In the fall of 1981, John Anderson took over the job of leading the tradition-rich University of Minnesota baseball program, thereby retracing the footsteps of his mentor, legendary Hall of Fame coach Dick Siebert. Thirty-four years later, Anderson continues to uphold the lofty standards of the Golden Gopher baseball program.
On May 14, 2009, a 7-6 win at Penn State gave Anderson his 1,000th career victory. He became the 29th coach to reach 1,000 wins, and the 20th to do so with the same school. He was also the 10th-youngest coach to win 1,000 games. Entering the 2016 season, Anderson's career record is 1,172-802-3 (.594). He ranks 29th all-time among Division I coaches in collegiate victories, and 10th among active head coaches.
Anderson holds the record for overall wins and conference wins while coaching at a Big Ten university. He earned his 500th Big Ten victory on April 14, 2013, and has a 528-323 (.620) conference record through 2015. While Anderson has been the head coach at Minnesota since the 1982 season, there have been 27 coaching changes in the conference.
The Gophers' 8-5 victory against Iowa on May 12, 2002, made Anderson the winningest coach in school history. His 755th win moved him past Siebert, his mentor, in the record books. The Gophers have had winning seasons in 32 of Anderson's 34 years as head coach. Anderson has put together 28 seasons with at least 30 wins, and nine seasons with at least 40 wins.
Anderson has guided the Gophers to nine regular season Big Ten titles and a conference-best nine Big Ten Tournament titles. Overall, the Gophers have played in the tournament in 28 of Anderson's 34 seasons. They also set a conference record with 45 Big Ten wins in two seasons from 2003-04.
Under Anderson, Minnesota has appeared 17 times in the NCAA postseason.
Anderson has been inducted into multiple Halls of Fame: The University of Minnesota "M" Club (2002), the Minnesota High School Baseball Coaches Association (2013) and Hibbing Community College.
Six times Anderson has been recognized as Big Ten Coach of the Year. He earned the honor as a rookie head coach in 1982, and again in 2000. Anderson became the first coach to win the award three times in a row (2002, '03, '04) a few years later. He was named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the sixth time in 2010, a year in which Minnesota won both the regular season and tournament conference titles. Anderson was also named ABCA Mideast Region Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2010.
In the summer of 1993, Anderson served as head coach for USA Baseball. He guided Team USA to a 30-16 record, including a silver medal finish at the Intercontinental Cup in Parna, Italy. The squad also went 8-1 in the World Championships. Anderson had served as an assistant for USA Baseball in 1989-90.
Anderson co-authored a book, Why Good Coaches Quit--And How You Can Stay in the Game, with sports psychologist Rick Aberman. In the book, Anderson offers practical solutions to the problems that coaches at all levels routinely encounter on and off the field.
