Red Sox' Buchholz tops players for Sunday, July 13, Giants' Bumgarner (with bat) rises to 4th in Box-Toppers rankings

Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz is Sunday’s Player of the Day. Buchholz pitched a complete-game, three-hit shutout, striking out 12 and allowing no walks, in the 11-0 win over the Astros.

Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu is National League Player of the Day. Ryu pitched six scoreless innings and struck out 10 in the 1-0 win over the Padres.

Chris Johnson of the Braves is NL Batter of the Day. Johnson homered and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 10-7 win over the Cubs.

Brian Dozier of the Twins is American League Batter of the Day. Dozier homered twice and doubled in six at-bats, driving in four runs, in the 13-5 win over the Rockies.

Notables: Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner rose to fourth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday—and for the second time this season earning the honor for batting. (See the updated top 10 player ranking list on the home page.)

Bumgarner hit a grand slam (his second of the season) and went 2-for-3 with two runs, in the 8-4 win over the Diamondbacks. (He also pitched 6 1/3 innings and picked up the win.) He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.5 for the season, moving from ninth to fourth place. He ranks third among NL pitchers.

This is the sixth time this season a pitcher has won Player of the Game honors for batting. It is the second time Bumgarner has done it. He previously did it April 11, earning NL Batter of the Day.

Rays pitcher David Price became the 16th player this season to earn at least 10.0 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. Price (8IP 0R 5K W in the 3-0 win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.4 for the season, moving him to 13th place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He ranks sixth among AL pitchers.

Buchholz receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Ryu receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Johnson and Dozier each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

713 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 18.0 Red Sox Clay Buchholz (W, 4-5) - - - - - - 9.0 3 0 0 0 12
NL 14.0 Dodgers Hyun-Jin Ryu (W, 10-5) - - - - - - 6.0 2 0 0 0 10
8.0 Brewers Wily Peralta (W, 10-6) - - - - - - 7.0 3 1 0 0 5
7.0 Rays David Price (W, 9-7) - - - - - - 8.0 5 0 0 1 5
7.0 Nationals Tanner Roark (W, 8-6) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 0 6
6.0 Mets Jacob deGrom (W, 3-5) - - - - - - 7.0 5 1 1 2 8
5.2 `Indians Trevor Bauer - - - - - - 6.2 8 0 0 3 10
BAT 5.0 Braves Chris Johnson 3B 4 3 3 3 1 0 - - - - - -
5.0 Giants Madison Bumgarner P 3 2 2 4 0 0 - - - - - -
4.0 Reds Aroldis Chapman (S, 21) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
3.2 Athletics Sonny Gray (W, 10-3) - - - - - - 7.2 6 1 0 2 5
3.2 Royals Yordano Ventura (W, 7-7) - - - - - - 1.2 1 0 0 0 3
BAT 3.0 Twins Brian Dozier 2B 6 2 3 4 0 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Angels Mike Trout CF 4 1 2 4 1 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Orioles Chris Davis 1B 2 1 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.

 

Yankees' Shane Greene (7.1IP 0R 9K) tops players for Saturday, July 12

Yankees pitcher Shane Greene is Saturday's Player of the Day. Greene pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out nine in the 3-0 win over the Orioles.

This was Greene’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,381st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. Greene made his Major League debut April 24 and was pitching in his third game, making his second start.

Dodgers pitcher Paul Maholm is National League Player of the Day. Maholm pitched six scoreless innings in the 1-0 win over the Padres. He did not earn the win because when he left the game, the score was tied at 0-0.

Kevin Kiermaier of the Rays is American League Batter of the Day. Kiermaier doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 10-3 win over the Blue Jays.

Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates is NL Batter of the Day. McCutchen hit two homers and doubled in five at-bats, scoring three times, in the 6-5 win over the Reds. He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 6.5 for the season and moving him to third place among NL batters in Box-Toppers player rankings. He also passes his Box-Toppers points total for 2013 of 6.0. McCutchen was 2013 NL Most Valuable Player but ranked 22nd among NL batters in Box-Toppers points last season.

Greene receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Maholm receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Kiermaier and McCutchen each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Saturday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

712 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 10.1 Yankees Shane Greene (W, 2-0) - - - - - - 7.1 4 0 0 2 9
NL 8.0 `Dodgers Paul Maholm - - - - - - 6.0 2 0 0 0 4
7.2 Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 8-4) - - - - - - 8.2 5 2 2 0 8
5.0 White Sox Scott Carroll (W, 4-5) - - - - - - 5.0 2 0 0 1 3
BAT 4.0 Rays Kevin Kiermaier CF 4 2 3 3 1 1 - - - - - -
4.0 Dbacks Wade Miley (W, 5-6) - - - - - - 7.0 4 0 0 3 4
4.0 Nationals Rafael Soriano (S, 22) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
3.2 Astros Josh Fields (W, 2-4) - - - - - - 1.2 0 0 0 1 3
BAT 3.0 Pirates Andrew McCutchen CF 5 3 3 2 0 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Braves Chris Johnson 3B 5 2 2 4 0 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Cardinals Jhonny Peralta SS 3 2 2 2 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Mets Chris Young PH 1 1 1 2 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Angels Joe Smith (S, 14) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
2.0 Tigers Alex Avila C 4 1 2 3 0 2 - - - - - -
2.0 Twins Kurt Suzuki PH, C 1 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.

