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
▪️ Friday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
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▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Guardians pitcher Tanner Bibee is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to sixth place in season player rankings.
Also Friday, Red Sox pitcher Tanner Houck rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Plus, Aaron Judge of the Yankees rises to first place among American League batters in Box-Toppers rankings and Starling Marte of the Mets earns Box-Toppers points in his 13th consecutive season.
Player of the Day
Bibee struck out seven over 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run, three hits and one walk, in the 7-1 win over the Nationals.
Bibee earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 8.0 for the season, sixth among all players and third among AL pitchers, behind Luis Gil of the Yankees (11.7) and Tanner Houck of the Red Sox (8.7).
National League Player of the Day
Braves pitcher Reynaldo Lopez struck out eight over six innings, allowing one run, four hits and two walks, in the 4-2 win over the Athletics.
Lopez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 5.4 for the season, 27th among all players and 14th among NL pitchers.
National League Batter of the Day
Christian Yelich of the Brewers hit two doubles and went 5-for-6, scoring once and driving in five runs, in the 12-5 win over the White Sox.
American League Batter of the Day
Aaron Judge of the Yankees hit two home runs, including a three-run shot, in the 6-2 win over the Giants. Judge went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in three runs.
Judge earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 5.5 for the season, 24th among all players and rising to first among AL batters, passing previous leader, Juan Soto of the Yankees (5.5), who falls to second place. Though Judge and Soto both have 5.5 points in 2024, Judge ranks higher because he earned more points in 2023—12.0 vs. 9.0.
Rankings
Red Sox pitcher Tanner Houck rises from eighth to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Houck (7IP 3H R 2BB 6K W in the 7-3 win over the Tigers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 8.7 for the season. He ranks second among AL pitchers behind Luis Gil of the Yankees (11.7).
Active season streaks
Here are the 13 players who have active streaks of earning Box-Toppers points for 13 or more consecutive seasons. Players are listed by the length of their streak and with their current team status. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total.| Streak | Player | Pos | Team | Duration | BTP* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | Free agent | 2007‑2023 | 224.5 |
| 16 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 2008‑2023 | 270.4 |
| 16 | Evan Longoria | 3b | Free agent | 2008‑2023 | 62.7 |
| 15 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | Mets | 2009‑2023 | 251.7 |
| 15 | Andrew McCutchen | dh lf | Pirates | 2009‑2023 | 80.9 |
| 15 | Craig Kimbrel | pi cp | Orioles | 2010‑2024 | 92.1 |
| 14 | Giancarlo Stanton | rf dh | Yankees | 2010‑2023 | 75.9 |
| 14 | Aroldis Chapman | pi cp mr | Pirates | 2010‑2023 | 66.1 |
| 14 | Freddie Freeman | 1b | Dodgers | 2011‑2024 | 87.9 |
| 14 | Kenley Jansen | pi cp | Red Sox | 2011‑2024 | 66.4 |
| 13 | Mike Trout | cf | Angels | 2011‑2023 | 84.2 |
| 13 | Brandon Belt | 1b dh | Free agent | 2011‑2023 | 46.2 |
| 13 | Starling Marte | rf | Mets | 2012‑2024 | 28.0 |
Streak
Starling Marte of the Mets has now earned Box-Toppers points in 13 straight seasons after earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2024 Friday.
It is tied for the 11th-longest currently active streak of consecutive seasons for a player to earn Box-Toppers points.
Marte (3B 2-4 R 4BI in the 10-9 win over the Diamondbacks) earned his first Player of the Game honor in 2012 with the Pirates and has 28.0 career Box-Toppers points, 20th among active NL outfielders. His best season was 2015 with the Pirates, when he had 5.0 Box-Toppers points, 16th among NL outfielders. In 2023, he had 1.0 Box-Toppers point with the Mets.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Friday, May 31:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luis Gil | pi sp | Yankees | 11.7 |
| 2 | Chris Sale | pi sp | Braves | 9.7 |
| 3 | Ranger Suárez | pi sp | Phillies | 9.4 |
| 4 | Tanner Houck | pi sp | Red Sox | 8.7 |
| 5 | Shota Imanaga | pi sp | Cubs | 8.7 |
| 6 | Tanner Bibee | pi sp | Guardians | 8.0 |
| 7 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 7.7 |
| 8 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Padres | 7.7 |
| 9 | Joe Ryan | pi sp | Twins | 7.7 |
| 10 | Tarik Skubal | pi sp | Tigers | 7.4 |
Marte has extended the streak four times in previous seasons earning the minimum 1.0 point in a season to keep the streak alive (2012, 2014, 2018 and 2023).
