Award finalists revealed tonight

The Orioles are supposed to find out by 5 p.m. today whether catcher Welington Castillo will exercise or decline his $7 million option for next season.

I checked around yesterday and no one had received official word. The expectation remains that Castillo will enter the free agent market.

Meanwhile, the hype machine gets revved up tonight as we enter the awards portion of our offseason.

Finalists will be revealed on MLB Network beginning at 6 p.m. for Most Valuable Player, Cy Young Award, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year in both leagues. The top three in each category will be laid out in front of us.

It's going to take an hour, so get comfortable.

Zach Britton's omission last year for the AL's Cy Young caused the biggest stir and renewed the argument over relievers being eligible. The Red Sox's Rick Porcello won it, besting the Tigers' Justin Verlander and the Indians' Corey Kluber, and Britton settled for fourth.

"It's shocking," manager Buck Showalter said after learning that the Baseball Writers' Association of America bypassed Britton, who was 47-for-47 in save opportunities.

"That's a real poor reflection on the people who are evaluating him. God bless the three guys in front of him. They were doing it every fifth day and he's doing it every day. I'm not so sure any of those guys could do what Zach does.

"This guy had maybe the best year in the history of relief pitching. He should have finished in the top three in MVP, OK? He should. There's nobody in baseball who's more valuable to their team than Zach Britton is to the Orioles."

Of course, Showalter's comments also ignited more criticism for his failure to use Britton in the wild card game.

The Orioles won't have a finalist for Cy Young this year. No one from the rotation or bullpen earned consideration.

Kluber and the Red Sox's Chris Sale would appear to be the favorites in a tight race.

Showalter, the Indians' Terry Francona and the Rangers' Jeff Banister were AL manager finalists last year. Francona won it. I'd lean toward the Twins' Paul Molitor this season over Joe Girardi, no longer with the Yankees, and the Astros' A.J. Hinch.

The Twins came out as sellers at the deadline and made the playoffs as a wild card.

Judge will be the runaway winner as Rookie of the Year. The only drama is whether it's unanimous, and locally, whether Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini cracks the top three.

Red Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi is expected to finish second, leaving Mancini and Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel fighting for third.

To have Mancini in the discussion is a sufficient honor. He wasn't handed a roster spot going into spring training and batted .293/.338/.488 with 26 doubles, four triples, 24 home runs and 78 RBIs in 147 games. He made a successful transition to the outfield, eliminating concerns that he didn't have a position with Chris Davis at first base and Mark Trumbo serving as designated hitter.

I voted for Most Valuable Player in the AL and can't reveal my ballot until the winner is announced on Nov. 16. I'll go out on a limb and say that Judge and the Astros' Jose Altuve will occupy the top two spots. The order is the only debate.

Voters are required to pick 10 players and Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop will get some love. He won't be a finalist, however.

Ballots from the BBWAA are turned in before the postseason.

The Rookies of the Year will be announced on Nov. 13, the Managers of the Year on Nov. 14 and the Cy Youngs on Nov. 15.