He started the season in the bullpen. He ended the postseason as a reliever.

In between, though, lefthander J.A. Happ pitched well enough as a starter to stabilize a rotation that was beset by injuries (Brett Myers) and ineffectiveness (Chan Ho Park, Jamie Moyer), helped the Phillies win their third straight division title and earned serious consideration for the Jackie Robinson National League Rookie of the Year Award.

When the results were announced yesterday, Happ came up just short to Marlins leftfielder Chris Coghlan, despite being the only player named on every one of the 32 ballots cast by members of the Baseball Writers Association of America.

Coghlan, who received 17 first-place votes to 10 for Happ, ended up with 105 total points. Happ had 94 in a system that awards five points for a first-place vote, three for second and one for third.

The Marlins' leadoff man was left off seven ballots despite leading all NL rookies in batting average (.321), hits (162), runs (84), doubles (31), total bases (232) and on-base percentage (.390).

Happ, 12-4 with a 2.93 earned run average, led in innings pitched (166), strikeouts (119) and tied for first in wins.

"I wish I could say that [finishing second] is some kind of consolation but I'm not wired that way," Happ said. "It's a little disappointing, but I'm definitely proud of the year I had. Hats off to Chris, he had a great second half."

As for being named on every ballot, Happ said, "It's nice to be recognized, it's nice to be in the mix.''

Braves righthander Tommy Hanson finished a distant third with 37 points. The only other player to receive a first-place vote was Casey McGehee, of the Brewers.

The closeness of the result revealed some of the intricacies facing voters. Comparing pitchers and position players is difficult enough.

On top of that, Coghlan didn't make his major league debut until May 8. Happ, while still technically a rookie, made one big-league start in 2007 and eight appearances in 2008, plus pitching in the postseason.

Happ, on the other hand, might have gotten additional consideration for pitching for a team that made the postseason. Despite Coghlan's undeniable contributions, the Marlins still finished out of the running.

Happ's strong finish continued a remarkable run of success for the Phillies' scouting and player development system.

Third baseman Scott Rolen was voted Rookie of the Year in 1997 and Ryan Howard won it in 2005. Shortstop Jimmy Rollins finished third in 2001 and Happ, a third-round draft pick in 2004 whose fastball doesn't light up the radar gun, was second this year.

All came into the system under former scouting and player development director Mike Arbuckle. Prior to that the Phillies had just two ROY winners in the previous 50 years: Jack Sanford in 1957 and Richie Allen in 1964.

Happ previously had been named Rookie of the Year by The Sporting News and won the Major League Baseball Players Association MLB Players Choice Award.

Roster moves

 

The Phillies removed five players, including infielder Eric Bruntlett, from their 40-man roster yesterday. All opted for free agency.

Bruntlett played a significant role for the team in 2008. He played shortstop early in the season when Jimmy Rollins was injured, was used as a defensive replacement for Pat Burrell in left and served as a pinch-hitter. This year, however, he had just 105 at-bats and hit only .171.

He will be best remembered for being acquired in the trade with Houston that brought Brad Lidge to Philadelphia for Michael Bourn, Mike Costanzo and Geoff Geary and for scoring what proved to be the winning run in Game 5 of the 2008 World Series on a single by Pedro Feliz.

Also taken off the roster were righthanders John Ennis and Tyler Walker, catcher Paul Hoover and infielder Andy Tracy.