Brady Anderson

Through the 2021 season, Brady Anderson is the only player in the history of Major League Baseball to amass at least 20 home runs and 50 stolen bases in one season, and at least 50 homers and 20 steals in another. Anderson usually batted leadoff over a 15-year career (1988-2002) spent almost entirely with the Baltimore Orioles. The three-time All-Star outfielder led the American League in Power/Speed Number twice and finished among the top four five times.1

Outside of Anderson’s 50-homer campaign in 1996, he never went deep more than 24 times in any other season. That gave rise to suspicion of illegally enhanced performance, which Anderson firmly denied. “Nothing can be considered a fluke that takes six months to accomplish,” he said. “Rather it was a culmination of all my athleticism and baseball skills and years of training peaking simultaneously.”2

On January 18, 1964, in Silver Spring, Maryland, Brady Kevin Anderson was born two months prematurely, weighing just four pounds.3 He was the only child of Jerry Anderson and the former Sharon Brady, and he grew up in Southern California after moving there during infancy. Jerry operated his own nursery business before becoming a financial planner, while Sharon was an insurance underwriter. They divorced when Brady was three.

Anderson remained close to both of his parents, but he was mainly raised by his father, who had run track at the University of California, Santa Barbara.4 Jerry’s younger brother Kevin became a world class fastpitch softball player. Between his father and his uncle, Brady – the type of boy who enjoyed playing sports more than watching them – rarely lacked for a willing partner. “We wouldn’t let him just win,” Jerry said. “And he loved it.”5 Jerry coached several of his son’s teams and declined a career promotion that would have cut into their time together. “From the time he was three ’til Brady’s junior year of college, I didn’t miss one of his baseball games,” he said.6

Growing up, Anderson tried surfing, skateboarding, ice hockey, and tennis. He was briefly a Pop Warner League quarterback but two exits from the field on a stretcher wearing a neck brace ended his football career.7 At Carlsbad High School, located about 35 miles north of San Diego on the Pacific coast, Anderson earned three letters as a guard in basketball, but baseball was his primary sport. He was the Lancers’ most valuable player as a freshman and sophomore and received All North County recognition as a junior and senior.8 While Anderson was listed at 6-foot-1, 199 pounds in the majors, he weighed just 145 at the time, and he wasn’t drafted despite compiling a .511 batting average as a 1982 senior.9 He accepted a scholarship to attend the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and majored in economics.10

UCI did not post a winning record in any of his three seasons.11 But Anderson impressed from his first practice, charging into fences in pursuit of fly balls. “He was such a scrawny kid, but he was a gem,” recalled Anteaters coach Mike Geragos.12 Anderson, a lefty-hitting and throwing outfielder-first baseman, batted a team-leading .345 as a 1984 sophomore, prompting Geragos to call him a “genuine pro prospect.”13 Following Anderson’s junior year, the Boston Red Sox selected him in the 10th round of the June 1985 amateur draft. He was signed by scout Joe Stephenson.14

Anderson reported to the Elmira (New York) Pioneers and led the rookie-level New York-Penn League with 67 walks in his 71 games, good for a .437 on-base percentage. On July 29, he joined the Red Sox for the annual Hall of Fame Game exhibition at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown. He hit the ball hard twice and threw out a runner at home plate.15 His overall batting average for Elmira, however, was just .256. “I found out that really there’s not that big a difference in talent in the minor leagues,” he said. “A lot of it depended on how hard you want to work.”16 That offseason, Anderson eliminated fats and simple sugars from his diet, opting for greens and protein shakes over fast food and sodas. He lifted weights and hired a track coach for $200 per session to help him improve his speed.17

With the Winter Haven Red Sox in 1986, Anderson was voted the best power hitter, defensive outfielder, and baserunner in the Class-A Florida State League.18 In 126 games, he hit .319 with 44 steals and an FSL-leading .963 OPS.19 “To watch him defensively is more of a treat than to watch his offensive capabilities,” remarked Winter Haven GM Dick Radatz Jr. “He’s consistently spectacular.”20

