Pirates' Nicasio tops players for Friday, April 29; Mets' Cespedes rises to 2nd in player rankings

Shawn Plank April 30, 2016

Pirates pitcher Juan Nicasio is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 29:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Cespedes, Yoenis 3008	cf lf dh ph	nym nl	4.5
3	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
4	Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	4.4
5	Machado, Manny 3087	3b ss	bal al	4.2
6	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
7	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	4.0
8	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	4.0
9	De La Rosa, Rubby 3342	pi sp mr	ari nl	4.0
10	Nicasio, Juan 2888	pi sp	pit nl	4.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Meanwhile, Yoenis Cespedes rises to second in Box-Toppers player rankings, first among National League batters, and Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez regains his spot in 11th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995.

Player of the Day—Nicasio struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 4-1 win over the Reds.

Nicasio earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season and rising to 10th in Box-Toppers season player rankings.

American League Player of the Day—Blue Jays pitcher Aaron Sanchez pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out six and allowing six hits, in the 6-1 win over the Rays.

National League Batter of the Day—Yoenis Cespedes of the Mets hit a grand slam and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in six total runs, in the 13-1 win over the Giants.

Cespedes earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 4.5 for the season, rising to second in overall Box-Toppers player rankings, behind only Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta (5.0). Cespedes now leads NL batters in season Box-Toppers points.

American League Batter of the Day—Victor Martinez of the Tigers homered, doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 9-2 win over the Twins.

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	pi sp	retired	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
4	Alex Rodriguez	dh	nyy al	187.0
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	179.0
6	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	175.3
7	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
8	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
9	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
10	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
11	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	163.7
12	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	163.3
13	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
14	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
15	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
16	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
17	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
18	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0
19	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	148.4
20	Javier Vazquez	pi sp	retired	148.3

List of top 100 players since 1995 (through the 2015 season)

Rankings—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez regained his spot in 11th place in Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. He also extended his consecutive season streak earning Box-Toppers points to 12.

Hernandez (7.2IP 5H 0R 4K W in the 1-0 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 163.7 for his career. He now ranks 11th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began), passing Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (163.3), who previously passed Hernandez in career points for the first time on April 21. Hernandez now trails 10th-place player Roger Clemens (164.8).

Hernandez has also now earned Box-Toppers points for 12 consecutive seasons. He earned his first points in 2005 with the Mariners and with 163.7 points is the highest-ranked active player to never lead a season category (i.e., AL pitchers) in Box-Toppers points. He has earned 19.0 or more Box-Toppers points four times in his career (2009, 2010, 2014 and 2015), with his best year being 2014 with 20.8 points, third among AL pitchers. In 2015, he had 19.4 points, third among AL pitchers.

Notable—Cubs pitcher Jon Lester rose to 35th place in Box-Toppers points since 1995 (when tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.

Lester (7IP 7H R 10K ND in the 6-1 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 124.1 career points, passing Gary Sheffield (124.1) on the “all-time” Box-Toppers points list. (Lester beats Sheffield on a tiebreaker because he has more Box-Toppers points this season—3.0 vs. 0.0.) Lester now trails 34th-place player, Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander (124.6). Lester has 3.0 Box-Toppers points on the season and ranks eighth among NL pitchers.

Debut—Padres pitcher Cesar Vargas made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Vargas (5.1IP 4H 0R 6K ND in the 5-1 win over the Dodgers) made his Major League debut April 23 and was playing in his second career game. He is the 3,624th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Nicasio earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Sanchez earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Cespedes and Martinez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/29
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    Pirates
    Juan Nicasio (W,3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    
    10.2
    Marlins
    Adam Conley (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    0
    0
    0
    4
    7
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Mets
    Yoenis Cespedes, CF
    4
    2
    2
    6
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Phillies
    David Hernandez (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    
    6.0
    `Cubs
    Jon Lester
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    7
    1
    1
    2
    10
  

    AL
    5.0
    Blue Jays
    Aaron Sanchez (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    0
    0
    2
    6
  

    
    4.1
    `Padres
    Cesar Vargas
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.1
    4
    0
    0
    3
    6
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Tigers
    Victor Martinez, DH
    5
    3
    4
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Orioles
    Nolan Reimold, LF
    3
    2
    2
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.2
    Mariners
    Felix Hernandez (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    5
    0
    0
    3
    4
  

    
    3.0
    Athletics
    Coco Crisp, LF
    3
    2
    2
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Nationals
    Stephen Strasburg (W,4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    8
    2
    2
    1
    9
  

    
    3.0
    Rangers
    Shawn Tolleson (S,8)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.1
    Rockies
    Tyler Chatwood (W,3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    5
    0
    0
    3
    4
  

    
    2.0
    Red Sox
    Koji Uehara (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Cespedes, Yoenis 3008	cf lf dh ph	nym nl	4.5	15.4	36.4	36.4	-6.4
Nicasio, Juan 2888	pi sp	pit nl	4.0	5.0	20.4	20.4	3.0
Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	3.7	17.7	63.8	71.5	-10.3
Lester, Jon 2173	pi sp	chi nl	3.0	15.0	61.2	124.1	-9.0
Sanchez, Aaron 3392	pi sp	tor al	2.7	4.7	6.7	6.7	0.7
Martinez, Victor 1695	dh ph	det al	2.5	6.0	25.9	66.1	-1.0
Chatwood, Tyler 2856	pi sp	col nl	2.0	2.0	11.7	11.7	2.0
Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	1.0	20.4	86.4	163.7	-18.4
Tolleson, Shawn 3077	pi cp	tex al	1.0	7.0	9.0	9.0	-5.0
Uehara, Koji 2802	pi mr cp	bos al	1.0	6.0	23.0	27.0	-4.0
Conley, Adam 3594	pi sp	fla nl	1.0	4.0	4.0	4.0	-2.0
Crisp, Coco 1876	lf	oak al	1.0	3.0	19.5	36.7	-1.0
Hernandez, David 2649	pi cp	phi nl	1.0	1.0	9.0	13.0	1.0
Reimold, Nolan 2607	lf	bal al	1.0	1.0	6.7	7.7	1.0
Vargas, Cesar 3624	pi sp	sd nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cubs' Arrieta maintains weekly Box-Toppers player rankings lead; Machado, Suarez rise to lead batters

Shawn Plank April 29, 2016

Arrieta remains atop Box-Toppers player rankings. Orioles' Machado, Reds' Suarez assume leads in Box-Toppers points among batters.

Cubs maintain Box-Toppers team rankings lead for 2nd week; White Sox top AL teams

Shawn Plank April 29, 2016

Chicago teams top both leagues in Box-Toppers points. Mets rank as hottest team of the week.

Dbacks' De La Rosa tops players for Thursday, April 28; Orioles' Machado tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 29, 2016

Diamondbacks pitcher Rubby De La Rosa is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 28:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	4.4
4	Machado, Manny 3087	3b ss	bal al	4.2
5	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
6	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	4.0
7	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	4.0
8	De La Rosa, Rubby 3342	pi sp mr	ari nl	4.0
9	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
10	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

De La Rosa struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 3-0 win over the Cardinals.

De La Rosa earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season and rises to eighth in Box-Toppers season player rankings.

American League Player of the Day—Manny Machado of the Orioles hit a grand slam and doubled, going 2-for-4 with three runs and five RBIs, in the 10-2 win over the White Sox.

Machado earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.2 for the season and rises to fourth in Box-Toppers season player rankings, first among AL batters.

National League Batter of the Day—Nick Markakis of the Braves doubled and went 4-for-5, driving in three runs, in the 5-3 win over the Red Sox.

American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day because the overall AL Player of the Day was a batter, Manny Machado.

Debut—Anthony Gose of the Tigers made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.