Notable
Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola now has 108.7 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Nola (6.1IP 3H 2R 2BB 6K W in the 4-2 win over the Cardinals) now ranks 68th among all players in career points since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. With his 1.0 point Friday, he passes five players on the “all-time” career points list—Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3), Carlos Beltran (108.6), Gio Gonzalez (108.6) and Billy Wagner (108.7). Nola now trails 67th-ranked player Jeff Kent (110.2).
Nola ranks 11th among active players in career Box-Toppers points, fifth among active NL pitchers.
He now has 7.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 13th among all players and seventh among NL pitchers.
Friday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Dylan Cease, Padres17.7 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 17th
▪️Michael Wacha, Royals
14.0 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 37th
Result—SD 11, KC 8
Neither starter was Player of the Game.
Cease had -1.9 B-T game score (5.1IP 5H 3R BB 5K ND).
Wacha had -2.9 B-T game score in loss (5.1IP 5H 2R BB 2K ND).
Player of the Game—Luis Arraez, Padres (4-5 3R 2BI) with +4.0 game score.
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+7.0—Bailey Falter, Pirates (6IP 2H 0R 2BB 5K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. TOR.
Player of the Game—Génesis Cabrera, Blue Jays (1.2IP 0H 0R 0BB 3K W) with +4.2 game score.
▪️+5.0—Ceddanne Rafaela, Red Sox (2HR 2-4 2R 5BI)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. DET
Player of the Game—Teammate Tanner Houck (7IP 3H R 2BB 6K W) with +6.0 game score.
▪️+5.0—Jo Adell, Angels (GS 1-1 R 4BI)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. SEA.
Player of the Game—Bryan Woo, Mariners (6IP 3H 0R 0BB 2K ND) with +5.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 423 total players Friday, 124 pitchers-18.0—Jordan Montgomery, Diamondbacks (4IP 9H 8R 6ER 3BB 4K L vs. NYM)
-15.8—Stephen Kolek, Padres
-12.0—James McArthur, Royals
-11.0—Jesús Tinoco, Rangers
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 299 total batters Friday-5.0—Jeimer Candelario, Reds 0-5 2K
-5.0—Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays 0-5 K
-5.0—Yasmani Grandal, Pirates 0-5 K
-5.0—Cody Bellinger, Cubs 0-5
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Scoring
Bibee earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Lopez earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
Yelich and Judge each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Friday’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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Career Box-Toppers points—Active NL pitchers
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) June 1, 2024
1—Clayton Kershaw @Dodgers 270.4
2—Chris Sale @Braves 163.0
3—Yu Darvish @Padres 137.7
4—Lance Lynn @Cardinals 120.5
5—Aaron Nola @Phillies 108.7*
6—Charlie Morton @Braves 106.1
*Earns 1.0 B-T point as Player of the Game Friday
2024 Box-Toppers points—AL pitchers
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) June 1, 2024
1—Luis Gil @Yankees 11.7
2—Tanner Houck @RedSox 8.7*
3—Tanner Bibee @CleGuardians 8.0†
4—Joe Ryan @Twins 7.7
5—Tarik Skubal @Tigers 7.4
*Earns 1.0 B-T pt—Player of the Game FR
†Earns 2.0 B-T pts—Player of the Day FRhttps://t.co/h2We02wcLx
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).| 5/31 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +7.1 | CLE 7, WSH 1 | Tanner Bibee (W, 4‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
| +6.0 | BOS 7, DET 3 | Tanner Houck (W, 5‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| NL | +6.0 | ATL 4, OAK 2 | Reynaldo López (W, 3‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | |
