AL & NL ROYs

J.A Happ finished second in the 2009 National League Rookie of the Year voting. Chris Coghlan of the Florida Marlins won the award, receiving 105 points (17 first place votes). Happ finished with a total of 94 points (10 first place votes).

In 128 games, Coghlan batted .321 with nine home runs and 47 RBI. In 35 games, Happ went 12-4 with a 2.93 ERA.

In the American League, Andrew Bailey of the Oakland A's took home honors. Bailey finished with 88 total points, edging Elvis Andrus.

Bailey saved 26 games and posted a 1.84 ERA.

Rookie of the Year Candidates

As seen on Phillies Nation.

Tomorrow, the 2009 National League Rookie of the Year will be announced. Here are some of the top candidates for the award:

J.A Happ (PHI): 12-4, 166 IP, 2.93 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 119 SO, .244 AVG

There is no clear cut favorite. However, Happ has the numbers to make him a top Rookie of the Year choice.

Tommy Hanson (ATL): 11-4, 127.2 IP, 2.83 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 116 SO, .225 AVG

Happ's advantage in innings may give him the edge over Hanson.

Randy Wells (CHC): 12-10, 165.1 IP, 3.05 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 104 SO, .261 AVG

The Cubs didn't give Wells much run support this year. In some cases, the voters take a team's performance in account, and the Cubs aren't helping Wells' campaign.

Chris Coghlan (FLA): 128 G, .321 AVG, 9 HR, .850 OPS

Phillies fans know enough about this guy. The question is whether his offensive numbers compete with the pitchers' stats

Garrett Jones (PIT): 82 G, .293 AVG, 21 HR, .938 OPS

Jones did not play in many games, so that may hurt his campaign. However, the 28-year old has showed his power in his limited major league experience.

Andrew McCutchen (PIT): 108 G, .286 AVG, 22 SB, .836 OPS

He's the future of the Pittsburgh Pirates. But he is in the same boat as Jones. Does he have enough playing time to get enough votes?

Colby Rasmus (STL): 147 G, .251 AVG, 16 HR, .717 OPS

Rasmus doesn't matchup with the other candidates. His batting average and on-base plus slugging percentage are mediocre at best.

Casey McGehee (MIL): 116 G, .301 AVG, 16 HR, .859 OPS

McGehee has put up some solid offensive numbers, but his defense may factor in. He spent the majority at third base, where he had a .916 fielding percentage.

Ryan Howard was the last Phillie to win the Rookie of the Year award. Will Happ follow his footsteps?

Rookies of the Year

The 2008 Rookies of the Year have been announced today. The Tampa Bay Ray's Evan Longoria earned American League honors. The Chicago Cub's Geovanny Soto earned National League honors.

Longoria, the Ray's third baseman, hit .272 with 27 HR and 85 RBI in 122 games as a rookie. He had a .343 OBP and .531 SLG to give him a .874 OPS. He scored 67 runs and stole 7 bases.

Soto, the Cub's everyday catcher, hit .285 with 23 HR and 86 RBI in 141 games. Soto scored 66 runs. He had an OBP of .364 and an SLG of .504. He had a .868 OPS.

Longoria beat out the White Sox's Alexei Ramirez for the award. It was unanimous as Longoria received all 28 first place votes giving him 140 points. Ramirez received 59 points, and the Red Sox's Jacoby Ellsbury received 26 points for third place.

Soto was almost unanimous. He earned 31 first place votes, and 1 second place vote to finish with 158 points. Soto beat out Joey Votto of the Reds, who finished second with 76 votes. Jair Jurrjens of the Braves finished third with 34 votes.

The NL Rookie of the Year should have been closer than it was. Votto finished the year with a .297 AVG, 24 HR, and 84 RBI in 151 games. He also scored 69 runs. His OBP was .368, his SLG was .506, giving him a .874 OPS. The first baseman Votto's stats very close to Soto's, but just barely better. However, Soto sits with the ROY trophy.