Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Players of the Game
▪️ B-T points of day’s top players
▪️ Top 10 players in 2024
▪️ Day’s highlights & lowlights
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Red Sox pitcher Tanner Houck is Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to second place in season player rankings.
Also Sunday, Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day
Houck struck out nine over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run, four hits and no walks, in the 5-4 win over the Cubs. Houck did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the Cubs tied the game after he exited.
Houck earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, rising to second place, first place among American League pitchers, passing previous leader Logan Gilbert of the Mariners (5.0 points).
National League Player of the Day
Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Pfaadt struck out 11 over six innings, allowing two runs, five hits and no walks, in the 3-2 win over the Mariners. Pfaadt did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because when he exited, the Diamondbacks were trailing.
Pfaadt earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, 19th among NL pitchers.
National League Batter of the Day
Bryson Stott of the Phillies hit two home runs and went 2-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 8-6 win over the Padres.
American League Batter of the Day
Anthony Rizzo of the Yankees homered, hit two doubles and went 4-for-4, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 15-5 win over the Brewers.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Sunday, April 28:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ranger Suárez | pi sp | Phillies | 6.7 |
| 2 | Tanner Houck | pi sp | Red Sox | 6.0 |
| 3 | Freddy Peralta | pi sp | Brewers | 5.0 |
| 4 | Logan Gilbert | pi sp | Mariners | 5.0 |
| 5 | Tyler Glasnow | pi sp | Dodgers | 5.0 |
| 6 | Aaron Nola | pi sp | Phillies | 5.0 |
| 7 | Ryan Helsley | pi cp | Cardinals | 5.0 |
| 8 | Tarik Skubal | pi sp | Tigers | 4.7 |
| 9 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Padres | 4.7 |
| 10 | Shota Imanaga | pi sp | Cubs | 4.7 |
Rankings
Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Skubal (7IP 4H R BB 6K W in the 4-1 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.7 for the season. He ranks third among AL pitchers, behind Houck (6.0 points) and Gilbert (5.0 points).
Notable
Athletics relief pitcher T.J. McFarland earns Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors for the first time in nearly seven years Sunday.
McFarland (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K W in the 7-6 win over the Orioles) last earned Player of the Game honors May 31, 2017, when he was with the Diamondbacks.
Sunday’s highlights & lowlights
Top pitching matchup
▪️Michael Wacha, Royals, 13.0 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 15th among AL pitchers.▪️Tarik Skubal, Tigers, 14.4 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 10th among AL pitchers.
Score—DET 4, KC 1
Skubal was Player of the Game with +6.0 B-T game score (7IP 4H R BB 6K W), giving him 15.4 B-T points over 2023-24, now eighth among AL pitchers.
Wacha had -8.8 game score (5.2IP 9H 4R 0BB 3K L).
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+6.1—Logan Gilbert, Mariners (6.1IP 4H 2R BB 9K ND)
Was not Player of the Game because SEA lost to ARI.
Player of the Game—Brandon Pfaadt, Diamondbacks (6IP 5H 2R 0BB 11K ND) with +8.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Jazz Chisholm Jr., Marlins (HR 1-3 2R 4BI)
Was not Player of the Game because MIA lost to WSH.
Player of the Game—Nick Senzel, Nationals (2HR 2-6 2R 5BI) with +3.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Ryan Yarbrough, Dodgers (4IP 2H 0R 0BB 2K ND)
Was not Player of the Game because LAD lost to TOR.
Player of the Game—Kevin Gausman, Blue Jays (7IP 5H R 0BB 5K W) with +5.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
-14.8—Abner Uribe, Brewers (0.2IP 2H 5R 3BB 0K L vs. NYY)-14.0—Janson Junk, Brewers
-13.0—Patrick Corbin, Nationals
-13.0—Ryan Weathers, Marlins
-11.9—Taijuan Walker, Phillies
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
-6.0—Joey Meneses, Nationals 0-6-5.0—Brandon Nimmo, Mets 0-5 2K
-5.0—Nolan Arenado, Cardinals 0-5 K
-5.0—Gunnar Henderson, Orioles 0-5 K
-5.0—Tyrone Taylor, Mets 0-5 K
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
McFarland now has 5.0 career Box-Toppers points. Since 2017, he has played for the Diamondbacks, Athletics, Cardinals and Mets.
Debut
Austin Martin of the Twins made his Box-Toppers debut Sunday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Martin (1–3 3R 2BI in the 11-5 win over the Angels) made his Major League debut March 30 and was playing in his 22nd career game.
Scoring
Houck earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Pfaadt earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
Stott and Rizzo each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Sunday’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.
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Note: An earlier version of this post had the incorrect Player of the Game listed in the Mets win over the Cardinals. Player of the Game was pitcher Jose Quintana rather than Mark Vientos.
