Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners.
▪️ Box-Toppers points of the day’s top players.
▪️ Top 10 players in 2023 Box-Toppers points.
▪️ A B-T look at upcoming pitching matchups.
▪️ Subscribe to Box-Toppers Email Newsletter.
Blue Jays pitcher Yusei Kikuchi is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, two players rise in Box-Toppers season player rankings top 10 list after both earned Player of the Game honors: Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw rises to seventh place and Braves pitcher Spencer Strider rises to 10th.
Player of the Day
Kikuchi struck out six over six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and no walks, in the 2-0 win over the Marlins. Kikuchi did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.
Kikuchi earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, 33rd among all players and 17th among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day
Cardinals pitcher Jordan Montgomery struck out six over seven innings, allowing one run, four hits and one walk, in the 9-3 win over the Nationals.
Montgomery earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season, 19th among NL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day
Christian Arroyo of the Red Sox homered, doubled and went 5-for-5, scoring once and driving in four runs, in the 10-4 win over the Twins.
National League Batter of the Day
TJ Friedl of the Reds hit a three-run homer and went 4-for-5, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 8-6 win over the Rockies.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2023. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Tuesday, June 20.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | dh pi sp | ana al | 12.9 |
| 2 | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | tor al | 12.0 |
| 3 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | 9.7 |
| 4 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | 9.7 |
| 5 | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | pi sp | tor al | 9.4 |
| 6 | Miller, Bryce 4797 | pi sp | sea al | 9.4 |
| 7 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 9.1 |
| 8 | Garrett, Braxton 4341 | pi sp | fla nl | 8.7 |
| 9 | Wheeler, Zack 3204 | pi sp | phi nl | 8.0 |
| 10 | Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | 8.0 |
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Kershaw
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw rises from eighth to seventh in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Kershaw (7IP 5H 0R 2BB 5K W in the 2-0 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 9.1 for the season. He rises to second among NL pitchers, behind Zac Gallen of the Diamondbacks (9.7).
Kershaw also now has 268.4 career Box-Toppers points, second among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995, behind only Randy Johnson (282.5). (It should be noted Johnson would have more Box-Toppers points if his entire career from 1988 were tracked—projections put his point total at about 385.) Kershaw leads active players in career points, ahead of second-place player, Mets pitcher Max Scherzer (244.0).
Rankings
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider rises to 10th place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Strider (6IP 8H R 0BB 9K W in the 4-2 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 8.0 for the season. He ranks fifth among NL pitchers.
Notable
Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole now has 145.3 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Cole (7.1IP 4H R BB 8K W in the 3-1 win over the Mariners) ranks 31st among all players in career points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 30th-ranked player David Ortiz (145.9). He ranks ninth among active players in career points, third among active AL pitchers, behind Zack Greinke of the Royals (223.5) and Chris Sale of the Red Sox (150.3).
Cole also now has 7.0 Box-Toppers points in 2023, 11th among AL pitchers.
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Scoring
Kikuchi earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Montgomery earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
Arroyo and Friedl each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Tuesday’s other Player of the Game winners (listed in the chart) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
About Box-Toppers
Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.
Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.
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Good game, no Box-Toppers points*
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) June 21, 2023
Reid Detmers @Angels 7IP 2H 0R BB 8K ND
Eury Perez @Marlins 6IP 3H 0R 0BB 9K ND
Ranger Suarez @Phillies 6IP 4H R 2BB 7K ND
*Players who performed well Tuesday but were not among these Player of the Game winners (thread)—https://t.co/UwP3W6FB21
Box‑Toppers Player of the Game winners
Here is the top player from each of the day’s games listed from highest to lowest Box‑Toppers game score (BTG).| 6/20 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +10.0 | `TOR 2, MIA 0 | Yusei Kikuchi | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
| +8.1 | NYY 3, SEA 1 | Gerrit Cole, (W 8‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| +8.0 | HOU 4, NYM 2 | Framber Valdez, (W 7‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 8.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||
| NL | +6.0 | STL 9, WSH 3 | Jordan Montgomery, (W 4‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| +6.0 | CHC 4, PIT 0 | Marcus Stroman, (W 9‑4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| +6.0 | KC 1, DET 0 | Daniel Lynch, (W 1‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | BOS 10, MIN 4 | Christian Arroyo, 2B | 5 | 1 | 5 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | LAD 2, LAA 0 | Clayton Kershaw, (W 9‑4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| +5.0 | ATL 4, PHI 2 | Spencer Strider, (W 8‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | ||
| +4.0 | `CHW 7, TEX 6 | Dylan Cease | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | ||
| +3.1 | BAL 8, TB 6 | Felix Bautista, (S 20) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | CIN 8, COL 6 | TJ Friedl, CF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | `SF 4, SD 3 | Tristan Beck | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| +2.0 | CLE 3, OAK 2 (F/10) | Enyel De Los Santos, (W 3‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| +1.0 | MIL 7, ARI 5 | Willy Adames, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
AL—Overall American League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box‑Toppers points.