Anderson advanced to the Double-A Eastern League in 1987 with the New Britain (Connecticut) Red Sox. His manager, Dave Holt, described him as “very intense. … It’s more like leadership by example than voice. But he makes plays that can fire up an entire team or stadium.”21 Mark Grace of the Pittsfield Cubs said, “Me and my manager [Jim Essian] were talking today and he said, “I wish I had nine Brady Andersons on my team.’ I couldn’t agree more.”22 Anderson severely sprained his right ankle lifting weights in the clubhouse on June 5 and was limited to 52 games.23 After healing, he was promoted to the Triple-A International League and finished the season by hitting .380 in 23 contests with the Pawtucket (Rhode Island) Red Sox.

During the winter of 1987-88, Anderson joined the Potros de Tijuana of the Mexican Pacific League and batted .345 in 37 games.24 Baseball America rated Anderson the American League East Division’s top prospect for 1988.25 “He’s going to become a fan favorite,” raved Red Sox GM Lou Gorman. “He’s a dirty uniform kind of guy.”26 Anderson’s mother – who’d grown up as a Red Sox fan in Marblehead, Massachusetts – obtained an autographed baseball from Carl Yastrzemski inscribed, “You have a fine son.”27

Following Ellis Burks’s spring-training ankle surgery, Anderson led off and played center field on April 4, 1988, at Fenway Park. He thus became the first Boston player to make his big-league debut on Opening Day since Joe Lahoud in 1968. The Red Sox lost to the Detroit Tigers, but Anderson singled three times against future Hall of Famer Jack Morris.

Anderson started 41 of Boston’s first 49 games, but a slump sank his batting average to .230. He was demoted to Pawtucket and hit .287 in 49 contests through July 29, when he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for former 20-game winner Mike Boddicker. Boston had recently climbed back into contention. “I hope Brady Anderson becomes a great player, but we have a chance to win a pennant,” Gorman explained.28

“One day, they’ll regret the way they handled Brady,” predicted Curt Schilling, the Double-A pitcher whom Boston also included in the deal. “I just hope I’ll be able to do enough to make it doubly bad for them.”29 Schilling went on to win 216 games in the majors – just one for Baltimore – while Boddicker helped Boston win two division titles. Anderson finished the season as the Orioles’ primary center fielder and batted .198 in 53 games. “The Baltimore players didn’t quite know what to make of Anderson when he arrived,” recalled beat writer Tim Kurkjian. “He was very quiet, and he caried a black bag that contained vitamins and a blender, in which he mixed health drinks.”30 Overall, Anderson legged out six bunt singles and ranked sixth in the AL with 11 sacrifice hits.31

After a promising beginning to 1989, Anderson slumped his way into reserve duty by midseason, followed by a demotion to the IL’s Rochester (New York) Red Wings for the last three weeks of August. After suffering 107 losses the previous year, the Orioles contended for the AL East title until the final weekend, but Anderson started just three times after July 31 and batted .207 in 94 games.

Entering 1990, righty-hitting Mike Devereaux and future five-time Gold Glover Steve Finley were Baltimore’s top center field options. Anderson – limited by a spring training shoulder injury, an ankle sprain in June, and the presence of veteran Phil Bradley in left – made just 60 plate appearances before the All-Star break.32 After the sub-.500 Orioles traded Bradley on July 30, Anderson started most of the remaining games, but he batted .174 after August 1.

In January 1991, Baltimore traded Finley, Schilling, and pitcher Pete Harnisch to the Houston Astros for slugging first baseman Glenn Davis. Center field still belonged to Devereaux, though, and converted first baseman Randy Milligan and veteran Joe Orsulak both received left-field trials before May 28, when Anderson went onto the disabled list with a pulled hamstring and a .147 batting average.33 Anderson wasn’t much better after returning, and the Orioles demoted the 27-year-old to Triple-A on August 20.