Gose (HR 2B 2-4 2R 2BI in the 7-3 win over the Athletics) made his Major League debut July 17, 2012, and was playing in his 360th career game. He is the 3,623rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—De La Rosa earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Machado earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day and Markakis earns 1.5 points for being NL Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/28
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    13.0
    Dbacks
    Rubby De La Rosa (W,3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    2
    10
  

    
    11.0
    `Phillies
    Aaron Nola
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    1
    7
  

    AL
    6.0
    Orioles
    Manny Machado, 3B-SS
    4
    3
    2
    5
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Braves
    Nick Markakis, RF
    5
    0
    4
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Tigers
    Anthony Gose, CF
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Cubs
    Kris Bryant, LF
    1
    2
    1
    0
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Marlins
    Jose Fernandez (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    2
    2
    3
    8
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Machado, Manny 3087	3b ss	bal al	4.2	11.7	15.2	15.2	-3.3
De La Rosa, Rubby 3342	pi sp mr	ari nl	4.0	10.0	14.0	14.0	-2.0
Markakis, Nick 2116	rf	atl nl	3.0	7.5	18.5	45.1	-1.5
Nola, Aaron 3569	pi sp	phi nl	2.7	4.7	4.7	4.7	-7.0
Bryant, Kris 3465	3b lf	chi nl	2.0	10.5	10.5	10.5	-6.5
Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	2.0	6.7	32.7	32.7	-2.7
Gose, Anthony 3623	cf	det al	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Orioles' Tillman tops players for Wednesday, April 27; Phillies' Hellickson tops NL players

Shawn Plank April 28, 2016

Orioles pitcher Chris Tillman is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Tillman struck out nine over 6 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 3-1 win over the Rays.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 27:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	4.4
4	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
5	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	4.0
6	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	4.0
7	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
8	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7
9	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
10	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	3.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

National League Player of the Day—Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 3-0 win over the Nationals.

National League Batter of the Day—Brandon Belt of the Giants tripled, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 13-9 win over the Padres.

American League Batter of the Day—J.D. Martinez of the Tigers hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 9-4 win over the Athletics.

Notable—Jose Altuve of the Astros has the highest season Box-Toppers point total of any of Wednesday’s 14 Players of the Game. Altuve (HR 2-2B 3-5 3R 2BI in the 7-4 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.5 for the season. He rises to 11th among all players in season player rankings and second among AL batters.

Scoring—Tillman earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hellickson earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Belt and Martinez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/27
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.2
    Orioles
    Chris Tillman (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    2
    0
    0
    2
    9
  

    NL
    10.0
    Phillies
    Jeremy Hellickson (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    8
  

    
    9.0
    White Sox
    Jose Quintana (W,3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    0
    0
    3
    10
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Giants
    Brandon Belt, 1B
    4
    2
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Red Sox
    Steven Wright (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    2
    1
    3
    8
  

    
    5.1
    Marlins
    Justin Nicolino (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    2
    0
    0
    2
    2
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Tigers
    J.D. Martinez, RF
    3
    2
    2
    4
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Astros
    Jose Altuve, 2B
    5
    3
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Cardinals
    Aledmys Diaz, SS
    4
    3
    2
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    `Indians
    Bryan Shaw (H,4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Mets
    Neil Walker, 2B
    3
    1
    2
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Pirates
    Kyle Lobstein (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    3.0
    3
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    0.0
    Angels
    Mike Trout, CF
    4
    1
    1
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Rangers
    Rougned Odor, 2B
    2
    1
    1
    0
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Altuve, Jose 3007	2b	hou al	3.5	10.5	20.0	20.0	-3.5
Quintana, Jose 3040	pi sp	chi al	3.0	9.0	27.8	27.8	-3.0
Belt, Brandon 2943	1b	sf nl	3.0	4.5	16.5	16.5	1.5
Diaz, Aledmys 3612	ss	stl nl	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0
Hellickson, Jeremy 2778	pi sp	phi nl	2.7	7.7	31.4	34.4	-2.3
Trout, Mike 2949	cf	ana al	2.0	14.0	38.5	38.5	-10.0
Tillman, Chris 2754	pi sp	bal al	2.0	6.7	35.8	37.8	-2.7
Odor, Rougned 3336	2b	tex al	2.0	5.0	6.5	6.5	-1.0
Lobstein, Kyle 3406	pi sp mr	pit nl	2.0	2.0	3.0	3.0	2.0
Martinez, J.D. 2922	rf	det al	1.5	3.2	13.2	13.2	-0.2
Walker, Neil 2756	2b	nym nl	1.0	5.0	22.5	28.0	-3.0
Wright, Steven 3224	pi sp	bos al	1.0	4.7	5.7	5.7	-2.7
Shaw, Bryan 2995	pi mr	cle al	1.0	2.0	6.0	6.0	0.0
Nicolino, Justin 3576	pi sp	fla nl	1.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Giants' Cueto tops players for Tuesday, April 26; Athletics' Hill tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 27, 2016

Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 26:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	4.4
4	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
5	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	4.0
6	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	4.0
7	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
8	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7
9	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
10	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	3.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cueto pitched a complete game shutout, striking out 11 and allowing seven hits and one walk, in the 1-0 win over the Padres.

Cueto earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season, rising to sixth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings.

American League Player of the Day—Athletics pitcher Rich Hill struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 5-1 win over the Tigers.

Hill earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.4 for the season, rising to third in Box-Toppers season player rankings.

National League Batter of the Day—Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates hit three homers and went 3-for-5, driving in five runs, in the 9-4 win over the Rockies.

American League Batter of the Day—Johnny Giavotella of the Angels hit a three-run homer in the 9-4 win over the Royals. Giavotella also doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times.

Rankings—White Sox pitcher Chris Sale rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.

Sale (8IP 4H R 6K W in the 10-1 win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season.

Scoring—Cueto earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hill earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. McCutchen and Giavotella each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/26
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    12.0
    Giants
    Johnny Cueto (W,4-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    7
    0
    0
    1
    11
  

    AL
    11.0
    Athletics
    Rich Hill (W,3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    8
  

    
    10.0
    Red Sox
    David Price (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    6
    2
    2
    2
    14
  

    
    8.0
    Cardinals
    Carlos Martinez (W,4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    0
    0
    1
    4
  

    
    8.0
    Mariners
    Nathan Karns (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    6
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Pirates
    Andrew McCutchen, CF
    5
    3
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    White Sox
    Chris Sale (W,5-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    6
  

    
    6.0
    Rangers
    A.J. Griffin (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Angels
    Johnny Giavotella, 2B
    4
    3
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Cubs
    Adam Warren (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    4.0
    Mets
    Yoenis Cespedes, PH
    1
    1
    1
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.1
    `Twins
    Ricky Nolasco
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    5
    4
    4
    0
    9
  

    
    3.0
    Phillies
    Andres Blanco, SS
    4
    2
    3
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.2
    Rays
    Alex Colome (S,5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    0.2
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Marlins
    Christian Yelich, LF
    5
    2
    3
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	4.4	8.4	8.4	28.1	0.4
Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	4.0	22.8	75.0	77.0	-14.8
Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	4.0	16.8	68.0	87.4	-8.8
Price, David 2593	pi sp	bos al	3.0	24.1	80.1	96.8	-18.1
Cespedes, Yoenis 3008	cf lf dh ph	nym nl	3.0	13.9	34.9	34.9	-7.9
Martinez, Carlos 3371	pi sp	stl nl	2.0	15.7	16.7	16.7	-11.7
Nolasco, Ricky 2125	pi sp	min al	2.0	4.0	24.7	77.8	0.0
McCutchen, Andrew 2637	cf	pit nl	1.5	12.0	42.7	48.4	-9.0
Giavotella, Johnny 2931	2b	ana al	1.5	5.0	8.0	8.0	-2.0
Colome, Alex 3189	pi cp sp mr	tb al	1.0	6.0	9.7	9.7	-4.0
Karns, Nathan 3414	pi sp	sea al	1.0	6.0	7.0	7.0	-4.0
Warren, Adam 3169	pi mr sp	chi nl	1.0	4.7	8.7	8.7	-2.7
Yelich, Christian 3334	lf	fla nl	1.0	3.5	11.0	11.0	-1.5
Blanco, Andres 2980	ss	phi nl	1.0	2.0	3.0	3.0	0.0
Griffin, A.J. 3074	pi sp	tex al	1.0	1.0	15.7	15.7	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Rays' Archer tops players for Monday, April 25; Cabrera, Pujols extend Box-Toppers season streaks

Shawn Plank April 26, 2016

Rays pitcher Chris Archer is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 25:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
4	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
5	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7
6	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
7	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	3.5
8	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5
9	Suarez, Eugenio 3355	3b	cin nl	3.5
10	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4

What are those numbers after players' names?