 

Angels' Richards, Giants' Lincecum top players for Friday, July 11; Mariners' Hernandez rises to 5th in Box-Toppers rankings

Angels pitcher Garrett Richards, Friday’s Player of the Day, rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. Meanwhile, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to fifth place in rankings.

Richards pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out eight in the 3-0 win over the Rangers. Richards earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.7 for the season, rising to sixth place among all players. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) He is in fourth place among American League pitchers.

Hernandez rises from eighth to fifth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Hernandez struck out nine over eight innings, allowing two runs, in the 3-2 win over the Athletics. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.8 for the season and is in third place among AL pitchers.

Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum is National League Player of the Day. Lincecum pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out six in the 5-0 win over the Diamondbacks. Lincecum earned 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 10.4 for the season, moving into 12th place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He is the 15th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points.

Richards and Lincecum had identical Box-Toppers game scores of 8.0, but Richards earned overall Player of the Day honors on a tiebreaker—he had more strikeouts, eight vs. six.

David Wright of the Mets is NL Batter of the Day. Wright homered, went 4-for-4, scored twice and drove in two runs, in the 7-1 win over the Marlins.

Christian Vazquez of the Red Sox is AL Batter of the Day. Vazquez went 3-for-4, scored twice and drove in three runs, in the 8-3 win over the Astros. This was Vazquez’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,380th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut July 9 and was playing in his second game.

Richards receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Lincecum receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Wright and Vazquez each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Friday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

711 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 8.0 Angels Garrett Richards (W, 11-2) - - - - - - 7.0 5 0 0 2 8
NL 8.0 Giants Tim Lincecum (W, 9-5) - - - - - - 7.0 3 0 0 2 6
5.0 Mariners Felix Hernandez (W, 11-2) - - - - - - 8.0 6 2 2 2 9
4.1 Blue Jays Aaron Loup (W, 3-2) - - - - - - 1.1 0 0 0 0 3
BAT 4.0 Mets David Wright 3B 4 2 4 2 0 0 - - - - - -
BAT 4.0 Red Sox Christian Vazquez C 4 2 3 3 0 1 - - - - - -
4.0 Indians Cody Allen (S, 11) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
4.0 Reds Aroldis Chapman (S, 20) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
3.0 Cardinals Matt Holliday LF 4 3 3 1 1 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Phillies Jimmy Rollins SS 4 2 2 3 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Padres Jesse Hahn (W, 5-2) - - - - - - 6.0 3 1 1 4 6
3.0 `Orioles Miguel Gonzalez - - - - - - 8.0 6 2 2 0 5
2.0 Rockies Brandon Barnes PH 1 1 1 1 0 0 - - - - - -
1.0 Cubs Chris Coghlan LF 3 1 2 1 1 0 - - - - - -
0.0 Tigers Austin Jackson CF 4 1 3 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' regular Friday rankings reports delayed until Monday during All-Star break

Box-Toppers normally updates weekly team rankings and weekly top player lists each Friday. This week’s updates will be delayed until Monday, July 14, during the All-Star break. There will also be no weekly update next Friday (because there will be no regular baseball games played to update during the week because of the All-Star break). Regular Friday weekly updates will resume July 25.

During the All-Star break, look for Box-Toppers special reports, which could include the top 100 players of the season in Box-Toppers points, the top 100 players of “all time” in Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when record keeping began), the Box-Toppers points leaders on each team—or whatever else sounds interesting and we have time for.

Dodgers' Kershaw, top player for Thursday, July 10, adds to Box-Toppers points lead

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, Thursday’s Player of the Day, added to his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings, while Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir rose to fourth place overall.

Kershaw pitched a complete game three-hitter, allowing one run and striking out 11, in the 2-1 win over the Padres. Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 18.1 for the season, to maintain his top spot in Box-Toppers player rankings. Kershaw, who led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2013, is only 3.6 points behind his overall total from last season, 21.7.

Kazmir, American League Player of the Day, rises from 10th to fourth place in player rankings. Kazmir pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out nine in the 6-1 win over the Giants. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 13.1 for the season. He ranks second among AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points, behind Max Scherzer of the Tigers (16.1).