Since Anderson had turned professional, people had tinkered with his swing, hoping to make better use of his speed. “We wanted him to be a Brett Butler type, hit ground balls the other way,” explained Baltimore manager Johnny Oates.34 Anderson reflected later, “It’s not like the coaches got together and said, ‘Let’s really mess up Brady’… I always tried too hard. I just needed to break everything down to its simplest components and let my ability take over.”35 At Rochester, he told manager Greg Biagini, “I’m sick of bunting; I’m sick of slapping the ball to left. I’m going to stand up straight, swing the bat hard, and let the ball go where it goes.”36 Anderson batted .385 after the Orioles recalled him in September, but it wasn’t enough to spare him a dubious distinction. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he’d become “the first outfielder in major-league history to bat .231 or lower in each of his first four seasons” while playing at least 60 games in the field.37 “Those struggles were actually the foundation for me as a ballplayer becoming even more determined,” Anderson said.38

When Anderson saw the movie Field of Dreams, a line that Burt Lancaster’s Moonlight Graham character uttered haunted him: “We just don’t know the most significant moments of our lives while they’re happening. At the time, you think there’ll be other days.”39 To play regularly, Anderson was willing to sign a two-year contract with a Japan Pacific League club that offseason, but the deal fell apart when the Orioles demanded more money than the agreed upon sum from the Lotte Orions.40 Meanwhile, Anderson cross-trained in California with his roommate and former teammate René Gonzales, mixing in track and field sessions with weightlifting, racquetball, and basketball.41 Anderson called it “one of the happiest athletic accomplishments of my life,” when he bested world-class sprinter Marty Krulee in three of four 40-yard races.42

When Anderson arrived at spring training in 1992, his new, long sideburns made an immediate impression.43 They made him resemble Luke Perry, one of the stars of the popular teen television drama Beverly Hills, 90210. “I’ve never seen that show. I’m not trying to look like Luke Skywalker in Beverly Hills Cop,” he insisted, crediting his “funky” barber for the change.44 The sideburns became Anderson’s signature look and appeared just in time for his breakout season.

Oates made Anderson the everyday left fielder and leadoff hitter and brushed off his early struggles by saying, “Don’t judge yet. Let’s see what he can do.”45 No Oriole had hit two triples in the same game since Al Bumbry in 1973, but Anderson did it twice in one week before April was over. By the time the All-Star Game was played that summer near Anderson’s hometown in San Diego, he’d earned a spot on the AL squad. The league’s managers voted him the third best defensive outfielder behind perennial Gold Glovers Ken Griffey Jr. and Devon White.46 Baltimore was just a half-game behind the first-place Toronto Blue Jays in September before finishing third, and Anderson topped the team with 100 runs scored. His 159 games and 98 walks were career highs and, by compiling 21 home runs, 53 stolen bases and 80 RBIs, he became the first player in AL history with at least 20/50/75 in the same season.47 That winter, Anderson won 100-meter and 200-meter sprint competitions at track meets in California.48

In 1993, the Orioles were nine games under .500 and 10 games out of first place by June 1, and Anderson’s batting average was .222. He heated up along with his teammates over the next three weeks, then contracted chicken pox and missed 15 contests.49 Baltimore finished third again after pulling within one game of Toronto on September 8. The Orioles rewarded Anderson with a three-year, $10.25 million contract after he wound up batting .263 with 13 homers and 24 steals following a strong second half.50

Anderson’s production was similar in 1994. After being thrown out on one-third of his stolen base attempts the previous year, though, he swiped 31 bags in 32 tries – the best success rate (96.9 %) in major-league history for a player with at least 25 steals.51 The Orioles were in second place behind the New York Yankees in August when the season ended prematurely because of a players’ strike.