Archer struck out 10 over 6 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing five hits, in the 2-0 win over the Orioles.

National League Player of the Day—Pirates pitcher Jeff Locke struck out eight over six scoreless innings, allowing five hits, in the 6-1 win over the Rockies.

American League Batter of the Day—Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers hit two homers (including a three-run shot), a double and went 4-for-4, driving in four runs, in the 7-3 win over the Athletics.

Cabrera earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day and now has 134.4 career points, rising to 26th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes Jason Giambi (133.4) on the “all-time” list and trails 25th-place player, Giants pitcher Jake Peavy (136.8). Passing Giambi, Cabrera rises to eighth among all batters in Box-Toppers points since 1995 and ranks fourth among active batters, behind Alex Rodriguez (187.0), Albert Pujols (175.3) and David Ortiz (137.9).

Cabrera also has now earned Box-Toppers points in 14 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2003 with the Marlins. His best year was 2013 with the Tigers when he had 16.9 points, leading AL batters. He also led AL batters in 2009 with the Tigers, when he had 16.5. In 2015, he had 4.7 points with the Tigers, his lowest point total since his 2003 rookie year when he had 3.0.

National League Batter of the Day—Michael Conforto of the Mets homered, doubled and went 3-for-3, scoring three times and driving in a run, in the 5-3 win over the Reds.

This is the second straight day Conforto earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Box-Toppers debut Sunday, April 24, earning Player of the Game honors in the Mets win over the Braves.

Box-Toppers season streaks
Here are the players who have earned Box-Toppers points in the most consecutive seasons. Jason Giambi earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 19 straight seasons from 1995 to 2013, more than any other player. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.) Players are listed by duration of their streak. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total. 







  
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    
    Streak
    Player
    Pos
    Duration
    Career
BTP
  

    1
    19
    Jason Giambi
    1b
    1995-2013
    133.4
  

    2
    18
    Jim Thome
    1b dh
    1995-2012
    146.7
  

    2
    18
    Chipper Jones
    3b
    1995-2012
    149.0
  

    2
    18
    Johnny Damon
    lf
    1995-2012
    63.0
  

    2
    18
    Alex Rodriguez
    dh
    1996-2013
    187.0
  

    2
    18
    Carlos Beltran*
    rf
    1999-2016
    99.9
  

    7
    17
    Mariano Rivera
    pi cp
    1995-2011
    126.4
  

    7
    17
    Derek Jeter
    ss
    1996-2012
    76.4
  

    7
    17
    Paul Konerko
    1b
    1998-2014
    100.7
  

    7
    17
    Tim Hudson
    pi sp
    1999-2015
    157.0
  

    7
    17
    Torii Hunter
    cf
    1999-2015
    115.9
  

    12
    16
    Manny Ramirez
    lf
    1995-2010
    167.2
  

    12
    16
    Andy Pettitte
    pi sp
    1995-2010
    138.5
  

    12
    16
    Jamie Moyer
    pi sp
    1995-2010
    104.0
  

    12
    16
    Scott Rolen
    3b
    1996-2011
    97.6
  

    12
    16
    Kevin Millwood
    pi sp
    1997-2012
    108.3
  

    12
    16
    Derek Lowe
    pi sp
    1998-2013
    91.5
  

    12
    16
    David Ortiz*
    dh
    2000-2015
    137.9
  

    12
    16
    Aramis Ramirez
    3b
    2000-2015
    105.8
  

    12
    16
    Mark Buehrle*
    pi sp
    2000-2015
    116.7
  

    12
    16
    Albert Pujols*
    dh 1b
    2001-2016
    175.3
  


BTP: Box-Toppers points

* Active streak


 

Streak—Albert Pujols of the Angels has now earned Box-Toppers points in 16 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.

The 16-year streak is tied for the 12th-longest streak in Box-Toppers history (since 1995) with nine other players.

Pujols (2HR 2-4 3R 2BI in the 6-1 win over the Royals) earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2001 with the Cardnals. His best year was 2009 with the Cardinals, when he had 16.7 Box-Toppers points to lead NL batters. Pujols led NL batters five times, the most a batter has led his league in Box-Toppers points since 1995:

2003—16.5
2004—15.9
2008—15.2
2009—16.7
2010—15.4

In 2015, Pujols had 7.0 Box-Toppers points with the Angels, ranked 20th among AL batters.

Pujols, earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game Monday, now has 175.3 career Box-Toppers points, maintaining his rank of sixth place among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. He trails fifth-place player, Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia (179.0). Pujols ranks second among all batters, behind Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees (187.0).

Scoring—Archer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Locke earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Cabrera and Conforto each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/25
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.2
    Rays
    Chris Archer (W,1-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    5
    0
    0
    0
    10
  

    
    9.0
    Mariners
    Taijuan Walker (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    1
    11
  

    
    9.0
    Yankees
    Nathan Eovaldi (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    2
    6
  

    NL
    7.0
    Pirates
    Jeff Locke (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    8
  

    
    6.1
    Red Sox
    Rick Porcello (W,4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    4
    0
    0
    2
    6
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Tigers
    Miguel Cabrera, 1B
    4
    2
    4
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Mets
    Michael Conforto, LF
    3
    3
    3
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.2
    Giants
    Madison Bumgarner (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    6
    2
    2
    2
    9
  

    
    3.1
    White Sox
    Zach Putnam (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Dbacks
    Chris Owings, CF
    5
    2
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Angels
    Albert Pujols, 1B
    4
    3
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.1
    `Twins
    Trevor May
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    1
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Marlins
    Giancarlo Stanton, RF
    3
    1
    2
    2
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Walker, Taijuan 3453	pi sp	sea al	2.7	16.4	16.4	16.4	-11.0
Conforto, Michael 3622	lf	nym nl	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	2.0	18.0	42.1	42.1	-14.0
Porcello, Rick 2573	pi sp	bos al	2.0	6.0	27.7	36.7	-2.0
Locke, Jeff 3133	pi sp	pit nl	1.7	7.7	19.1	19.1	-4.3
Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	1.5	6.2	54.8	134.4	-3.2
Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	1.0	18.0	88.0	93.7	-16.0
Pujols, Albert 1438	1b dh	ana al	1.0	8.0	38.0	175.3	-6.0
Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	1.0	6.5	28.2	33.7	-4.5
May, Trevor 3417	pi mr sp cp	min al	1.0	4.0	5.0	5.0	-2.0
Eovaldi, Nathan 2928	pi sp	nyy al	1.0	3.0	20.1	20.1	-1.0
Owings, Chris 3347	cf	ari nl	1.0	2.0	4.5	4.5	0.0
Putnam, Zach 3426	pi mr	chi al	1.0	2.0	3.0	3.0	0.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cubs' Hammel tops players for Sunday, April 24; Red Sox' Hembree tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 25, 2016

Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Hammel struck out seven over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 9-0 win over the Reds. Hammel earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, the most of any of Sunday’s Players of the Game. He ranks 14th in season player rankings.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 24:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
4	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
5	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7
6	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
7	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	3.5
8	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5
9	Suarez, Eugenio 3355	3b	cin nl	3.5
10	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4

What are those numbers after players' names?

American League Player of the Day—Red Sox closing pitcher Heath Hembree pitched three scoreless innings of extra-inning relief, allowing two hits and striking out four, in the 7-5, 12-inning win over the Astros.

This was Hembree’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Hembree made his Major League debut Sept. 3, 2013, and was playing in his 40th career game. He is the 3,620th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Batter of the Day—Alex Presley of the Brewers hit a two-run, pinch-hit homer in the 8-5 win over the Phillies.