Mike Trout of the Angels is AL Batter of the Day. Trout homered and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 15-6 win over the Rangers. Trout earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.5 for the season, matching his Box-Toppers points total for 2013. While he currently ranks second among all players in the Wins Above Replacement stat, he ranks 29th among AL batters in Box-Toppers points this season.

Arismendy Alcantara of the Cubs is National League Batter of the Day. Alcantara tripled, doubled, went 4-for-5, scored twice and drove in three runs, in the 6-4 win over the Reds. This was Alcantara’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,378th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut July 9 and was playing in his second game. His fifth inning double Thursday was his first Major League hit.

Kershaw receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kazmir receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Trout and Alcantara each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Thursday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

710 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 14.0 Dodgers Clayton Kershaw (W, 11-2) - - - - - - 9.0 3 1 1 1 11
AL 12.0 Athletics Scott Kazmir (W, 11-3) - - - - - - 7.0 3 0 0 1 9
10.0 `Red Sox Jon Lester - - - - - - 7.0 7 1 1 0 12
BAT 6.0 Angels Mike Trout CF 5 3 4 4 0 1 - - - - - -
5.0 Phillies David Buchanan (W, 5-5) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 1 5
BAT 4.0 Cubs Arismendy Alcantara 2B 5 2 4 3 0 1 0 0
4.0 Tigers J.D. Martinez LF, RF 3 2 2 3 1 1 - - - - - -
4.0 Pirates Edinson Volquez (W, 8-6) - - - - - - 9.0 6 1 1 2 5
3.0 Indians Roberto Perez C 3 2 2 2 1 0 - - - - - -
2.1 Braves Craig Kimbrel (S, 28) - - - - - - 1.1 0 0 0 0 1
1.0 Orioles Steve Pearce LF 4 2 2 1 0 0 - - - - - -
1.0 Twins Kurt Suzuki C 3 1 2 1 1 0 - - - - - -

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

 

Reds' Simon top players for Wednesday, July 9, Tigers' Scherzer bolsters Box-Toppers AL pitching lead

Reds pitcher Alfredo Simon is Wednesday’s Player of the Day, while Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer bolstered his Box-Toppers points lead among American League pitchers.

Simon struck out eight over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run, in the 4-1 win over the Cubs.

Scherzer, American League Player of the Day, added to his lead among AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points and maintained his second-place spot in overall player rankings. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Scherzer struck out seven over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 4-1 win over the Dodgers. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 16.1 for the season. He widens his lead over second-place AL pitcher Masahiro Tanaka of the Yankees (12.7 Box-Toppers points). He ties Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw with 16.1 Box-Toppers points, but Kershaw maintains the overall player rankings lead on a tie-breaker—he has more points since the start of the 2013 season—37.8 vs. 34.2.

Scherzer is only 2.0 Box-Toppers points away from his 2013 total of 18.1, his best season, a year in which he led all AL players.

Robbie Grossman of the Astros is AL Batter of the Day. Grossman went 4-for-5, scored twice and drove in two runs, in the 8-4 win over the Rangers.

Jayson Werth of the Nationals is National League Batter of the Day. Werth homered and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 6-2 win over the Orioles.

Notables: Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Tulowitzki homered twice in the 6-3 win over the Padres, earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.6 for the season. He rejoins the overall top 10 after being bumped July 6 and is again the only batter on the list.

Tulowitzki also surpassed his highest Box-Toppers points total for a season with 11.6. His previous high was 11.5 during the 2011 season.

Chris Colabello of the Twins, who early in the season led all players in Box-Toppers points before slumping and being sent to the minors, earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday for the first time since his return to the Majors. Colabello (2-4 R 2BI in the 8-1 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.2 for the season. He ranks sixth among all AL batters. He last earned Player of the Game honors April 17.

Simon receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Scherzer receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Grossman and Werth each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Wednesday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

709 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 6.2 Reds Alfredo Simon (W, 12-3) - - - - - - 6.2 4 1 1 2 8
AL 6.0 Tigers Max Scherzer (W, 11-3) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 2 7
4.0 Phillies Roberto Hernandez (W, 4-8) - - - - - - 8.0 3 1 1 2 3
4.0 Yankees Chase Whitley (W, 4-2) - - - - - - 2.0 1 0 0 0 3
4.0 Red Sox Koji Uehara (W, 5-2) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
BAT 3.0 Astros Robbie Grossman RF 5 2 4 2 0 1 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Nationals Jayson Werth RF 3 2 2 2 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 `Ddbacks Josh Collmenter - - - - - - 7.0 7 1 1 1 6
3.0 Angels Joe Smith (S, 12) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
3.0 Royals Greg Holland (S, 24) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
3.0 `Giants Sergio Romo (H, 1) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
2.0 Rockies Troy Tulowitzki SS 4 2 2 2 0 2 - - - - - -
2.0 Cardinals Matt Holliday LF 3 2 2 1 2 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Mets Dillon Gee (W, 4-1) - - - - - - 7.0 6 1 1 1 4
1.0 Twins Chris Colabello 1B 4 1 2 2 0 1 - - - - - -

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

 

Mets' Jacob deGrom (7IP 0R 11K) tops players for Tuesday, July 8

Box-Toppers Daily Scorecard graphic.png

Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom is Tuesday’s Player of the Day. deGrom pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out 11 in the 8-3 win over the Braves.