On June 12, 1995, Anderson succeeded on his 34th straight steal attempt (dating back to the previous year) to break Tim Raines’s AL record. His string reached 36 before he was caught, but Raines reclaimed the mark that summer and extended it to 40.52 Anderson finished among the AL’s top 10 in runs scored, walks, doubles, and triples, and enjoyed one of his most memorable moments. On September 6 – the night that Cal Ripken Jr. surpassed Lou Gehrig by playing in his 2,131st consecutive game – Anderson honored his teammate with a three-minute speech before the sellout crowd at Camden Yards. It had taken him 10 hours to write, and he’d practiced it on the telephone with his mom.53 Since joining the Orioles as a rookie, Anderson studied Ripken’s practice habits and interactions with fans, and the pair had become close friends. “I asked myself, ‘How can he be so solid in everything he does?’” Anderson recalled. “We’re a lot alike in that neither of us needs to lean on other people.”54

That offseason, Anderson built a new home in Lake Tahoe with a gym in the basement.55 The Orioles moved him back to center field in 1996 and he went deep 11 times in April – including the only walk-off blast of his career, as well as homers to lead off a major-league record four straight games. By the time he started the All-Star Game in place of the injured Griffey on July 9, Anderson had already connected for a career-high 30 round-trippers, “Brady always had a fly-ball swing, which he was criticized for as a leadoff hitter, but that year he was right on the ball,” Ripken observed. “He was just in one of those grooves.”56

Following a victory in Boston on July 18, Anderson was hospitalized with a suspected case of appendicitis. Some doctors recommended surgery that could have sidelined him for up to two months.57 As it happened, he missed just four games and helped the Orioles rally from a sub-.500 record on July 26 to make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years. In the regular-season finale at Toronto, Anderson broke Bobby Bonds’ 1973 record by leading off his 12th game of the season with a home run.58 It was his 50th homer overall, surpassing Frank Robinson’s single-season Orioles’ mark, and making him just the second major-leaguer with at least 50 homers and 20 steals in the same season.59 He also became the first big-leaguer to record both a 50-steal and a 50-homer season.60 “[Anderson] revels in the fact that he can get us on the board real quick,” remarked Baltimore manager Davey Johnson.61 By coincidence, Anderson’s 34-homer increase over two seasons had only been exceeded by Johnson – who improved from five homers in 1972 to 43 in 1973.62

Anderson led the AL with 92 extra-base hits in 1996, and his 110 RBIs, 117 runs scored, and .297 batting average were personal bests. He homered three times in the postseason, including a leadoff shot in Game One of Baltimore’s Division Series victory over the Cleveland Indians, but he batted just .190 in the ALCS, and the Orioles fell to the New York Yankees. That fall, Anderson traveled to Japan with a team of major-leaguers and went deep at the Tokyo Dome.63

Back in Baltimore, Anderson made his annual appearance at local tennis pro Pam Shriver’s charity tournament and paired with teammate Roberto Alomar in a doubles match against women’s standouts Monica Seles and Mary Joe Fernández. He also sparred with a professional boxer. During the season, Anderson often in-line skated to home games. “I only see what he does in the clubhouse,” said Orioles pitcher Mike Mussina. “But apparently, Brady works out all the time.”64

Anderson’s unprecedented power surge caused speculation that he could be using performance-enhancing drugs. “There was a part of me that regarded the steroid talk as a compliment,” he reflected in 2004. “Sort of like when the Brewers came into town in ’96 and were snooping around for my bats to see if they were corked.”65 Since 1991, Anderson had been one of baseball’s pioneering creatine users. The legal supplement was an amino acid, found naturally in meat and fish, that was popular with sprinters, cyclists, and weightlifters.66 Creatine helped athletes build muscle mass and recover from workouts more quickly. “Like a carbohydrate for the anaerobic system,” explained Penn State applied physiology professor William Kraemer.67 In 2004, Ripken noted, “Brady always had a much more advanced concept of cross-training and plyometrics and his diet. He was just ahead of the curve.”68 Tests measured Anderson’s vision at 20/12 prior to his historic season, and an even better 20/10 the following year. “What do you expect?” quipped Orioles’ broadcaster Mike Flanagan. “Brady lives on carrot juice.”69

In January 1997, Anderson’s stardom expanded through his appearance on the sitcom Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and his MVP performance in the MTV Rock ‘n’ Jock celebrity softball challenge.70 On March 24, however, he cracked a rib on his left side diving into first base during spring training.71 Nevertheless, he started on Opening Day and played 151 games despite the injury’s lingering effects.72 He hit just seven first-half homers (and 18 overall), but fans elected him an All-Star Game starter; he played all nine innings and stroked two hits.