Presley had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, tied with Jason Rogers of the Pirates, who was Player of the Game in the 12-10, 13-inning win over the Diamondbacks (1-1 R 2BI), but Presley won NL Batter of the Day on a tiebreaker—he hit a home run, while Rogers hit a triple.

American League Batter of the Day—Marlon Byrd of the Indians went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in two runs, in the 6-3 win over the Tigers.

Debuts—In addition to Hembree, two other players made their Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Joc Pederson of the Dodgers (HR 1-1 2R BI in the 12-10 win over the Rockies) made his Major League debut Sept. 1, 2014, and was playing in his 187th career game. He is the 3,621st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Michael Conforto of the Mets (2B 1-3 2BI in the 3-2 win over the Braves) made his Major League debut July 24, 2015, and was playing in his 72nd career game. He is the 3,622nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Hammel earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hembree earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Presley and Byrd each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/24
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    8.0
    Cubs
    Jason Hammel (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    7
  

    AL
    5.0
    Red Sox
    Heath Hembree (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    3.0
    2
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    
    4.0
    Rays
    Drew Smyly (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    4.0
    Royals
    Yordano Ventura (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    4
  

    
    4.0
    White Sox
    David Robertson (S,7)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.2
    `Nationals
    Yusmeiro Petit
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    4.2
    2
    1
    1
    3
    6
  

    
    3.2
    Mariners
    Nick Vincent (S,1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.2
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Brewers
    Alex Presley, PH-CF
    1
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Jason Rogers, 1B
    1
    1
    1
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Dodgers
    Joc Pederson, CF
    1
    2
    1
    1
    3
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Cardinals
    Kevin Siegrist (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Marlins
    J.T. Realmuto, C
    4
    1
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Indians
    Marlon Byrd, RF
    3
    1
    2
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Blue Jays
    Roberto Osuna (S,6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    0.0
    Mets
    Michael Conforto, LF
    3
    0
    1
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Hammel, Jason 2235	pi sp	chi nl	3.0	12.7	36.1	49.2	-6.7
Smyly, Drew 3009	pi sp	tb al	3.0	9.0	31.1	31.1	-3.0
Osuna, Roberto 3512	pi cp	tor al	3.0	7.0	7.0	7.0	-1.0
Ventura, Yordano 3294	pi sp	kc al	2.0	13.7	23.4	23.4	-9.7
Robertson, David 2774	pi cp	chi al	2.0	10.0	22.0	23.0	-6.0
Siegrist, Kevin 3260	pi mr	stl nl	2.0	6.0	8.0	8.0	-2.0
Petit, Yusmeiro 2337	pi mr sp	dc nl	2.0	2.0	9.0	18.7	2.0
Hembree, Heath 3620	pi cp	bos al	1.7	1.7	1.7	1.7	1.7
Byrd, Marlon 1751	rf	cle al	1.5	6.5	15.5	40.0	-3.5
Presley, Alex 2900	cf ph	mil nl	1.5	1.5	4.5	4.5	1.5
Realmuto, J.T. 3491	ca	fla nl	1.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	-4.0
Rogers, Jason 3602	3b	pit nl	1.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0
Vincent, Nick 3203	pi cp	sea al	1.0	1.0	4.0	4.0	1.0
Conforto, Michael 3622	lf	nym nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0
Pederson, Joc 3621	cf	lad nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Nationals' Roark tops players for Saturday, April 23; Indians' Kluber tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 24, 2016

Nationals pitcher Tanner Roark is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Roark struck out 15 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 2-0 win over the Twins.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 23:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
4	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
5	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7
6	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
7	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	ba al	3.5
8	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5
9	Suarez, Eugenio 3355	3b	cin nl	3.5
10	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4

What are those numbers after players' names?

American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Corey Kluber struck out 10 over eight innings, allowing one run and two hits, in the 10-1 win over the Tigers.

National League Batter of the Day—Eugenio Suarez of the Reds hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four runs in the 13-5 win over the Cubs.

Suarez earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.5 for the season and rising to ninth in player rankings. He also rises to lead all NL batters in Box-Toppers points for the season.

American League Batter of the Day—Josh Donaldson of the Blue Jays hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 9-3 win over the Athletics.

Rankings—Besides Suarez, two other players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings Saturday after earning Player of the Game honors:

Angels pitcher Hector Santiago (6IP 4H 2R 7K W in the 4-2 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.7 for the season, rising to fifth among all players and second among AL pitchers (behind Edinson Volquez of the Royals with 4.4).
Chris Davis of the Orioles (HR 4-5 3R 2BI in the 8-3 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.5 for the season, rising to seventh among all players and first among AL batters.

Debut—Kelby Tomlinson of the Giants made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Tomlinson (1-1 R BI in the 7-2 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut Aug. 3, 2015, and was playing in his 61st career game. He is the 3,619th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Roark earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Kluber earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Suarez and Donaldson each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/23
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    17.0
    Nationals
    Tanner Roark (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    15
  

    AL
    14.0
    Indians
    Corey Kluber (W,1-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    2
    1
    1
    0
    10
  

    
    10.1
    Dodgers
    Kenta Maeda (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    3
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Reds
    Eugenio Suarez, 3B
    4
    3
    3
    4
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Dbacks
    Rubby De La Rosa (W,2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    5.2
    `White Sox
    Carlos Rodon
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    2
    2
    2
    2
    7
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Blue Jays
    Josh Donaldson, 3B
    4
    2
    3
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Phillies
    Odubel Herrera, CF
    4
    4
    3
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Orioles
    Chris Davis, 1B
    5
    3
    4
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Astros
    Colby Rasmus, LF
    4
    1
    2
    5
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    `Yankees
    Masahiro Tanaka
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    7
  

    
    3.0
    Cardinals
    Aledmys Diaz, SS
    5
    1
    5
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Angels
    Hector Santiago (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    2
    2
    2
    7
  

    
    2.0
    Giants
    Kelby Tomlinson, PH
    1
    1
    1
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.1
    Mets
    Steven Matz (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    9
    2
    2
    0
    8
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	3.7	11.7	24.1	24.1	-4.3
Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	3.5	14.5	45.4	53.9	-7.5
Suarez, Eugenio 3355	3b	cin nl	3.5	6.5	9.0	9.0	0.5
Matz, Steven 3516	pi sp	nym nl	3.0	6.5	6.5	6.5	-0.5
Roark, Tanner 3261	pi sp	dc nl	3.0	4.0	19.0	19.0	2.0
Maeda, Kenta 3609	pi sp	lad nl	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0
Donaldson, Josh 3144	3b	tor al	2.5	12.4	32.4	32.4	-7.4
Rasmus, Colby 2608	lf	hou al	2.5	8.5	22.7	34.2	-3.5
Rodon, Carlos 3494	pi sp	chi al	2.0	10.1	10.1	10.1	-6.1
De La Rosa, Rubby 3342	pi mr	ari nl	2.0	8.0	12.0	12.0	-4.0
Diaz, Aledmys 3612	ss	stl nl	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0
Kluber, Corey 3200	pi sp	cle al	1.7	15.1	45.9	45.9	-11.7
Tanaka, Masahiro 3305	pi sp	nyy al	1.0	9.0	21.7	21.7	-7.0
Herrera, Odubel 3449	cf	phi nl	1.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	-3.0
Tomlinson, Kelby 3619	ph	sf nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Royals' Young tops players for Friday, April 22; Phillies' Nola tops NL players

Shawn Plank April 23, 2016

Royals pitcher Chris Young is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 22:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
4	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
5	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
6	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5
7	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
8	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	3.0
9	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0
10	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Young struck out 10 over six innings, allowing two runs and four hits, in the 4-2 win over the Orioles.

National League Player of the Day—Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola struck out seven over seven innings, allowing one run and four hits, in the 5-2 win over the Brewers.

National League Batter of the Day—Curtis Granderson of the Mets hit two homers, including a grand slam, and went 3-for-5, in the 6-3 win over the Braves.

American League Batter of the Day—Mookie Betts of the Red Sox tripled, doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in a run, in the 6-2 win over the Astros. Betts earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, most of any of Friday’s Players of the Games. He ranks second among AL batters in season rankings, behind Robinson Cano of the Mariners (3.5). He ranks 11th among all players.

