Jake Arrieta, the former Orioles pitcher with the Chicago Cubs, is this year's National League Cy Young Award winner, but this is another award I don't get. Arrieta was the best second-half pitcher in baseball and he's a reason the Cubs won the wild card game. But should he win the NL Cy Young Award? I don't think so. I was one of the 30 voters from the Baseball Writers' Association of America who cast a ballot for this award. People asked if this was the most difficult vote among the...

The day has finally arrived for Nationals slugger Bryce Harper. Somewhere between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. Eastern time tonight, the Baseball Writers' Association of America is expected to honor Harper with the National League's Most Valuable Player Award. The phenom is the overwhelming favorite to win over finalists Joey Votto from the Reds and Paul Goldschmidt from the Diamondbacks. Harper showed up at spring training brimming with confidence and vowing to stay healthy. He wasted no time getting...

The Tigers no longer appear to be in the running for free agent reliever Darren O'Day after acquiring closer Francisco Rodriguez yesterday from the Brewers. The more pressing question over here is whether the Orioles remain in the hunt. I received confirmation on the FOXSports.com report that O'Day is seeking a four-year deal in the $28-$36 million range. The Tigers don't seem inclined to pay closer money for a set-up man. The Orioles wouldn't do it last winter with left-hander Andrew...

You would think a pitcher that wins a Cy Young Award would probably be a high draft pick, got a big-dollar signing bonus and never pitched to an ERA of 5.00 or more in the majors leagues. You might think that, but then check out Dallas Keuchel of the Houston Astros. The bearded one won that award last night. Jim Stevenson is the scout that signed Dallas Keuchel and told Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle that Keuchel was never considered a top prospect. He said of Keuchel's American League...

In his first year in Washington, ace Max Scherzer finished fifth in the National League Cy Young Award race as Cubs right-hander Jake Arrieta won the trophy for the first time. Dodgers stud pitchers Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw followed Arrieta in the voting, with Pirates right-hander Gerrit Cole finishing just ahead of Scherzer. Arrieta steadily improved as a starter since the Cubs acquired him from the Orioles two seasons ago. In 2015, he transformed into one of the game's dominant...

The Nationals announced this afternoon that right-hander David Carpenter elected for free agency after the team outrighted him off the 40-man roster to Triple-A Syracuse. Carpenter is now open to sign with another team after making just eight appearances in a Nationals uniform. Carpenter was acquired from the Yankees for minor league infielder Tony Renda on June 11. But the veteran reliever pitched only six innings, allowing just one run on a homer before landing on the disabled list with...

I heard a few weeks ago that the Orioles had some interest in Pirates infielder Neil Walker and were checking whether he might be non-tendered. As it turns out, they took it a step further and engaged in trade talks during the general managers meetings in Boca Raton, Fla. I'm told that nothing came of it, with the Pirates apparently seeking more than the Orioles were willing to surrender and Walker figures to be tendered a contract as a Super Two in his final year before reaching free...

After introducing the Nationals' new medical structure at an afternoon press conference, general manager Mike Rizzo provided an update on where the team is at with the Winter Meetings approaching in three weeks. "I think we're on schedule," Rizzo said. "We've had a busy offseason. We've done a lot. We've revamped our medical staff. We've revamped our manager's position. We've revamped our major league coaching staff. So we've done a lot. The general managers meetings is usually the...

As shown by yesterday's Cy Young awards, Houston's Dallas Keuchel was the most dominant pitcher in the American League this season. The lefty took home the hardware last night after pitching to a 20-8 record and a 2.48 ERA. A perfect 15-0 at home, his eight losses came on the road, and the first one came at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles on Memorial Day. However, the All-Star lefty battled. He pitched a complete game, but took the loss as the Orioles chalked up four earned runs against...

With Bryce Harper the heavy favorite to be named by the Baseball Writers' Association of America as National League Most Valuable Player tonight, here's another reminder of just how remarkable his 2015 season was. He had the third-best batting average in the majors at .330, tied for most homers in the NL with 42 and led the majors in on-base percentage at .460. And that slugging percentage! He dominated the majors by slugging .649 this season. The second-best slugging percentage? Mike Trout,...