Baltimore led the AL East from wire to wire and finished with a league-best 98-64 record. Anderson paced the club in doubles – with 39, a personal best – as well as runs scored, on-base percentage, hits, triples, and steals. In 10 postseason games, he batted .357 with three homers. The Orioles ousted the Seattle Mariners in the Division Series, but lost the ALCS for the second straight year, this time to Cleveland. Anderson became a free agent, but signed a five-year, $31 million deal in December to remain with Baltimore.73

The Orioles won 10 of their first 12 contests in 1998, but Anderson sprained his sternoclavicular joint during the season-opening homestand and slipped into a deep slump. He was batting .077 when he was placed on the disabled list on April 20 because, as new Baltimore manager Ray Miller explained, “I heard him scream in the middle of a swing.”74 Anderson returned to the lineup on May 9, but the Orioles were already 17½ games behind the Yankees by the time he lifted his batting average over .200 six weeks later. On July 5, Anderson became the first Baltimore player to steal four bases in a game.75 On August 7, he matched a club record with 13 total bases in a 5-for-6 performance in Minnesota.76 Overall, he batted just .236 with 18 homers and 21 steals in 133 games as the Orioles tumbled to fourth place.

Baltimore finished fourth again in 1999, but Anderson rebounded by posting his second-highest single-season totals for homers (24), steals (36), runs scored (109) and walks (96). His career-best .404 on-base percentage was partially fueled by 24 hit-by-pitches – a record for AL left-handed hitters. Two of them occurred in the same inning, against the Rangers on May 23. On August 21 against the White Sox, Anderson led off both games of a doubleheader with homers, a feat that only Harry Hooper and Rickey Henderson had previously accomplished.77

In addition to his baseball skills, Anderson’s chiseled physique earned him admirers. “Gays Rooting for Slugger Brady” was a New York Post headline in the summer of 1999.78 The story described his popularity in Internet chat rooms and heavy traffic to his personal website – where a poster featuring Anderson wearing only shoes, socks and tight boxer underwear was for sale. However, an article in Out magazine chronicling Anderson’s “almost eerily loyal following” among homosexual men included this question from an Orioles spokesperson, “You do know he’s straight, don’t you?”79 When SPORT magazine asked him why he remained single in 1993, Anderson replied, “Well, I’m a bachelor and I like girls. What do you want me to say?”80 He dated several international beauties during his Baltimore career, including Belgian model Ingrid Vandebosch, American actress Ashley Judd, and South African tennis player Amanda Coetzer.81 (In 2021, Anderson was linked to actress and K-pop idol Stephanie [Kim].82)

Anderson batted .257 with 19 homers in 2000 while leading the fourth-place Orioles in runs scored and walks. In 2001, he delivered a game-ending RBI single in the bottom of the 11th to beat the Red Sox on Opening Day, but it was a rare highlight. Baltimore endured 98 losses in a campaign dominated by the retiring Ripken’s farewell tour. Anderson appeared in 131 games but made only four of his 108 non-DH starts in center field. He hit just .202 with eight homers and struck out to end the season finale with Ripken in the on-deck circle at Camden Yards.

Although Anderson had one year remaining on his contract, the Orioles released him on November 16. Six months later, the Washington Post’s Dave Sheinin recalled Anderson as “the Dean Martin to Ripken’s Frank Sinatra during their 14 seasons together in Baltimore.”83 When Ripken was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007, he referred to Anderson in his speech as “simply my best friend.”84

Cleveland signed Anderson as a free agent, but he batted just .163 in 34 games in 2002 before he was released on May 21. In 2003, Anderson opened the season with the Padres’ Triple-A Pacific Coast League affiliate, the Portland (Oregon) Beavers. Although he hit .294 in 23 games, his playing career ended when he was released again on May 3. San Diego’s poor start had made it clear that the 38-year-old wouldn’t be able to help them contend. That August, Anderson and Bulgarian model Sonia Vassi welcomed their daughter, Brianna.

