Chris Coghlan

Christopher Brockett Coghlan

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
• School University of Mississippi
• High School East Lake High School
• Debut May 8, 2009
• Final Game June 7, 2017
• Born June 18, 1985 in Palm Harbor, FL USA

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Biographical Information

Chris Coghlan was the 2009 National League Rookie of the Year. He fell off precipitously in ensuing seasons, eventually crafting a new niche as a valued role player. In 2016, he was part of the first Chicago Cubs World Series winner in 108 years.

Coghlan was the Florida Marlins first rounder in 2006. He was signed by scout Mark Willoughby as a third baseman and debuted with 2 games for the GCL Marlins before moving to the Jamestown Jammers, where he hit .298 in 28 games. In the 2007 Futures Game, Coghlan hit 8th and played second base for the USA. He went 0 for 1 with a walk and made the game's only error, a miscue on the first play of the game that put Michael Saunders aboard; Saunders would score the first run in the World's 7-2 win.

Chris made his big league debut with the Marlins in 2009. Playing left field now, he won Rookie of the Year honors, hitting .321/.390/.460 in 128 games with (ultimately career high marks of) 84 runs scored, 162 hits and 31 doubles. He started the year hitting .344 in Triple A with the New Orleans Zephyrs before putting up an OPS+ of 122 in the majors. The Marlins were understandably excited about his future. His next two seasons were marred by injuries. In 2010, he played 91 games, hitting .268/.335/.383, and in 2011, he was down to 65 games and a paltry .230/.296/.368 average, having plummeted almost 100 points in on base percentage in just two years. He hit rock bottom in 2012, with the re-named Miami Marlins, hitting a mere .140/.212/.183 in 39 games and spending much of the season with the Zephyrs back in Triple A.

Coghlan began bouncing back with Miami in 2013, as he played 70 games and hit .256/.318/.354. It was still a far cry from his rookie production, but his free fall had been stalled. In 2014, he signed as a free agent with the Chicago Cubs. He played 125 games and hit .283/.352/.452 with 28 doubles, 5 triples and 9 homers as the team's main left fielder. His OPS+ was 122, matching his rookie year, and he scored 50 runs while driving in 41. In 2015, the Cubs became very good all of a sudden under new manager Joe Maddon. Chris played a career-high 148 games, hitting .250/.341/.443 with 25 doubles, 6 triples and a career high 16 homers. He scored 64 runs and drove in 41 with a 113 OPS+. Although the team's most-used left fielder during the season, he was squeezed out by Maddon's desire to put rookie slugger Kyle Schwarber in the lineup for the postseason. As a result, he did not play in the Wild Card Game and only got 5 at bats in the NLDS against the St. Louis Cardinals. He was 0-for-7 as the Cubs were swept by the New York Mets in the NLCS.

Chris's difficulty with finding playing time for the Cubs in the 2015 postseason were a sign of things to come. When the Cubs re-signed Dexter Fowler after a drawn-out saga at the start of spring training in 2016, it made him superfluous and, the very same day, February 25th, he was traded to the Oakland Athletics for pitcher Aaron Brooks. He hit only .146/.215/.272 in 51 games for Oakland in 2016, then on June 9th, was traded back to the Cubs for Arismendy Alcantara. He found his hitting stroke again with Chicago, as he hit .252/.391/.388 in 48 games and was on the postseason roster as the team won their first World Series since 1908. He went 0-for-7 in the postseason with a run scored. Chris signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for 2017 but was released at the end of spring training. Once again, he managed to land on his feet, as he was picked up by the Toronto Blue Jays and called up on April 14th when Josh Donaldson went on the disabled list. On April 25th, he made all the highlight reels with a spectacular play as he leaped clean over catcher Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals, who was reaching down to field a throw, then landed with his hand touching the plate and executed a somersault to complete the circus move. It allowed him to score a key run in the 7th inning of a game the Jays went on to win, 7-6, in 11 innings. He played 36 games for Toronto but hit just .200/.299/.267 and was let go in early June. It proved to be his final taste of the majors.

Notable Achievements

• 2009 NL Rookie of the Year Award
• 2009 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
• Won one World Series with the Chicago Cubs in 2016

NL Rookie of the Year
2008	2009	2010
Geovany Soto	Chris Coghlan	Buster Posey

Related Sites

• Chris Coghlan on mlb.com
• University of Mississippi bio