Reading as much as I could find on the subject over the past month or two I came to only one conclusion:
Andrew McCutcheon, J.A. Happ and Tommy Hanson were considered by many writers and bloggers throughout the nation as the top candidates for the 2009 NL Rookie of the Year Award.
Among these writers and bloggers, any one of the three were considered worthy of the honor. To many of them, Happ was likely a shoe-in to get it.
They forgot about Chris Coghlan.
Apparently the Sports Writers of America didn’t forget, as they named the Florida Marlins’ left fielder the official NL Rookie of the Year for the 2009 season.
Edging the aforementioned Happ out by just seven first-place votes (17 to 10), and just 11 total votes (105 to 94), Coghlan became the third Marlins rookie to receive the honor, following in the footsteps of former Marlins’ star pitcher Dontrelle “D-Train” Willis (2003), as well as current Florida superstar shortstop Hanley Ramirez (2006).
While many are going to be shocked by this vote result, there is nothing truly surprising about it. What Happ, Hanson and McCutcheon did this year was spectacular, but what Coghlan did was historic.
Happ finished the season with a 12-4 record and a 2.93 ERA in 35 games he appeared in (including 23 starts). He also led all NL rookies in innings (166), strikeouts (119) and complete games (three). But those impressive stats, like those of McCutcheon and Hanson, weren’t anything we haven’t seen from dozens of pitchers.
Some of the things Coghlan did haven’t been seen in MLB in 80-plus years.
Called up in May by the Marlins, Coghlan was originally an infielder. On May 7 the New Orleans Zephyrs received a phone call instructing them to move Coghlan to the outfield in preparation for a possible call-up.
Coghlan hadn’t played in the outfield since his days as a Little Leaguer, but the Marlins were desperate for help in the outfield. They knew the talent Chris possessed would give them the best chance, even if he wasn’t at his natural position.
They would end up getting more than they’d even hoped.
The very next day, May 8, he was called up to the majors, and made his major-league debut for the Florida franchise, going 2 for 4 at the plate. Just two days later, in a game against the Colorado Rockies, he made his very first start for the Fish as their left-fielder; batting second behind Emilio Bonifacio.
It wasn’t long before he took over the leadoff duties for Bonifacio, who, while he’d lit up the league at the beginning of the season, was struggling mightily and simply couldn’t find a way to get on base. Although he had never batted leadoff in his life, Coghlan didn’t complain or hesitate; he simply did what he was asked.
What he did actually surpassed everything he was asked to do.
Although Coghlan began the year with a pedestrian .252 average (62-for-246), he finished the season with a .321 average (sixth-best in the NL among all players, and seventh-best by all MLB rookies since 1960). He also had 31 doubles, six triples, nine home runs and 47 RBI. He ended the season hitting safely in 16 of his last 17 games.
Coghlan had 113 hits after the All-Star break, which tied him with Juan Pierre (yes, the former Florida Marlin) and Bill Buckner (yes, that Bill Buckner) for the most in the NL since 1964; among rookies and veterans. He became the first NL rookie in history to lead the league in hits coming after the All-Star break.
The last time anyone had more hits after the All-Star break in the majors was 1980, when Dave Stapleton had 120 in the AL. The only other players with at least 100 hits after the break this year were Derek Jeter (102) and Ryan Braun (100).
He had 47 hits in August, breaking the Marlins club record and surpassing all NL rookies in hits in any month since Wally Moon had 52 for the St. Louis Cardinals in July 1954. He followed that up by tying that record in September. The last time a rookie collected that many hits in September was in 1928, when Chuck Klein had 50.
His .372 second-half average was better than anyone’s in the majors and his 162 hits for the season made him the first rookie since Kirby Puckett in 1984 to get at least 150 hits while playing in less than 130 games; both played in 128 games.
His hits weren’t meaningless, either. He was ranked seventh in the NL batting with runners in scoring position with a .352 average and his .397 on-base percentage as a leadoff hitter trailed only Kosuke Fukudome (.404) and Derek Jeter (.404).
The most amazing part of Chris Coghlan's story, though, is that he only played 25 games at Triple-A New Orleans before getting called up. Also, he played third base in college, made himself into a decent second baseman after that and was shifted to left field the day before he became a pro.
To be as productive as he has been as a rookie, playing out of his natural position, is something that truly indicates how special Chris really is.
That specialness has now been rewarded; deservedly so.
Moving forward, Chris is likely to have a huge impact on whether the Marlins do well next year. It’s almost a certainty the Fish will be dealing second baseman Dan Uggla this offseason (there have been numerous inquiries from the Orioles, Giants and others), which might lead the Marlins management to consider putting Coghlan back at his normal position.
Whether he stays in the outfield or not, his bat is going to be needed by the young Florida franchise in order to guarantee they have someone leading off who can actually serve up some RBI chances for Hanley Ramirez.
I’ve stated before that I believe the Marlins need to go out and get another solid bat or two, especially if they decide to trade away Uggla’s power. But they’ll need Coghlan’s production regardless.
I truly envision Coghlan and Ramirez as the core, along with Cantu and Maybin, of a very talented young Florida team that will compete heavily for the NL East crown next year.
Now that the Marlins have garnered the NL Rookie of the Year for the third time (seems our six-year World Series cycle is broken, but the three-year NL ROY cycle is in full effect), I have the feeling the Marlins are going to be feeling good about themselves coming into next season; especially if they add some significant free-agent pieces.
Coghlan will be a key piece right from the start next year. I look forward to him shining even brighter than he did this year, which is hard to imagine. Could Chris actually become the first player since the “Splendid Splinter” Ted Williams to hit for .400?
Stay tuned.
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