Anderson could wind up being on the Opening Day roster with Raisel Iglesias set to begin the season on the injured list after being diagnosed with shoulder inflammation Thursday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
He already got optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Monday, but Iglesias' injury changes the bullpen picture for Atlanta and opens up a spot. Anderson didn't pitch in the majors at all last year after undergoing elbow surgery in October 2021, but he has a career 39.6 percent strikeout rate in the majors over 87.1 innings and has posted an 11:1 K:BB over eight frames this spring. The 32-year-old could work his way into a high-leverage role once he shows he's all the way back, although A.J. Minter and Joe Jimenez are expected to handle the bulk of the closing duties in Iglesias' absence.