MN Daily: Gophers baseball and their well-established MLB pipeline
Since John Anderson became the coach in the fall of 1981, Minnesota baseball has produced over 100 MLB draft picks. The Gophers hold the longest streak in the Big Ten with 36 straight seasons with a draftee.
Anderson arrived on campus in 1974 with hopes of playing for Gophers legend Dick Siebert.
Instead, Anderson received a coaching opportunity under two Minnesota legends in Siebert and George Thomas. Thomas left in 1981 and the head coaching reins were turned over to Anderson.
Now over 40 years later, Anderson still manages the Gophers at Siebert Field, named after his mentor.
Anderson has produced high-level talent every year he has been the head coach. Player development has been a point of emphasis for Anderson while at Minnesota.
“I think the one thing I learned from Dick Siebert and George Thomas really young was, in this program, if you want to have a good program and have good players and teams, you gotta be really good at player development,” Anderson said.
Minnesota’s ability to turn projects into stars at a staggering rate has resulted in the 36-season streak of MLB players.
The streak started in 1988 with Jay Kvasnicka and has continued today through centerfielder Brett Bateman and pitcher George Klassen. The Chicago Cubs selected Bateman in the eighth round while the Philadelphia Phillies selected Klassen two rounds earlier.
Minnesota’s head coach, a recently drafted Gopher and a professional scout talk about the reasons behind the baseball program’s 36 consecutive years of producing MLB Draft picks.
mndaily.com
Go Gophers!!
