Yolmer Sanchez and Yoan Moncada's.

In a year where White Sox fans can't have nice things (see the Minor League injury report), to see Anderson enjoy this type of success is uplifting. He is crushing his numbers from 2017.

A 26-point increase in wRC+ is eye-opening. So is a 36 point increase in OBP. Making this even more impressive is that Anderson's BABIP is down currently sitting at .302. Last year, it was .328. If Anderson in the second half can get his BABIP close to last year, there's an opportunity for him to get his batting average in the .270's, have an on-base percentage higher than .325, and slugging around .450. Despite taking a big step forward for Anderson in the first half, there's still ample opportunity to post even better numbers.

Even looking at the more advanced numbers and you can see new jumps in performance.

When comparing Anderson to the rest of his fellow shortstops around the league, he's . . . average. Which is good! In 2017, Anderson was the third worst shortstop only ahead of Dansby Swanson and Jose Peraza. Now, he's almost been just as good as Addison Russell.

To go from one of the worst, and now challenging for the title of best shortstop in Chicago, well that almost makes up for all of the misery watching the White Sox in 2018. If you are a fan searching for hope in these trying times, Anderson is providing it. With overcoming personal tragedy in 2017, it's pretty remarkable how Anderson has performed in 2018. Is there still room for improvement? Yes, he can still work on cutting down on strikeouts and putting the ball in play more often. Yes, he could be more fundamentally sound throwing the ball to first base.

Even though shortstops across all of baseball have made significant improvements, Tim Anderson has kept up with the pace. The league hasn't passed him by, and there's still a chance he can even be better by continuing to make adjustments he's already working on. If you're searching for light in this season filled with darkness, look for #7. He's providing some.