In 1,834 major-league games, Anderson scored 1,062 runs, drew 960 walks, and batted .256 with 210 home runs. As of 2021, he is Baltimore’s all-time leader in stolen bases (307), Power/Speed Number (248.7), and hit-by-pitches (148).85 Anderson remains among the franchise’s top 10 in most offensive statistical categories. “Pushing myself to become a better athlete was truly my passion and still is.” he told the Baltimore Sun in 2004. “I know what I accomplished, am proud of it, and know that it was done with integrity.”86 The Orioles inducted him into their team Hall of Fame later that year. In presenting Anderson to the crowd before the pre-game ceremony at Camden Yards, Ripken remarked, “When we look back in Oriole history, we will probably remember him as the greatest leadoff hitter we ever had.”87

In 2010, the Orioles hired Anderson as a consultant for hitting instruction, and strength and conditioning training. Prior to the 2012 season, he was named the Special Assistant to Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. Baltimore’s media guide explained, “[Anderson] assists Dan Duquette with player development and player relations and oversees conditioning throughout the organization.88 The description of his duties remained the same from 2013-2018, when Anderson’s title was Vice President, Baseball Operations. Beginning in 2015, the club’s media guides added that he collaborated on roster management with Duquette and manager Buck Showalter and oversaw the Orioles’ nutrition.89 When Baltimore hired Mike Elias to replace Duquette in 2019, Anderson was a fitness and conditioning advisor for one year before leaving the organization at the conclusion of the season.90

As of 2022, Anderson lives in Glendale, California. “When I hit 50 [homers], only 14 players in the history of the game had done it. Ted Williams didn’t. Joe DiMaggio didn’t. Hank Aaron never did,” he recalled late in his career. “When people ask why I never did it again, the question is why haven’t any of those guys done it at all. It usually doesn’t happen twice in a career. It just doesn’t. It’s too hard. And I did it.”91

Last revised: February 11, 2022

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Gregory H. Wolf and Rory Costello and fact-checked by Henry Kirn.

Sources

In addition to sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted www.baseball-reference.com and www.retrosheet.org.

Notes

1 Baseball-Reference defines Power/Speed Number as “The harmonic mean of HR and SB. To do well you need a lot of both.” Developed by Bill James, it is computed by the formula 2 x (HR x SB)/(SB + HR).

2 Roch Kubatko, “Anderson Defends His ’96 Power Trip, Says, ‘It Was Not a Fluke,’” Baltimore Sun, March 20, 2004: 1C.

3 Brady Anderson, 2021 Topps Heritage Minor League – Boyhood Photos of the Stars baseball card.

4 The school was still known as Santa Barbara College of the University of California when Jerry Anderson was a student.

5 Ken Rosenthal, “Anderson Never Cries Uncle When it’s Time to Play in Pain,” Baltimore Sun, April 3, 1997: 1D.

6 Dan Rodricks, “Pardonable Prides Prevails as Players’ Parents Watch,” Baltimore Sun, October 10, 1997:10A.

7 Ian Thomsen, “He’s Basking in Son Shine,” Boston Globe, April 4, 1988: 45.

8 1989 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 125.

9 John Eisenberg, “One Extra Base Never is Enough for Anderson,” Baltimore Sun, August 7, 1988: 1C.

10 Thomsen, “He’s Basking in Son Shine.”

11 Prior to Anderson, pitcher Gary Wheelock (1976-77, 1980 Angels and Mariners) was the only UCI player to reach the majors. When Anderson’s teammate Doug Linton debuted with the Blue Jays in 1992, he became the third, but UCI disbanded its baseball program after that season. Since UCI brought baseball back in 2002, six more Anteaters have ascended to the big leagues as of 2021.

