Anderson was born in Gainesville, Georgia; he threw and batted right-handed, and was listed as 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) tall and 165 pounds (75 kg).

His professional career began in the low minor leagues in 1938, but Anderson would require only three years of seasoning before making the Pirates at age 27 in 1941.

The following year, with Vaughan traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers, Anderson backed up Pete Coscarart, starting 40 games and improving his average to .271, but he also spent part of the summer in the minors with the top-level Minneapolis Millers.

[1] He returned to the Pirates for two pinch hitting appearances in April 1946, then was sent to the minor-league Hollywood Stars.

In his 146 MLB games played, he batted .238 lifetime; his 93 hits included 11 doubles, three triples, and one home run, struck September 14, 1941, at Forbes Field against Lefty Hoerst of the Philadelphia Phillies.