Notable—Cubs pitcher Jon Lester rises to 36th place in Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.

Lester (7IP 5H R 4K W in the 8-1 win over the Reds) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 123.1 career points. Lester rises to 36th place among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began), passing Angels pitcher Jered Weaver (123.1), beating him on a tiebreaker. He trails 35th-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1). Lester now has 2.0 Box-Toppers points this season.

Scoring—Young earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Nola earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Granderson and Betts each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/22
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    7.0
    Royals
    Chris Young (W,1-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    2
    2
    1
    10
  

    NL
    6.0
    Phillies
    Aaron Nola (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Mets
    Curtis Granderson, RF
    5
    2
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    White Sox
    Jose Quintana (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    2
    4
  

    
    4.2
    Giants
    Jeff Samardzija (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    4.1
    Yankees
    Ivan Nova (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    4.0
    Padres
    Wil Myers, 1B
    3
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.2
    Indians
    Josh Tomlin (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    4
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Red Sox
    Mookie Betts, RF
    5
    3
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Nationals
    Jose Lobaton, C
    3
    1
    2
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Rockies
    Nolan Arenado, 3B
    3
    3
    2
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Cubs
    Jon Lester (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

    
    2.0
    Pirates
    Jordy Mercer, SS
    4
    2
    3
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Athletics
    Chris Coghlan, 3B
    4
    2
    1
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Mariners
    Joel Peralta (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Betts, Mookie 3404	rf	bos al	3.0	6.0	8.0	8.0	0.0
Arenado, Nolan 3306	3b	col nl	2.5	11.0	12.5	12.5	-6.0
Lester, Jon 2173	pi sp	chi nl	2.0	14.0	60.2	123.1	-10.0
Young, Chris R. 1933	pi sp	kc al	2.0	10.0	26.1	76.1	-6.0
Quintana, Jose 3040	pi sp	chi al	2.0	8.0	26.8	26.8	-4.0
Tomlin, Josh 2771	pi sp	cle al	2.0	6.7	19.4	21.4	-2.7
Nola, Aaron 3569	pi sp	phi nl	1.7	3.7	3.7	3.7	-0.3
Granderson, Curtis 2051	rf	nym nl	1.5	5.5	30.4	62.8	-2.5
Samardzija, Jeff 2495	pi sp	sf nl	1.0	10.4	39.1	40.1	-8.4
Myers, Wil 3228	1b cf	sd nl	1.0	4.0	9.5	9.5	-2.0
Coghlan, Chris 2610	3b lf	oak al	1.0	2.0	8.5	15.0	0.0
Lobaton, Jose 3216	ca	dc nl	1.0	2.0	6.5	6.5	0.0
Nova, Ivan 2796	pi mr sp	nyy al	1.0	2.0	23.1	24.1	0.0
Mercer, Jordy 3206	ss	pit nl	1.0	1.0	7.0	7.0	1.0
Peralta, Joel 2292	pi mr	sea al	1.0	1.0	10.0	11.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cubs' Jake Arrieta rises to top Box-Toppers player rankings; Royals' Volquez leads AL players

Shawn Plank April 22, 2016

Arrieta rises to top after earning Player of the Day honors twice in past week. Volquez, Cano, Braun among new category leaders this week.

Chicago Cubs rise to lead Box-Toppers weekly team rankings, recording best week of any team

Shawn Plank April 22, 2016

Cubs, led by Jake Arrieta, are Box-Toppers' top team. The Orioles, 3rd overall, are top American League team in Box-Toppers rankings.

Cubs' Jake Arrieta pitches no-hitter, tops players for Thursday, April 21, rises to 1st in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank April 22, 2016

Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta, pitching a no-hitter, is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to first place in season player rankings.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 21:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
2	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0
4	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
5	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
6	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5
7	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
8	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	3.0
9	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0
10	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Arrieta allowed no hits and four walks, striking out six, in the complete game, 16-0 win over the Reds, his second career no-hitter.

Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, rising to first in Box-Toppers season player rankings. Arrieta led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2015 with 29.1.

While Arrieta’s no-hitter is the first of the season, his Box-Toppers game score Thursday of +11.0 ranks 10th among the highest game scores of the season so far.

American League Player of the Day—Royals pitcher Edinson Volquez pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing five hits and striking out five, in the 4-0 win over the Tigers. Volquez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.4 for the season and rising to second place in season player rankings.

American League Batter of the Day—Robinson Cano of the Mariners hit a 10th-inning, go-ahead three-run homer in the 10-7 win over the Indians. Cano also went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in four runs. He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.5 for the season and rising to sixth in season player rankings. He leads AL batters in Box-Toppers points and is the only batter ranked among the top 10 players.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Thursday because no NL Batter of the Day earned Player of the Game honors. Kris Bryant of the Cubs had a Box-Toppers game score Thursday of +8.0 in his team’s win over the Reds (2HR 4-6 4R 6BI), but did not earn Player of the Game honors because he was overshadowed by teammate Arrieta, who threw a no-hitter and had a game score of +11.0. So despite Bryant’s strong performance, he earns no Box-Toppers points.

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	pi sp	retired	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
4	Alex Rodriguez	dh	nyy al	187.0
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	179.0
6	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	174.3
7	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
8	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
9	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
10	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
11	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	163.3
12	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	162.7
13	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
14	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
15	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
16	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
17	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
18	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0
19	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	148.4
20	Javier Vazquez	pi sp	retired	148.3

List of top 100 players since 1995 (through the 2015 season)

Rankings—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw rose to third in Box-Toppers season player rankings and 11th in “all-time” player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.

Kershaw (8IP 10H R 10K ND in the 2-1 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season and 163.3 for his career. He passes Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez (162.7) to move into 11th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He is also now the fourth-ranked active player in Box-Toppers points, behind Alex Rodriguez (187.0), CC Sabathia (179.0) and Albert Pujols (174.3). Kershaw trails 10th-place player on the list, Roger Clemens (164.8).

Debut—Diamondbacks pitcher Tyler Wagner made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Wagner (5IP 2H 0R K W in the 6-2 win over the Giants) made his Major League debut May 31, 2015, and was playing in his fifth career game. He is the 3,618th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Volquez earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day and Canoearns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/21
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    Cubs
    Jake Arrieta (W,4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    0
    0
    0
    4
    6
  

    
    9.0
    Pirates
    Gerrit Cole (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    7
  

    AL
    6.0
    Royals
    Edinson Volquez (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    0
    0
    1
    5
  

    
    6.0
    Athletics
    Rich Hill (W,2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    2
    1
    4
    10
  

    
    5.1
    Twins
    Ricky Nolasco (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    5
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    
    5.0
    `Dodgers
    Clayton Kershaw
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    10
    1
    1
    1
    10
  

    
    5.0
    Marlins
    Tom Koehler (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    2
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Mariners
    Robinson Cano, 2B
    5
    2
    3
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Dbacks
    Tyler Wagner (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    2
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    3.0
    Rays
    Logan Forsythe, 2B
    4
    3
    3
    1
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Rangers
    Ian Desmond, LF
    4
    2
    2
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Angels
    Mike Trout, CF
    2
    1
    2
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Orioles
    Darren O'Day (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    1
    3
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	5.0	34.1	61.8	64.8	-24.1
Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	4.4	11.4	36.1	62.2	-2.6
Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	4.0	29.7	129.8	163.3	-21.7
Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	sea al	3.5	10.0	39.0	70.9	-3.0
Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	2.7	6.7	6.7	26.4	-1.3
Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	1.0	20.0	30.4	30.4	-18.0
Trout, Mike 2949	cf	ana al	1.0	13.0	37.5	37.5	-11.0
Koehler, Tom 3159	pi sp	fla nl	1.0	5.0	13.0	13.0	-3.0
Nolasco, Ricky 2125	pi sp	min al	1.0	3.0	23.7	76.8	-1.0
O’Day, Darren 2577	pi mr cp	bal al	1.0	2.7	10.7	11.7	-0.7
Forsythe, Logan 3364	2b	tb al	1.0	2.5	4.0	4.0	-0.5
Desmond, Ian 2673	lf ss	tex al	1.0	2.0	17.7	24.2	0.0
Wagner, Tyler 3618	pi mr	ari nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Padres' Pomeranz tops players for Wednesday, April 20; D-Backs' Greinke rises to 19th on Box-Toppers ‘all-time' list

Shawn Plank April 21, 2016

Padres pitcher Drew Pomeranz is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 20:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
3	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
4	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	3.0
5	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
6	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	3.0
7	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0
8	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0
9	Carrasco, Carlos 2885	pi sp	cle al	2.7
10	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	tex al	2.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Pomeranz struck out 10 over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run and four hits, in the 8-2 win over the Pirates.