12 Eisenberg, “One Extra Base Never is Enough for Anderson.”

13 John Weyler, “PCAA Doesn’t Have to Be Defensive About Baseball Season,” Los Angeles Times, February 28, 1985: 16.

14 Brady Anderson, 1988 Topps Traded baseball card.

15 Mary Jo Monnin, “4 Pioneers Become Major Leaguers for Exhibition,” Star-Gazette (Elmira, New York), July 30, 1985: 17.

16 Steve Fainaru, “Red Sox Catching Fast-Rising Star?” Hartford (Connecticut) Courant, February 26, 1988: E11.

17 Fainaru, “Red Sox Catching Fast-Rising Star?”

18 Brady Anderson, 1988 Score Rookie & Traded baseball card.

19 OPS is the sum of on-base percentage plus slugging percentage.

20 Fainaru, “Red Sox Catching Fast-Rising Star?”

21 Eisenberg, “One Extra Base Never is Enough for Anderson.”

22 Michael Arace, “Brady Anderson Has all the Tools to Make it Big,” Hartford Courant, July 30, 1987: B1.

23 1989 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 125.

24 Guillermo Gastélum Duarte, Enciclopedia Conmemorativa del 75 Aniversario de la Liga Mexicana del Pacífico, (2019, Mexico): 179.

25 1989 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 124.

26 Dan Shaughnessy, “Sox’ Early Knight,” Boston Globe, February 26, 1988: 39.

27 Mel Antonen, “Hitting His Stride, Orioles Slugger Not About to Let Life Pass Him By,” USA Today, July 2, 1996: 1C.

28 Dan Shaughnessy, “Red Sox Get Boddicker,” Boston Globe, July 30, 1988: 1

29 Mark Maske, “New Team, Better Prospects,” Washington Post, August 3, 1988: C1.

30 Tim Kurkjian, “Going Batty for Brady,” Sports Illustrated, June 22, 1992.

31 1989 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 124.

32 1991 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 139.

33 1992 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 147.

34 Gordon Edes, “Brady and the Baltimore ‘Chops,” Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida), June 23, 1992: 1C.

35 Tom Boswell, “Late Bloomer,” Washington Post Magazine, March 30, 1997: 6-1.

36 John Eisenberg, From 33rd Street to Camden Yards, (Contemporary Books: New York 2001): 429.

37 “One on One: Brady Anderson,” SPORT, March 1993: 20.

38 Eisenberg, From 33rd Street to Camden Yards: 428.

39 Boswell, “Late Bloomer.”

40 Eisenberg, From 33rd Street to Camden Yards: 429.

41 Kurkjian, “Going Batty for Brady.”

42 Boswell, “Late Bloomer.”

43 “Mercedes, Bell Miss first Orioles Drills,” Baltimore Sun, February 28, 1992: 9C.

44 Kurkjian, “Going Batty for Brady.”

45 Antonen, “Hitting His Stride, Orioles Slugger Not About to Let Life Pass Him By.”

46 1993 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 45.

47 Prior to 1992, five National League players had produced at total of seven seasons with at least 20hr/50sb/75rbi: Lou Brock (1967 Cardinals), César Cedeño (1972, 1974 Astros), Joe Morgan (1973, 1976 Reds), Ryne Sandberg (1985 Cubs), Barry Bonds (1990 Pirates). 1993 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 44.

48 1993 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 47.

49 1994 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 46.

50 Associated Press, “Orioles, Outfielder Anderson Sign $10.25 Million Contract,” Orlando (Florida) Sentinel, January 7, 1994: B2.

51 Anderson broke the record of Max Carey, who stole 51 bases in 53 attempts (96.2 %) for the 1922 Pirates. (In 2001, the Royals Carlos Beltrán matched Anderson by succeeding on 31 of 31 stolen-base attempts) 1995 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 56.

52 1996 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 40.

53 Antonen, “Hitting His Stride, Orioles Slugger Not About to Let Life Pass Him By.”

54 Michael Bamberger, “Brady Hits ‘Em in Bunches After Surpassing All Expectations with an Unworldly 50-Home-Run Season,” Sports Illustrated, April 14, 1997.

