Two Former College Players Earn Top Rookie Honors From The Sporting News
White Sox third baseman Gordon Beckham and Phillies pitcher J.A. Happ have been named the Sporting News Magazine’s 2009 rookies of the year. Votes for the award were cast by a panel of 338 Major League players.
Beckham batted .270 with 14 home runs, 28 doubles, and 63 RBIs in 103 games after making his Major League debut on June 4.
A.L. Rookie of the Year Gordan Beckham.
Happ went 12-4 with a 2.93 ERA in 35 appearances. He made 23 starts for the NL East champs after joining the starting rotation in May. The lefty fanned 119 batters in 166 innings pitched. He has made three relief appearances so far during the 2009 post season.
Beckham helped Georgia to the 2006 College World Series. He started all 70 games at shortstop as a freshman that season. He was named SEC Player of the Year as a junior in 2008 when he tied LSU’s Matt Clark with 28 home runs to lead the nation. The Bulldogs finished as the national runner-up with a CWS championship series loss to Fresno State. Beckham finished his career with a Georgia school record 53 home runs. He was the eighth overall pick by the White Sox in last year’s MLB draft.
N.L. Rookie of the Year J.A. Happ
Happ was named All-Big Ten First Team as a freshman, sophomore and junior at Northwestern University. He logged a 16–11 career record with a 2.88 ERA along with 251 strikeouts and 90 walks in 226.1 inning pitched. He was taken in the third round (92nd overall) of the 2004 MLB draft by the Phillies.
(Wire and Staff report)