American League Player of the Day—Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker struck out six over six innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 2-1 win over the Indians.

American League Batter of the Day—Mookie Betts of the Red Sox homered and went 2-for-3, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 7-3 win over the Rays.

National League Batter of the Day—Ryan Braun of the Brewers went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 10-5 win over the Twins.

Rankings—Two players rose into Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday:

White Sox pitcher Chris Sale rose to sixth place (7IP 2H R 3K W in the 2-1 win over the Angels), earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.
Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels rose to 10th place (6.2IP 5H R 7K W in the 2-1 win over the Astros), earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.7 for the season. In addition, Hamels now has 128.9 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 29th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his point Wednesday, Hamels passes Vladimir Guerrero (128.3) on the “all-time” list and trails 28th-place player Trevor Hoffman (129.4).

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	pi sp	retired	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
4	Alex Rodriguez	dh	nyy al	187.0
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	179.0
6	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	174.3
7	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
8	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
9	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
10	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
11	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	162.7
12	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	162.3
13	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
14	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
15	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
16	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
17	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
18	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0
19	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	148.4
20	Javier Vazquez	pi sp	retired	148.3

List of top 100 players since 1995 (through the 2015 season)

Notable—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rises to 19th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995 after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.

Greinke (6.2IP 6H R 7K W in the 2-1 win over the Giants) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 148.4 career points. He passes Javier Vazquez (148.3) on the “all-time” list (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995) and trails 18th-place player Chipper Jones (149.0). Greinke has 2.0 Box-Toppers points for the season.

Scoring—Pomeranz earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Walker earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Betts and Braun each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/20
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    8.2
    Padres
    Drew Pomeranz (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    4
    1
    0
    3
    10
  

    AL
    8.0
    Mariners
    Taijuan Walker (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    0
    0
    6
  

    
    7.0
    White Sox
    Chris Sale (W,4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    1
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    6.2
    `Phillies
    Hector Neris
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.2
    2
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    
    6.1
    Athletics
    Kendall Graveman (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    3
    1
    1
    3
    8
  

    
    6.1
    Tigers
    Jordan Zimmermann (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    7
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    
    4.2
    Dbacks
    Zack Greinke (W,1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    6
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Red Sox
    Mookie Betts, RF
    3
    3
    2
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Cardinals
    Carlos Martinez (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    3
    5
  

    
    3.2
    `Reds
    Raisel Iglesias
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    6
    2
    2
    1
    8
  

    
    3.2
    Rangers
    Cole Hamels (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    5
    1
    1
    3
    7
  

    
    3.0
    Nationals
    Yusmeiro Petit (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    4.0
    2
    1
    1
    0
    3
  

    
    2.1
    `Dodgers
    Chris Hatcher
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Brewers
    Ryan Braun, LF
    3
    2
    2
    1
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Orioles
    Manny Machado, 3B
    3
    1
    2
    1
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	3.0	21.8	74.0	76.0	-15.8
Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	tex al	2.7	18.1	69.7	128.9	-12.7
Machado, Manny 3087	3b	bal al	2.5	10.0	13.5	13.5	-5.0
Braun, Ryan J. 2300	lf	mil nl	2.5	7.5	38.5	80.2	-2.5
Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	ari nl	2.0	22.7	87.8	148.4	-18.7
Zimmermann, Jordan 2612	pi sp	det al	2.0	9.0	58.4	59.4	-5.0
Pomeranz, Drew 3061	pi sp mr	sd nl	2.0	5.0	13.0	13.0	-1.0
Iglesias, Raisel 3467	pi sp	cin nl	2.0	4.7	4.7	4.7	-0.7
Walker, Taijuan 3453	pi sp	sea al	1.7	15.4	15.4	15.4	-12.0
Betts, Mookie 3404	rf	bos al	1.5	4.5	6.5	6.5	-1.5
Martinez, Carlos 3371	pi sp	stl nl	1.0	14.7	15.7	15.7	-12.7
Graveman, Kendall 3444	pi sp	oak al	1.0	5.7	5.7	5.7	-3.7
Hatcher, Chris 3420	pi mr	lad nl	1.0	2.0	3.0	3.0	0.0
Neris, Hector 3553	pi mr	phi nl	1.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0
Petit, Yusmeiro 2337	pi mr sp	dc nl	1.0	1.0	8.0	17.7	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Rays' Smyly tops players for Tuesday, April 19; Nationals' Strasburg tops NL players

Shawn Plank April 20, 2016

Rays pitcher Drew Smyly is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 19:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7
3	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
4	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	3.0
5	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
6	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0
7	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0
8	Carrasco, Carlos 2885	pi sp	cle al	2.7
9	Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	2.7
10	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	2.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Smyly struck out 11 over eight scoreless innings, allowing one hit and two walks, in the 3-0, 10-inning win over the Red Sox. Smyly did not earn the win, picking up a no decision, because he exited with the game tied, 0-0.

National League Player of the Day—Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg struck out 10 over eight scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 7-0 win over the Marlins. Strasburg earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, rising to ninth place in season player rankings.

National League Batter of the Day—Tyler Flowers of the Braves went 4-for-4, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 8-1 win over the Dodgers.

American League Batter of the Day—Salvador Perez of the Royals hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-4, driving in five runs, in the 8-6 win over the Tigers.

Rankings—Besides Strasburg, two other players rose into Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday:

White Sox pitcher Mat Latos rose to second place (6.1IP 2H 0R 5K W in the 5-0 win over the Angels), earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.7 for the season.
Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco rose to eighth place (6.1IP 4H R 5K W in the 3-2 win over the Mariners), earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.7 for the season.

Streak—Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Hammel (6IP 5H R 6K W in the 2-1 win over the Brewers) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Rays and has 47.2 career points, which ranks 27th among active NL pitchers. His best season was 2014 with the Cubs and the Athletics when he had 10.4 points, 25th among AL pitchers. In 2015, he had 9.7 points with the Cubs, 22nd among NL pitchers.

Debut—Reds pitcher Robert Stephenson made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Stephenson (7IP 3H R 3K W in the 4-3 win over the Rockies) made his Major League debut April 7 and was playing in his second career game. He is the 3,617th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Smyly earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Strasburg earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Flowers and Perez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/19
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    16.0
    `Rays
    Drew Smyly
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    1
    0
    0
    2
    11
  

    NL
    13.0
    Nationals
    Stephen Strasburg (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    10
  

    
    7.0
    Dbacks
    Robbie Ray (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    8
  

    
    6.1
    White Sox
    Mat Latos (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    2
    0
    0
    3
    5
  

    
    5.0
    Cubs
    Jason Hammel (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    1
    1
    0
    6
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Braves
    Tyler Flowers, C
    4
    1
    4
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Royals
    Salvador Perez, C
    4
    1
    2
    5
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Mets
    Yoenis Cespedes, CF-LF
    3
    2
    1
    3
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Reds
    Robert Stephenson (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    3
  

    
    3.0
    Athletics
    Fernando Rodriguez (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.1
    Indians
    Carlos Carrasco (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    4
    1
    1
    3
    5
  

