The legend of Grant Anderson.


Grainy footage shot by a townsfolk somewhere in Michigan shows the mythical Grant Anderson beast triumphantly emerging from the sea.

Santa Claus. Mermaids. Unicorns. Griffins. Chupacabras. Centaurs. Leprechauns. Elfs. And the most mystical creature of all: the dominating Rangers relief pitcher.

He appeared in Detroit last night. Out of nowhere. Legend has it he arose from a farm somewhere in Frisco. Had Rangers fans not seen it with their own eyes, they would have thought it was yet another tall tale. But it happened.

Yes, it happened. Grant Anderson happened. A Rangers pitcher named Grant Anderson came out of nowhere, entered a game in the bottom of the fifth in which the Rangers had a razor-thin 7-6 lead after Martin Perez had just given up two runs, with Miguel Cabrera at second after having just doubled.

He struck out Tigers pinch hitter Zach McKinstry swinging. So Bruce Bochy sent him back out for the sixth inning.

Anderson struck out Jake Rogers looking. Then Akil Baddoo swinging. Then Javier Baez swinging.

Four major league hitters. Four strikeouts. And the twenty-five-year-old righthander out of McNeese State was just getting started.

After Nick Maton lined out for the first out of the seventh, Anderson struck out Spencer Torkelson swinging. Then Eric Hasse looking.

Then Jonathan Schoop looking to start the eighth. He had faced seven major league hitters and struck out six of them.

Then he faced Miguel Cabrera. He’s no ordinary major league hitter. The future Hall-of-Famer nicked Anderson for a ground ball single through the infield. A legend slayed the mystical beast.

And just like that, Grant Anderson’s major league debut was done. To call it a success is an understatement. To call it a godsend doesn’t do it justice. 

Who knows where Anderson’s major league career will take him from here? One thing is for sure, though. It was real. It actually happened. 

No, really. It happened.

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