EDITOR’S NOTE: The following article on Tyler Anderson appeared in The Post-Journal in June 2011.

John Anderson lives in Las Vegas, which is about a two-hour flight from Denver. After Monday night’s developments, it’s a trip the Jamestown native hopes will be a regular part of his travel itinerary in a few years.

For at precisely 8:55 p.m. EDT, the Colorado Rockies selected John’s son, Tyler, with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the First-Year Player Draft.

“We’re really happy,” John said via cell phone from Las Vegas. “My heart was beating so fast. … It was very surreal. You look on TV and you hear the commissioner of baseball saying your son’s name.”

Tyler, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound left-hander from the University of Oregon, finished his junior year with a school career-record 285 strikeouts, and his 114 strikeouts this past season also are a school record. He went 8-3 with a 2.17 ERA in 2011 and is tied for third all-time with 17 career wins.

The Twins originally selected Anderson in the 50th round in 2008, but he opted to go to college instead and became the first Oregon player taken in the first round since the San Diego Padres selected pitcher Dave Roberts in 1972.

“Tyler was hanging out in the other room with all the kids,” said John, who estimated there were 100 people at a draft party at Tyler’s uncle’s house. “He wasn’t worrying himself about it. He came out of the room right before the Rockies’ pick.”

Three Las Vegas TV stations were there to record the event along with reporters from two local newspapers.

“I really like watching Randy Johnson pitch,” Tyler said in a MLB Network interview, “because he has that nasty slider and a hard fastball that make hitters look terrible in the box. On the mound, I’m a competitor and a bulldog. I’m not really nice when I’m out there. Every time a hitter gets into the box, I kind of look them in the eye and in my head, I say, ‘You have no chance.'”

Tyler is the grandson of the late Manley Anderson, who was a reporter at The Post-Journal for more than 50 years. John noted that to honor Manley, Tyler writes “Grandpa” on the bill of each of his caps.

Manley would certainly have been proud of his grandson.

Tyler, 21, was named to the Louisville Slugger All-American second team last week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, becoming the eighth All-American in program history and is one of 30 semifinalists for the 2011 USA Golden Spikes Award.

Noted MLB Network’s Greg Amsinger:

“(Tyler) was incredible this year for the Ducks.”

In a few years, the Rockies hope to be saying the same thing.