    
    2.1
    Blue Jays
    Roberto Osuna (S,5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    2.0
    Padres
    Fernando Rodney (S,2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Rangers
    Elvis Andrus, SS
    3
    1
    2
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Brewers
    Chris Carter, 1B
    1
    0
    0
    2
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	3.7	7.7	44.9	63.6	-0.3
Carrasco, Carlos 2885	pi sp	cle al	2.7	20.7	36.8	36.8	-15.3
Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	2.7	16.7	62.8	70.5	-11.3
Cespedes, Yoenis 3008	cf lf dh	nym nl	2.0	12.9	33.9	33.9	-8.9
Smyly, Drew 3009	pi sp	tb al	2.0	8.0	30.1	30.1	-4.0
Osuna, Roberto 3512	pi cp	tor al	2.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	-2.0
Perez, Salvador 2972	ca	kc al	1.5	6.0	19.2	19.2	-3.0
Flowers, Tyler 3101	ca	atl nl	1.5	2.5	10.0	10.0	0.5
Hammel, Jason 2235	pi sp	chi nl	1.0	10.7	34.1	47.2	-8.7
Ray, Robbie 3502	pi sp	ari nl	1.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	-3.0
Carter, Chris 2828	1b dh	mil nl	1.0	2.0	19.9	20.9	0.0
Rodney, Fernando 1803	pi cp	sd nl	1.0	2.0	19.0	31.0	0.0
Rodriguez, Fernando 3537	pi mr	oak al	1.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0
Andrus, Elvis 2582	ss	tex al	1.0	1.0	8.5	11.5	1.0
Stephenson, Robert 3617	pi sp	cin nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cubs' Lackey tops players for Monday, April 18; Angels' Santiago tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 19, 2016

Cubs pitcher John Lackey is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Lackey struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 5-0 win over the Cardinals.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 18:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
3	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	3.0
4	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
5	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0
6	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0
7	Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	2.7
8	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	2.7
9	Bettis, Chad 3481	pi sp	col nl	2.7
10	Ross, Joe 3499	pi sp	dc nl	2.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first points of the season, giving him 109.8 for his career. Lackey rises to 51st place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began, passing five players on the “all-time” list—Max Scherzer of the Tigers (108.0), Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3), Billy Wagner (108.7) and Jeff Kent (109.7). He trails 50th-place player Tom Glavine (110.6).

American League Player of the Day—Angels pitcher Hector Santiago struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 7-0 win over the White Sox.

Santiago earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, rising to seventh in season player rankings.

American League Batter of the Day—Byung Ho Park of the Twins homered and went 2-for-3, in the 7-4 win over the Brewers.

This was Park’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Park made his Major League debut April 4 and was playing in his 11th career game. He is the 3,616th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no NL Batter of the Day for Monday because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors.

Notable—Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Syndergaard (7IP 5H R 8K W in the 5-2 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.

Scoring—Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Santiago earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day and Park earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/18
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    13.0
    Cubs
    John Lackey (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    1
    11
  

    AL
    12.0
    Angels
    Hector Santiago (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    10
  

    
    6.0
    Mets
    Noah Syndergaard (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    2
    8
  

    
    6.0
    Marlins
    Jose Fernandez (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    1
    4
    9
  

    
    5.0
    Rockies
    Jordan Lyles (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    0
    1
    4
  

    
    4.0
    Blue Jays
    J.A. Happ (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

    
    3.0
    Dbacks
    Rubby De La Rosa (W,1-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    1
    3
  

    BAT
    1.0
    Twins
    Byung Ho Park, DH
    3
    1
    2
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	3.0	13.4	13.4	13.4	-7.4
Santiago, Hector 3109	pi sp	ana al	2.7	10.7	23.1	23.1	-5.3
Lackey, John 1640	pi sp	chi nl	2.0	11.7	31.4	109.8	-7.7
Park, Byung Ho 3616	dh	min al	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5
Happ, J.A. 2536	pi sp	tor al	1.0	14.1	29.5	37.5	-12.1
De La Rosa, Rubby 3342	pi mr	ari nl	1.0	7.0	11.0	11.0	-5.0
Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	1.0	5.7	31.7	31.7	-3.7
Lyles, Jordan 3100	pi sp	col nl	1.0	1.0	7.7	7.7	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Mets' Matz tops players for Sunday, April 17; Rays' Moore tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 17, 2016

Mets pitcher Steven Matz is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 17:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
3	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	3.0
4	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
5	Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0
6	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	2.7
7	Bettis, Chad 3481	pi sp	col nl	2.7
8	Ross, Joe 3499	pi sp	dc nl	2.7
9	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	2.7
10	Moore, Matt 2975	pi sp	tb al	2.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Matz struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 6-0 win over the Indians. Matz had a Box-Toppers game score of 11.0, tied with Rockies Tyler Chatwood, Player of the Game in his team’s 2-0 win over the Cubs (7IP 2H 0R 7K W), but Matz wins Player of the Day on a tiebreaker because he had more strikeouts—9 vs. 7.

American League Player of the Day—Rays pitcher Matt Moore struck out 10 over 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs, in the 3-2 win over the White Sox. Moore earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, rising to 10th place in season player rankings.

National League Batter of the Day—Yasmany Tomas of the Diamondbacks hit a pair of homers and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 7-3 win over the Padres.

American League Batter of the Day—Jose Altuve of the Astros homered and went 2-for-4, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 5-4 win over the Tigers.

Notable—Phillies pitcher Charlie Morton rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. Morton (6IP 4H R 6K ND in the 3-2 win over the Nationals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.

Debut—Twins closing pitcher Michael Tonkin made his Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Tonkin (2IP 0H 0R 4K W in the 3-2 win over the Angels) made his Major League debut July 11, 2013, and was playing in his 63rd career game. He is the 3,615th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Matz earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Moore earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Tomas and Altuve each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/17
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    Mets
    Steven Matz (W,1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    9
  

    
    11.0
    Rockies
    Tyler Chatwood (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    1
    7
  

    AL
    7.1
    Rays
    Matt Moore (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    5
    2
    2
    0
    10
  

    
    6.0
    Blue Jays
    Aaron Sanchez (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    1
    1
    4
    7
  

    
    6.0
    Twins
    Michael Tonkin (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Dbacks
    Yasmany Tomas, LF
    4
    3
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Dodgers
    Kenta Maeda (W,2-0) 
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    3
    7
  

    
    4.1
    Cardinals
    Kevin Siegrist (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    4.0
    `Phillies
    Charlie Morton
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    6
  

    
    4.0
    Yankees
    Andrew Miller (S,3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Gregory Polanco, RF
    4
    3
    3
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Braves
    Jace Peterson, 2B
    4
    1
    2
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Astros
    Jose Altuve, 2B
    4
    1
    2
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Athletics
    Jed Lowrie, DH
    1
    0
    1
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games


Player	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Morton, Charlie 2503	pi sp	phi nl	3.0	9.7	22.7	27.7	-3.7
Moore, Matt 2975	pi sp	tb al	2.7	2.7	28.2	28.2	2.7
Altuve, Jose 3007	2b	hou al	2.5	9.5	19.0	19.0	-4.5
Miller, Andrew 2436	pi cp	nyy al	2.0	6.0	10.0	17.0	-2.0
Matz, Steven 3516	pi sp	nym nl	2.0	5.5	5.5	5.5	-1.5
Maeda, Kenta 3609	pi sp	lad nl	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0
Tomas, Yasmany 3489	lf	ari nl	1.5	5.0	5.0	5.0	-2.0
Siegrist, Kevin 3260	pi mr	stl nl	1.0	5.0	7.0	7.0	-3.0
Peterson, Jace 3469	2b	atl nl	1.0	4.5	4.5	4.5	-2.5
Polanco, Gregory 3361	rf	pit nl	1.0	4.0	8.0	8.0	-2.0
Lowrie, Jed 2437	dh ss	oak al	1.0	3.5	16.5	27.0	-1.5
Sanchez, Aaron 3392	pi sp	tor al	1.0	3.0	5.0	5.0	-1.0
Chatwood, Tyler 2856	pi sp	col nl	1.0	1.0	10.7	10.7	1.0
Tonkin, Michael 3615	pi cp	min al	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Cubs' Arrieta tops players for Saturday, April 16, rises to 3rd in Box-Toppers rankings

Shawn Plank April 17, 2016

Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 16:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
3	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	3.0
4	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
5	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	2.7
6	Bettis, Chad 3481	pi sp	col nl	2.7
7	Ross, Joe 3499	pi sp	dc nl	2.7
8	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	2.7
9	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	2.5
10	Brown, Trevor 3610	ca	sf nl	2.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

Arrieta struck out eight over eight scoreless innings, allowing five hits, in the 6-2 win over the Rockies. Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season and rising to third place in season player rankings. Arrieta led all players in 2015 with 29.1 Box-Toppers points.

