SPOKANE, Wash. — When the Spokane Indians announced its roster in June, Ben Anderson was on the list.
You could see he is a pitcher, but what you might not know is that most of his life, he played a different position.
From the age of eight years old, Anderson never really had the choice of what position he wanted to play.
"The team needed a catcher, so since I started playing baseball I was a catcher," Anderson said.
That was until his junior year of high school. He needed to help out his team in need of pitchers.
"I had a pretty good arm behind the plate," he said. "So I was able to go out on the mound and try to throw the ball over the plate, which was cool seeing the change after catching my whole life."
He developed quickly. Out of high school, he was taken in the 2016 MLB Draft.
"I was drafted in the 26th round as a pitcher," Anderson said. "That kind of gave me some confidence going into being a full time pitcher "
Instead of going pro, he decided to go Binghamton University in New York instead. He developed his game more. Last season, Anderson won America East Conference Pitcher of the Year.
Then, this past summer, he was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 13th round and was sent to play for the Spokane Indians.
"He's got a lot of promise," Indians manager Kenny Hook said. "He's got some quality movement on his pitches. Some of the readings are above average as in spin."
Anderson doesn't miss his catching days that much, but he said it helped him for this moment.
"I think it's helped a lot with seeing how hitters react to certain pitches and with pitch sequencing," he said.
It has helped Anderson become a pro ball player.
"I've loved baseball pretty much since I've started playing," he said. "It's awesome to get a chance to play at the highest level and continue my dream."