15-Year Marliniversary: Coghlan wins NL Rookie of the Year

Since the Florida/Miami Marlins' inception as a franchise in 1993, only the Los Angeles Dodgers have had more players win National League Rookie of the Year. Since 2003, no team has had more.

On this day 15 years ago, outfielder Chris Coghlan earned the distinction. On Nov. 16, 2009, Coghlan became the third member of the Florida Marlins to earn the award, joining pitcher Dontrelle Willis and teammate Hanley Ramírez.

Coghlan didn't join the club until the second week of May 2009, but wound up making a huge impact. He hit .321 with nine home runs, 47 RBIs, 31 doubles, a team-leading six triples, and an .850 OPS.

Coghlan took home 17 of 32 first-place votes, beating out second-place J.A. Happ, a pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Pitcher Tommy Hanson of the Atlanta Braves finished third.

With Coghlan's help, the Marlins finished 87-75 in 2009. It would be 11 years later before the Marlins had another winning season and 14 later before they had a winning season with a full schedule.

Unfortunately for Coghlan, his rookie year was as good as it would get. Although he enjoyed respectable years for the Chicago Cubs in 2014 and 2015, his OPS, RBI, average and triples numbers never exceeded the totals from his rookie year. Over nine seasons in Major League Baseball, Coghlan hit .258 and posted a .731 OPS.

Pitcher José Fernández would become the fourth member of the franchise to win N.L. Rookie of the Year in 2013. Coghlan was that last to do so as a member of the Florida Marlins -- rather than the Miami Marlins. He took home the hardware on this day 15 years ago.