American League Player of the Day—Rays pitcher Erasmo Ramirez pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out four, in the 7-2 win over the White Sox.

National League Batter of the Day—Nick Markakis of the Braves doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 6-4 win over the Marlins.

With the 1.5 Box-Toppers points earned for being NL Batter of the Day Saturday, Markakis has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Orioles and has 43.6 career points, which ranks 14th among active NL outfielders. His best season was 2009 with the Orioles when he had 7.7 points, sixth among AL outfielders. In 2015, he had 4.5 points with the Braves.

American League Batter of the Day—Trevor Plouffe of the Twins homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, driving in two runs, in the 6-4 win over the Angels.

Notable—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rose to 55th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings list after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. Scherzer (7IP 5H R 7K W in the 5-3 win over the Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 108.0 career points. He passes Cubs pitcher John Lackey (107.8) to move into 55th place among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began). He trails 54th-place player Lance Berkman (108.1). Scherzer now has 2.0 Box-Toppers points for the 2016 season. He had 21.0 points in 2015, fourth among NL pitchers.

Debut—Nomar Mazara of the Rangers made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Mazara (3-4 2R BI in the 8-4 win over the Orioles) made his Major League debut April 10 and was playing in his seventh career game. He is the 3,614th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Ramirez earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Markakis and Plouffe each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/17
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    10.0
    Cubs
    Jake Arrieta (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    
    7.1
    Giants
    Johnny Cueto (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    3
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    AL
    6.2
    Rays
    Erasmo Ramirez (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.2
    3
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    
    6.0
    Red Sox
    David Price (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    2
    2
    0
    9
  

    
    6.0
    Nationals
    Max Scherzer (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    
    5.0
    Indians
    Josh Tomlin (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    4
    1
    1
    0
    6
  

    
    4.0
    Pirates
    Jonathon Niese (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    3
  

    
    3.0
    `Padres
    Andrew Cashner
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    5
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Braves
    Nick Markakis, RF
    5
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Twins
    Trevor Plouffe, 3B
    4
    1
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Reds
    Zack Cozart, SS
    4
    1
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Rangers
    Nomar Mazara, RF
    4
    2
    3
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    `Tigers
    Mark Lowe (H,4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Athletics
    Josh Reddick, RF
    4
    1
    1
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Mariners
    Robinson Cano, 2B
    3
    1
    1
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

White Sox' Sale tops players for Friday, April 15; Dbacks' Greinke rises to 20th on 'all-time' list

Shawn Plank April 16, 2016

White Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 15:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Velasquez, Vince 3611	pi sp	phi nl	4.0
2	Salazar, Danny 3223	pi sp	cle al	3.4
3	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	3.0
4	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	kc al	2.7
5	Bettis, Chad 3481	pi sp	col nl	2.7
6	Ross, Joe 3499	pi sp	dc nl	2.7
7	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	chi al	2.7
8	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	2.5
9	Brown, Trevor 3610	ca	sf nl	2.5
10	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	2.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Sale pitched a two-hit shutout, allowing no walks and striking out nine, in the 1-0 win over the Rays. Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first of the season, and now ranks 10th in Box-Toppers season player rankings.

National League Player of the Day—Nationals pitcher Joe Ross pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out five, in the 9-1 win over the Phillies. Ross earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season and rises to sixth in season player rankings.

National League Batter of the Day—Matt Holliday of the Cardinals hit two home runs, going 2-for-2 and driving in four runs, in the 4-3 win over the Reds.

Holliday has now earned Box-Toppers points in 13 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2004 with the Rockies and has 93.3 career points, ranked 88th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began) and second among active NL batters (behind Ryan Howard of the Phillies who has 96.7). Holliday’s best season was 2007 with the Rockies when he had 16.2 Box-Toppers points to lead NL batters. In 2015, he had 1.5 points with the Cardinals.

American League Batter of the Day—Mark Trumbo of the Orioles hit two seventh-inning home runs, going 2-for-4 and driving in five runs, in the 11-5 win over the Rangers.

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	pi sp	retired	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
4	Alex Rodriguez	dh	nyy al	187.0
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	179.0
6	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	174.3
7	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
8	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
9	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
10	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
11	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	162.7
12	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	162.3
13	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
14	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
15	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
16	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
17	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
18	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0
19	Javier Vazquez	pi sp	retired	148.3
20	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	147.4

List of top 100 players since 1995 (through the 2015 season)

Notable—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rises to 20th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. He also extended his streak of consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points to 10.

Greinke (7.1IP 6H 2R 5K ND in the 3-2 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 147.4 for his career, rising to 20th among all players since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began. Greinke passes Jim Thome (146.7) and now trails 19th-place player Javier Vazquez (148.3).

Greinke has now earned Box-Toppers points in 10 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2004 with the Royals but his current 10-year streak did not begin until 2007, when he was also with the Royals (he earned no points in 2006). His best year was 2009 with the Royals when he had 21.5 points to lead NL pitchers. In 2015, he had 20.7 points with the Dodgers, fifth among NL pitchers.

Streak—Ryan Braun of the Brewers has now earned Box-Toppers points in 10 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Braun (2HR 3-5 2R 4BI in the 8-4 win over the Pirates) earned his first points in 2007 with the Brewers and has 78.7 career points, third among active NL batters. His best year was 2012 with the Brewers when he had 12.5 Box-Toppers points to lead NL batters. He had 5.0 points in 2015.

Debut—Adonis Garcia of the Braves made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Garcia (2B 2-4 3BI in the 6-3 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut May 19, 2015, and was playing in his 68th career game. He is the 3,613th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Rankings—Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Bettis (6IP 3H 0R 4 W in the 6-1 win over the Cubs) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.7 for the season.

Scoring—Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Ross earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Holliday and Trumbo each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    4/15
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    16.0
    White Sox
    Chris Sale (W,3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    2
    0
    0
    0
    9
  

    NL
    7.2
    Nationals
    Joe Ross (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    3
    0
    0
    2
    5
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Cardinals
    Matt Holliday, 1B
    2
    2
    2
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Astros
    Dallas Keuchel (W,2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    0
    0
    1
    4
  

    
    5.1
    Red Sox
    Rick Porcello (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    2
    3
    3
    1
    8
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Orioles
    Mark Trumbo, DH
    4
    2
    2
    5
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Brewers
    Ryan Braun, LF
    5
    2
    3
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Dodgers
    Enrique Hernandez, LF
    5
    2
    3
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Mariners
    Chris Iannetta, C
    3
    1
    3
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Rockies
    Chad Bettis (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    4
  

    
    3.0
    Twins
    Eduardo Nunez, 2B
    3
    2
    3
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Royals
    Wade Davis (S,5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.1
    `Dbacks
    Zack Greinke
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    6
    2
    2
    1
    5
  

    
    1.0
    Mets
    Yoenis Cespedes, DH
    5
    1
    3
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Braves
    Adonis Garcia, 3B
    4
    0
    2
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    
    `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
  

Phillies' Vince Velasquez leads Box-Toppers season player rankings; Indians' Salazar tops AL players

Shawn Plank April 15, 2016

Velasquez leads all players, Indians' Danny Salazar leads AL players, Orioles' Davis & Giants' Brown lead league batters.

Top 10 players

All-time leaders

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Box-Toppers season streaks

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

All-time leaders

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

All-time leaders

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers point totals of Players of the Games

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

All-time leaders

Top player from each game

Box-Toppers

Tracking who most helps their teams win the most games, based on box score stats. A method to measure & compare baseball's top players.