Career Box-Toppers points, active AL batters
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) April 29, 2024
1—Joey Votto @BlueJays 85.4
2—Mike Trout @Angels 84.2
3—Giancarlo Stanton @Yankees 75.9
4—Anthony Rizzo @Yankees 71.9*
5—Jose Ramirez @CleGuardians 58.6
6—Aaron Judge @Yankees 57.9
*Earns 1.5 B-T pts as Sunday AL Batter of the Day
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).| 4/28 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +9.2 | `BOS 5, CHC 4 | Tanner Houck | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| +9.1 | TEX 4, CIN 3 | Dane Dunning (W, 3‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 10 | ||
| NL | +8.0 | `ARI 3, SEA 2 | Brandon Pfaadt | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 11 | |
| +6.1 | CHW 4, TB 2 | Erick Fedde (W, 2‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 8.1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 | ||
| BAT | +6.0 | PHI 8, SD 6 | Bryson Stott 2B | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +6.0 | DET 4, KC 1 | Tarik Skubal (W, 4‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | NYY 15, MIL 5 | Anthony Rizzo 1B | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | TOR 3, LAD 1 | Kevin Gausman (W, 1‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| +5.0 | SF 3, PIT 2 | Keaton Winn (W, 3‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| +5.0 | `NYM 4, STL 2 (F/11) | Jose Quintana | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ||
| +3.0 | WSH 12, MIA 9 | Nick Senzel DH | 6 | 2 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | MIN 11, LAA 5 | Austin Martin LF | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | OAK 7, BAL 6 | T.J. McFarland (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +2.0 | HOU 8, COL 2 | Jose Altuve 2B | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| 0.0 | ATL 4, CLE 3 (F/10) | Ozzie Albies 2B | 4 | 1 | 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 2024 (’24). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’23-24), the period 2019-2024 (’19-24) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2024 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2023 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’24 | ’23‑24 | ’19‑24 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houck, Tanner 4342 | pi sp | bos al | 6.0 | 8.0 | 19.7 | 19.7 | +4.0 |
| Skubal, Tarik 4414 | pi sp | det al | 4.7 | 15.4 | 34.8 | 34.8 | -6.0 |
| Winn, Keaton 4931 | pi sp | sf nl | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | +2.0 |
| Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 | pi sp | ari nl | 2.7 | 6.4 | 6.4 | 6.4 | -1.0 |
| Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | tor al | 2.0 | 20.7 | 51.1 | 90.1 | -16.7 |
| Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 2.0 | 9.5 | 22.5 | 57.5 | -5.5 |
| Albies, Ozzie 3953 | 2b | atl nl | 2.0 | 4.0 | 20.0 | 22.0 | 0.0 |
| Fedde, Erick 4065 | pi sp | chi al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 18.8 | 20.5 | +2.0 |
| Rizzo, Anthony 3063 | 1b | nyy al | 1.5 | 7.9 | 19.4 | 71.9 | -4.9 |
| Stott, Bryson 4607 | 2b | phi nl | 1.5 | 4.5 | 7.0 | 7.0 | -1.5 |
| Dunning, Dane 4317 | pi sp | tex al | 1.0 | 5.0 | 14.4 | 14.4 | -3.0 |
| Senzel, Nick 4236 | dh 3b | dc nl | 1.0 | 2.5 | 5.0 | 5.0 | -0.5 |
| Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | nym nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 23.8 | 84.1 | +1.0 |
| McFarland, T.J. 3585 | pi mr cp | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 | +1.0 |
| Martin, Austin 4989 | lf | min al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Monday’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 2024 (’24), this year and last year (’23-24), over a six-year period (’19-24) and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’24 | ’23-24 | ’19‑24 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYY | Schmidt, Clarke 4581 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 7.4 | 7.4 |
| BAL | Rodriguez, Grayson 4790 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| STL | Matz, Steven 3516 | 1.0 | 5.0 | 27.1 | 49.4 |
| DET | Maeda, Kenta 3609 | 1.7 | 12.8 | 35.6 | 66.3 |
| WSH | Irvin, Jake 4805 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| MIA | Rogers, Trevor 4311 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 |
| KC | Bowman, Jonathan* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| TOR | Rodriguez, Yariel 4979 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| CHC | Taillon, Jameson 3658 | 1.0 | 6.4 | 26.1 | 52.5 |
| NYM | Severino, Luis 3567 | 1.0 | 5.7 | 15.4 | 59.2 |
| MIN | Ryan, Joe 4539 | 3.7 | 12.4 | 29.8 | 29.8 |
| CHW | Crochet, Garrett 4434 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| TB | Pepiot, Ryan 4714 | 3.7 | 8.7 | 10.7 | 10.7 |
| MIL | Wilson, Bryse 4048 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 |
| PHI | Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | 1.7 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.7 |
| LAA | Canning, Griffin 4134 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 17.7 | 17.7 |
| ATL | Fried, Max 4011 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 54.5 | 55.5 |
| SEA | Miller, Brad 3227 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 13.0 | 17.0 |
| CIN | Lodolo, Nick 4586 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| SD | Waldron, Matt 4946 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| LAD | Paxton, James 3280 | 1.0 | 6.0 | 20.1 | 61.9 |
| ARI | Henry, Tommy 4829 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| PIT | Falter, Bailey 4473 | 2.0 | 6.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 |
| OAK | Boyle, Joe 4948 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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