NL—Overall National League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box‑Toppers points.
BAT—Top AL or NL Batter of the Day, worth 1.5 total Box‑Toppers points.
All other players listed here earn Player of the Game honors, worth 1.0 Box‑Toppers point.
` Pitcher had a no‑decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
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Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s Player of the Game winners
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Player of the Game winners. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total in 2023 (’23). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’22-23), the period 2018-2023 (’18-23) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2023 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2022 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’23 | ’22‑23 | ’18‑23 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 9.1 | 19.8 | 61.6 | 268.4 | -1.6 |
| Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | 8.0 | 21.4 | 21.4 | 21.4 | -5.4 |
| Stroman, Marcus 3327 | pi sp | chi nl | 7.7 | 13.4 | 34.4 | 62.2 | +2.0 |
| Cease, Dylan 4231 | pi sp | chi al | 7.0 | 27.4 | 43.8 | 43.8 | -13.4 |
| Valdez, Framber 4048 | pi sp | hou al | 7.0 | 23.0 | 38.4 | 38.4 | -9.0 |
| Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 7.0 | 22.4 | 102.4 | 145.3 | -8.4 |
| Bautista, Felix 4668 | pi cp | bal al | 7.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | +2.0 |
| Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 | pi sp | tor al | 6.0 | 11.7 | 23.4 | 23.4 | +0.3 |
| Montgomery, Jordan 3814 | pi sp | stl nl | 4.7 | 14.1 | 24.8 | 30.8 | -4.7 |
| Arroyo, Christian 4433 | 2b ss | bos al | 3.5 | 4.5 | 7.0 | 7.0 | +2.5 |
| Adames, Willy 4041 | ss | mil nl | 3.0 | 8.9 | 15.4 | 15.4 | -2.9 |
| Friedl, TJ 4720 | cf | cin nl | 2.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | +1.5 |
| Beck, Tristan 4823 | pi cp mr | sf nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +2.0 |
| Lynch, Daniel 4488 | pi sp | kc al | 1.0 | 5.7 | 9.4 | 9.4 | -3.7 |
| De Los Santos, Enyel 4737 | pi cp mr | cle al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Wednesday’s pitching matchups
A Box-Toppers look at the upcoming day’s probable pitching matchups. Teams are paired below with visiting teams on top and home teams on the bottom. Each team’s starting pitcher is shown with their Box-Toppers point total from 2023 (’23), over a two-year period (’22-23), over a six-year period (’18-23) and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’23 | ’22‑23 | ’18‑23 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAL | Wells, Tyler 4428 | 5.7 | 9.7 | 10.7 | 10.7 |
| TB | Bradley, Taj 4780 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| TOR | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | 12.0 | 24.7 | 46.1 | 81.4 |
| MIA | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | 4.0 | 25.1 | 44.2 | 44.2 |
| COL | Seabold, Connor 4845 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| CIN | Abbott, Andrew 4839 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| CHC | Hendricks, Kyle 3386 | 2.0 | 6.7 | 38.8 | 70.6 |
| PIT | Hill, Rich 2215 | 4.0 | 11.7 | 32.4 | 83.2 |
| KC | Singer, Brady 4337 | 2.0 | 13.7 | 20.7 | 20.7 |
| DET | Boyd, Matthew 3550 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 18.7 | 28.8 |
| ARI | Gallen, Zac 4171 | 9.7 | 28.4 | 44.1 | 44.1 |
| MIL | Teheran, Julio 3176 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 21.7 | 73.2 |
| NYM | Megill, Tylor 4464 | 3.0 | 8.7 | 14.7 | 14.7 |
| HOU | Javier, Cristian 4290 | 5.0 | 20.7 | 28.7 | 28.7 |
| STL | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | 4.7 | 16.8 | 31.5 | 34.2 |
| WSH | Williams, Trevor 3792 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 20.7 | 25.7 |
| ATL | Smith-Shaver, AJ* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| PHI | Nola, Aaron 3569 | 5.0 | 21.0 | 70.2 | 94.7 |
| SEA | Castillo, Luis Miguel 3840 | 6.4 | 16.4 | 52.8 | 61.2 |
| NYY | Brito, Jhony 4761 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| OAK | Blackburn, Paul 3869 | 1.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 |
| CLE | Williams, Gavin* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| BOS | Whitlock, Garrett 4431 | 3.0 | 7.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| MIN | Gray, Sonny 3259 | 5.7 | 17.8 | 52.0 | 93.2 |
| TEX | Perez, Martin 3213 | 2.7 | 11.8 | 15.5 | 32.5 |
| CHW | Kopech, Michael 4385 | 6.0 | 15.0 | 20.7 | 20.7 |
| LAD | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LAA | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | 12.9 | 37.6 | 68.2 | 68.2 |
| SD | Darvish, Yu 3003 | 3.0 | 19.8 | 58.4 | 127.0 |
| SF | Walker, Ryan* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
* Player has yet to earn Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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