Anderson attended Spring Valley High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he played four seasons of varsity baseball. While serving as the assistant coach for the Oregon Ducks baseball team, Andrew Checketts discovered Anderson while pitching against a rival high school. The Minnesota Twins selected Anderson in the 50th round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft, but he did not sign. Anderson enrolled at the University of Oregon as a political science major, and played college baseball for the Ducks. In 2010, his sophomore year, he was named to the Pac-10 All-Conference Team with a 2.98 ERA, and his 105 strikeouts were a new Oregon single-season record, and ranked sixth in the Pac-10. In 2011, Anderson's junior year, Louisville Slugger named Anderson a Second Team All-American and he was named to the Pac-10 All-Conference Team, after he had an 8-3 record and set two Oregon single-season records. pitching 107.2 innings while striking out 114 batters, with a 2.17 ERA while holding opposing batters to a.201 batting average. In three seasons, Anderson became the Ducks' all-time leader in strikeouts with 285.
Professional career
Colorado Rockies
The Rockies selected Anderson in the first round, with the 20th overall selection, of the 2011 MLB draft, and he signed for a signing bonus of $1.4 million. After pitching for the Asheville Tourists of the South Atlantic League in 2012, Anderson was named an SAL Post-Season All-Star. In 20 starts, he was 12-3 with a 2.47 ERA. Prior to the 2013 season, MLB named him the 6th-best prospect in the Rockies system. He spent the 2013 season with the Tri-City Dust Devils and the Modesto Nuts, going 4-3 with a 2.81 ERA in 16 total starts between both teams. During the season, he suffered a stress fracture in his elbow, and the Rockies had him on a strict pitch limit in 2014. Pitching for the Tulsa Drillers in 2014, Anderson had a 7-4 record with a 2.08 ERA and 100 strikeouts in innings pitched, and was named the Texas League Pitcher of the Year. He was added to the Rockies' 40-man roster on November 20, 2014. The stress fracture in Anderson's elbow prevented him from participating in spring training in 2015, and he also missed the rest of the season. He began 2016 with the Hartford Yard Goats and was promoted to the Albuquerque Isotopes in late May. On June 11, 2016, the Rockies called up Anderson and placed Jake McGee on the disabled list. Anderson made his MLB debut the following day. He spent the remainder of the season with the Rockies, going 5-6 with a 3.54 ERA in 19 starts. In 2017, Anderson's first full season in the major leagues, he was 6-6 with a 4.81 ERA in 17 games. He missed the last three months of the season due to left knee inflammation that required arthroscopic surgery. In 2018 he was 7-9 with a 4.55 ERA in 32 starts in which he pitched 176 innings. He led the major leagues in stolen bases of third base allowed, with seven, while also leading the NL in home runs allowed, with 30. He began the 2019 season in the Rockies rotation but was quickly placed on the disabled list with knee inflammation. He came off the disabled list a week later and made five starts before being demoted to AAA. He was placed on the disabled list after the demotion due to continued knee discomfort. On June 11 he underwent major season-ending surgery for to correct a chondral defect in his left knee, which was expected to require a lengthy recovery time. In 2019 with the Rockies he was 0-3 with an 11.76 ERA in five starts covering innings in which he struck out 23 batters.
On October 30, 2019, Anderson was claimed off waivers by the San Francisco Giants. On December 2, Anderson was non-tendered and became a free agent. The following day, on December 3, Anderson re-signed with the Giants on a one-year major league contract. The contract calls for a $1,775,000 salary plus $500,000 in possible roster bonuses and $350,000 in possible performance bonuses based on number of innings pitched.
