Sometimes, the winners of various Major League Baseball awards are notified before the announcement is made publicly, giving them a chance to soak in the moment and share the news with their family and friends. Not tonight. Bryce Harper had no idea he'd won the National League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award until he heard his name live on MLB Network. Harper learned the news just like the rest of us, except he had a camera on him to document his reaction and an earpiece in to allow...

Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper tonight was named National League Rookie of the Year by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The BBWAA citation is the first bestowed upon a National since the club's arrival in D.C. in 2005. Harper hit .270 with 26 doubles, nine triples, 22 home runs, 59 RBI, 56 walks and 18 stolen bases in 139 games as a true rookie for the Nationals in 2012. For his efforts, the youngest player in MLB was named an All-Star by NL manager Tony La...

Bryce Harper's ridiculous rookie season, one of the best in major league history by a teenager, just got an exclamation point put on the end of it. Harper has won the National League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award, voted on by members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The announcement was made live on MLB Network. In an incredibly close vote, Harper got 16 first-place votes to 12 for Wade Miley, who finished in second place in the voting. Overall, Harper earned 112...

There was little drama surrounding tonight's announcement of the American League Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year. The Angels' Mike Trout was the eighth unanimous AL winner in the award's history, receiving all 28 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The Athletics' Yoenis Cespedes finished second and the Rangers' Yu Darvish was third, which is how my ballot looked when I submitted it shortly before the conclusion of the regular season. Cespedes...

Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen and his wife, Yi-Wen, are the proud parents of a baby boy. Karsten was born this morning at 8:07 a.m. No word on whether translator Tim Lin joined the couple in the delivery room. Chen is a father for the first time. And there's no angst brewing over how long his paternity leave will last and whether he'll miss any games. Good timing. Chen didn't return to his native Taiwan after the season. He's been working out in California in preparation for his...

Nationals prospect Brian Goodwin has been pleased with his progress in the Arizona Fall League, especially in bunting and increasing his aggressiveness on the basepaths. "I think it is coming along well," Goodwin said. "It is something that I always looked at it as a weapon, being a speed guy and a top-of-the-order guy. You have to take your time with it. You can't get frustrated. But with the practice you do it will pay off and take it to the game. I like it. I always try to work on it...

We've already had The Sporting News Rookie of the Year award and the Players Choice Award for Outstanding Rookie. Tonight, Major League Baseball's official Rookie of the Year award will be handed out. Awards week begins tonight at 6 p.m., with the announcement of the American League and National League's top rookies, kicking off four days of presentations recognizing the top performances put up this season. The Rookie of the Year awards will be followed by the announcement of Manager of...

The American League's Most Valuable Player race is between the Tigers' Miguel Cabrera and the Angels' Mike Trout. The subplot is about new-age statistics versus traditional MVP thinking. Of all the awards given out this week by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, the AL MVP should spark the most vigorous debate, much like when the Mariners' Felix Hernandez won the 2010 Al Cy Young Award over the Rays' David Price and the Yankees' CC Sabathia. That year, Hernandez had 13 wins,...

The Baseball Writers' Association of America will reveal its Rookies of the Year tonight, and the Orioles are merely spectators for this award. The Angels' Mike Trout will be the runaway winner in the American League, followed by the Athletics' Yoenis Cespedes and the Rangers' Yu Darvish. There's no drama. The National League finalists are the Reds' Todd Frazier, the Nationals' Bryce Harper and the Diamondbacks' Wade Miley. The guess here is Harper wins the award. The Orioles don't...

While the hot stove season is still in warm-up mode, let's take a look at three aspects of the 2012 Orioles and what they might look like next season. Are the O's set at second base?: The Orioles have a lot of candidates to play at second base, but no one jumps out as the regular right now unless you have confidence that Brian Roberts will return healthy and regain his old job. Clearly the club can't count on that, but rather can hope for it. Recent addition Alexi Casilla brings a good...