| BAT | +5.0 | MIL 12, CHW 5 | Christian Yelich LF | 6 | 1 | 5 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| BAT | +5.0 | NYY 6, SF 2 | Aaron Judge DH | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | MIA 8, TEX 2 | Jesús Sánchez RF | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +5.0 | `SEA 5, LAA 4 | Bryan Woo | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +4.2 | TOR 5, PIT 3 (F/14) | Génesis Cabrera (W, 2‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| +4.0 | SD 11, KC 8 | Luis Arraez 1B | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | MIN 6, HOU 1 | Pablo López (W, 5‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +3.1 | PHI 4, STL 2 | Aaron Nola (W, 7‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| +3.1 | COL 4, LAD 1 | Jalen Beeks (S, 6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | NYM 10, ARI 9 | Starling Marte RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | CIN 5, CHC 4 | Santiago Espinal PH‑3B‑2B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | BAL 3, TB 1 | Craig Kimbrel (S, 13) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
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 | 8.7 | 10.7 | 22.4 | 22.4 | +6.7 |
| Bibee, Tanner 4792 | pi sp | cle al | 8.0 | 16.7 | 16.7 | 16.7 | -0.7 |
| Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 7.0 | 19.0 | 63.1 | 108.7 | -5.0 |
| Judge, Aaron 3767 | cf dh | nyy al | 5.5 | 17.5 | 44.7 | 60.9 | -6.5 |
| Lopez, Reynaldo 3712 | pi sp | atl nl | 5.4 | 6.4 | 26.9 | 34.6 | +4.4 |
| Lopez, Pablo 4028 | pi sp | min al | 5.0 | 18.4 | 50.5 | 52.2 | -8.4 |
| Woo, Bryan 4842 | pi sp | sea al | 5.0 | 13.7 | 13.7 | 13.7 | -3.7 |
| Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bal al | 4.0 | 8.0 | 17.7 | 92.1 | 0.0 |
| Yelich, Christian 3334 | dh lf | mil nl | 2.5 | 11.7 | 33.9 | 65.9 | -6.7 |
| Sanchez, Jesus 4551 | rf | fla nl | 2.5 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 9.7 | -1.0 |
| Arraez, Luis 4219 | 2b 1b | sd nl | 2.0 | 9.5 | 21.7 | 21.7 | -5.5 |
| Espinal, Santiago 4646 | 2b 3b ph | cin nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | +1.0 |
| Cabrera, Genesis 4348 | pi mr cp | tor al | 2.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | +1.0 |
| Beeks, Jalen 4047 | pi mr cp | col nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 7.7 | 9.7 | +1.0 |
| Marte, Starling 3122 | rf | nym nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 12.0 | 28.0 | 0.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Saturday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | Keller, Mitch 4230 | 4.0 | 17.0 | 24.0 | 24.0 |
| TOR | Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 | 2.7 | 12.7 | 30.1 | 30.1 |
| TB | Bradley, Taj 4780 | 1.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| BAL | Bradish, Kyle 4597 | 3.0 | 17.0 | 23.0 | 23.0 |
| ARI | Cecconi, Slade 4913 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| NYM | Manaea, Sean 3637 | 1.0 | 4.7 | 32.1 | 54.9 |
| CHW | Crochet, Garrett 4434 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| MIL | Gasser, Robert 4998 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| DET | Olson, Reese 4861 | 2.0 | 9.4 | 9.4 | 9.4 |
| BOS | Criswell, Cooper 4840 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| MIN | Ryan, Joe 4539 | 7.7 | 16.4 | 33.8 | 33.8 |
| HOU | Valdez, Framber 4048 | 2.0 | 12.0 | 41.4 | 43.4 |
| OAK | Brooks, Aaron 3545 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 |
| ATL | Sale, Chris 2806 | 9.7 | 18.4 | 31.4 | 163.0 |
| SD | Musgrove, Joe 3705 | 2.0 | 9.0 | 52.5 | 62.2 |
| KC | Marsh, Alec 4961 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| TEX | Lorenzen, Michael 3479 | 1.0 | 9.7 | 16.7 | 24.2 |
| MIA | Weathers, Ryan 4388 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| WSH | Parker, Mitchell 4982 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| CLE | Lively, Ben 3903 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6.0 |
| LAA | Detmers, Reid 4513 | 3.7 | 10.4 | 18.4 | 18.4 |
| SEA | Miller, Bryce 4797 | 4.7 | 17.8 | 17.8 | 17.8 |
| CIN | Greene, Hunter 4651 | 3.0 | 8.7 | 14.7 | 14.7 |
| CHC | Steele, Justin 4415 | 0.0 | 11.1 | 19.1 | 19.1 |
| STL | Gray, Sonny 3259 | 5.7 | 16.1 | 53.7 | 103.6 |
| PHI | Suarez, Ranger 4228 | 9.4 | 13.1 | 28.1 | 28.1 |
| NYY | Poteet, Cody 4405 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| SF | Webb, Logan 4258 | 4.0 | 16.4 | 44.3 | 44.3 |
| COL | Quantrill, Cal 4195 | 4.0 | 6.0 | 21.7 | 21.7 |
| LAD | Yamamoto, Yoshinobu 4964 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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