55 Antonen, “Hitting His Stride, Orioles Slugger Not About to Let Life Pass Him By.”

56 Kubatko, “Anderson Defends His ’96 Power Trip, Says, ‘It Was Not a Fluke.”

57 Buster Olney, “Anderson Hoping to Delay Surgery,” Baltimore Sun, July 21, 1996: 8D.

58 In 2003, the Yankees’ Alfonso Soriano led off 13 games with homers. In 2013, Chris Davis homered 53 times to establish a new Orioles’ single-season mark.

59 Willie Mays did in first, in 1955. Griffey and Alex Rodríguez joined the club in 1998 and 2007, respectively. 2000 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 44.

60 Barry Bonds – 52 steals in 1990 and 73 homers in 2001 – did it later. 1998 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 40.

61 Bamberger, “Brady Hits ‘Em in Bunches After Surpassing All Expectations with an Unworldly 50-Home-Run Season.”

62 Brady Anderson, 1997 Collector’s Choice baseball card.

63 “Japan Beats Major Leaguers,” Washington Post, November 2, 1996: D10.

64 Boswell, “Late Bloomer.”

65 Kubatko, “Anderson Defends His ’96 Power Trip, Says, ‘It Was Not a Fluke.”

66 Michael Bamberger, “The Magic Potion, Or Is It?” Sports Illustrated, April 20, 1998.

67 Hank Hersch, “The Creatine Craze,” Sports Illustrated, July 28, 1997.

68 Kubatko, “Anderson Defends His ’96 Power Trip, Says, ‘It Was Not a Fluke,’”

69 Boswell, “Late Bloomer.”

70 1997 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 45.

71 Rosenthal, “Anderson Never Cries Uncle When it’s Time to Play in Pain.”

72 1998 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 39.

73 Joe Strauss, “Orioles, Anderson Agree on Contract,” Baltimore Sun, December 7, 1997: 1A.

74 Peter Schmuck, “Anderson: 15 Days Might Not Be Enough,” Baltimore Sun, April 22, 1998: 1E.

75 Joe Strauss, “Kamieniecki Nearly Ready to Start Back,” Baltimore Sun, July 6, 1998: 8D.

76 1999 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 37.

77 Hooper achieved the feat for the 1913 Red Sox, while Henderson did it for the 1993 Athletics. 2000 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 41.

78 “Gays Rooting for Slugger Brady,” New York Post, July 31, 1999: 8.

79 Cary Wong, “Eyes on the Ball,” Out (Los Angeles), August 1, 1999: 22.

80 “One on One: Brady Anderson.”

81 “Brady Anderson Dating History,” https://www.whosdatedwho.com/dating/brady-anderson (last accessed December 23, 2021).

82 Afreen Khan, “CSJH The Grace’s Stephanie Talks About Boyfriend Brady Anderson and the Wide Age Gap,” SK Pop, October 4, 2021, https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/news-csjh-the-grace-s-stephanie-talks-boyfriend-brady-anderson-wide-age-gap (last accessed February 6, 2022).

83 Dave Sheinin, “Brady Has a New Bunch,” Washington Post, May 7, 2002: D5.

84 “Cal Ripken’s Induction Speech,” Washington Post, July 30, 2007: E1.

85 Hall of Famer George Sisler holds the franchise stolen base mark with 351, all for the St. Louis Browns.

86 Kubatko, “Anderson Defends His ’96 Power Trip, Says, ‘It Was Not a Fluke.”

87 Associated Press, “Orioles Salute Anderson,” Journal News (White Plains, New York), August 22, 2004: 31.

88 2012 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 16.

89 2015 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 21.

90 Jon Meoli, “Brady Anderson, Longtime Part of Orioles Front Office, Leaving Organization After 2019 season,” Baltimore Sun, September 29, 2019.

91 Eisenberg, From 33rd Street to Camden Yards: 460.