Dan Uggla
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Uggla, left, with the Marlins in June 2007 |
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|---|---|
| Florida Marlins — No. 6 | |
| Second baseman | |
| Born: March 11, 1980 Louisville, Kentucky |
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| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| April 3, 2006 for the Florida Marlins | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through June 1, 2008) |
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| Batting average | .268 |
| Home runs | 74 |
| Runs batted in | 216 |
| Teams | |
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| Highlights and awards | |
Daniel Cooley Uggla (born March 11, 1980) is a Major League Baseball All-Star second baseman for the Florida Marlins. Uggla finished third in the 2006 National League Rookie of the Year voting behind teammate and winner Hanley Ramirez, and Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals, but won the Players Choice and Sporting News NL ROY awards. Dan also has his own fan club at Dolphin Stadium who call themselves "Uggla's Ugglies".
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[edit] Early life & career
Uggla was born in Louisville, Kentucky, the son of Elizabeth Armistead (née Cooley) and John Carl Uggla.[1] His last name means "owl" in Swedish, and he in fact descends from the untitled branch of an old Swedish noble family. After graduating from Columbia Central High School in Columbia, TN, in 1998, Uggla attended the University of Memphis where after his junior season he was named an All-American by Baseball America, Baseball Weekly, and Collegiate Baseball.
[edit] Professional career
[edit] Minor leagues
Drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 11th Round (338th overall) of the 2001 amateur entry draft, Uggla spent five seasons in the Diamondbacks organization, including a year with the short season-advanced team, the Yakima Bears in Yakima, Washington. He amassed a .276 career minor league batting average, .341 on-base percentage, and .443 slugging percentage, to go along with 64 home runs, 311 runs batted in, and 62 stolen bases. Although he was 25 years old, which would make him the same age as many AAA players, and moderately successful in 2005, he never advanced past the AA level.
Uggla was left off the Diamondbacks 40-man roster in 2005, and the Marlins selected him in the Rule 5 Draft.
[edit] Florida Marlins
Starting the 2006 season with the Marlins, Uggla would get his first major league hit just one day later when he singled off Houston Astros pitcher Andy Pettitte; his first home run was on April 13 against San Diego Padres starter Dewon Brazelton; his first stolen base was a steal of home plate against the Philadelphia Phillies on April 21. Following the 2006 season, Uggla worked out at D1 Sports Training in Nashville, TN.
Uggla was named to the 2006 Major League Baseball All-Star Game on July 2, 2006, as a reserve; he is believed to be the first player in history to be selected for the All-Star Game in the same season in which he had been a Rule 5 pick. [2]
On September 15, 2006, Uggla hit his 25th home run, breaking Joe Gordon's record for most home runs by a rookie second baseman. Because he received less publicity as a prospect than some of his fellow rookies in Major League Baseball, such as Prince Fielder, Ryan Zimmerman, and Nick Markakis, Uggla's display of power in the majors and his selection to the National League All-Star team caused him to suddenly draw more attention. [3] Throughout his rookie season, due to the many mispronunciations of his last name, Marlins television announcers Rich Waltz and Tommy Hutton have exclaimed, "And his name is... DAN UGGLA!!", when Uggla hit a home run. That continues through 2008.
Uggla finished his rookie season with 27 homers and 90 runs batted in. He won numerous rookie awards, including the Players Choice NL ROY award and Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award.
The Marlins finished Uggla's second season in last place. Uggla finished the year with a .245 batting average, caused mainly by slumps in April and September.[4] However, he did surpass his rookie home run total, hitting 31 home runs and knocking in 88 runs. Uggla also hosted This Week in Baseball with several of his teammates.
On May 10, 2008 Uggla hit his first career Grand Slam in the fourth inning of the game against the Nationals off Joel Hanrahan. On May 25, 2008 Uggla set a Marlins record for most home runs for a Marlins in any month (12) passing Gary Sheffield.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- MLB Profile
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Willy Taveras |
Sporting News National League Rookie of the Year 2006 |
Succeeded by Ryan Braun |
| Preceded by Willy Taveras |
Players Choice NL Most Outstanding Rookie 2006 |
Succeeded by Ryan Braun |
| Preceded by Tadahito Iguchi |
Topps Rookie All-Star Second Baseman 2006 |
Succeeded by Dustin Pedroia |