Twins pitcher Phil Hughes is American League Player of the Day. Hughes pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out eight in the 2-0 win over the Mariners. Hughes earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 8.4 points for the season, moving up to 26th place in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Domonic Brown of the Phillies is National League Batter of the Day. Brown homered and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 9-7 win over the Brewers.

Michael Brantley of the Indians is AL Batter of the Day. Brantley homered and hit two doubles, driving in three runs, in the 5-3 win over the Yankees.

deGrom receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Hughes receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Brown and Brantley each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Tuesday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

708 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 11.0 Mets Jacob deGrom (W, 2-5) - - - - - - 7.0 7 0 0 0 11
AL 7.1 Twins Phil Hughes (W, 9-5) - - - - - - 7.1 8 0 0 0 8
7.0 Blue Jays R.A. Dickey (W, 7-8) - - - - - - 7.0 4 0 0 1 5
6.0 Athletics Sonny Gray (W, 9-3) - - - - - - 7.0 6 1 1 1 8
5.0 `Reds J.J. Hoover - - - - - - 2.0 2 0 0 1 6
BAT 4.0 Phillies Domonic Brown LF 3 2 2 3 1 0 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Indians Michael Brantley CF 4 1 3 3 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Tigers Rajai Davis LF 4 1 3 3 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 White Sox Conor Gillaspie 3B 4 2 3 2 0 1 - - - - - -
2.2 Rockies Franklin Morales (W, 5-4) - - - - - - 5.2 4 1 1 3 6
2.0 Cardinals Kolten Wong 2B 4 1 2 3 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Astros Chris Carter DH 4 2 2 2 0 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Marlins Steve Cishek (S, 20) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
1.2 Rays Brad Boxberger (W, 2-1) - - - - - - 1.2 1 0 0 0 1
1.0 Reds Chris Heisey LF 3 1 3 0 1 0 - - - - - -

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

 

Royals' James Shields (7IP 0R 10K) tops players for Monday, July 7

Royals pitcher James Shields is Monday’s Player of the Day. Shields pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out 10 in the 6-0 win over the Rays.

Shields had a Box-Toppers game score of 13.0, the same as Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma (Player of the Game in the 2-0 win over the Twins), but Shields won overall Player of the Day on a tie-breaker—Shields allowed fewer hits than Iwakuma, three vs. four.

Padres pitcher Ian Kennedy is National League Player of the Day. Kennedy struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-1 win over the Rockies.

Jonathan Singleton of the Astros is American League Batter of the Day. Singleton homered, doubled and went 3-for-4 with two runs and four RBIs in the 12-7 win over the Rangers. This was Singleton’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,376th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut June 3 and was playing in his 32nd game.

Billy Hamilton of the Reds is NL Batter of the Day. Hamilton tripled and went 2-for-4, driving in four runs, in the 9-3 win over the Cubs.

Shields receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kennedy receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Singleton and Hamiton each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Monday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

707 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 13.0 Royals James Shields (W, 9-4) - - - - - - 7.0 3 0 0 1 10
13.0 Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 7-4) - - - - - - 7.0 4 0 0 0 10
9.0 Athletics Jesse Chavez (W, 7-5) - - - - - - 6.0 4 0 0 2 9
8.2 White Sox Scott Carroll (W, 3-5) - - - - - - 6.2 1 0 0 2 5
NL 8.0 Padres Ian Kennedy (W, 7-9) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 2 9
BAT 5.0 Astros Jonathan Singleton 1B 4 2 3 4 1 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Orioles Manny Machado 3B 6 2 5 2 0 0 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Reds Billy Hamilton CF 4 1 2 4 1 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Dbacks David Peralta LF 4 2 2 3 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Phillies Chase Utley 2B 3 2 2 2 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Mets Carlos Torres (W, 4-4) - - - - - - 2.0 1 0 0 0 2
2.0 Yankees Dellin Betances (S, 1) - - - - - - 2.0 1 0 0 0 1
2.0 Cardinals Pat Neshek (W, 3-0) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 1
1.0 Angels Chris Iannetta C 4 2 3 0 0 1 - - - - - -

Angels' Richards, Cubs' Rizzo lead in Box-Toppers points among All-Star Final Vote candidates

Angels pitcher Garrett Richards and Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo are the most deserving players to be chosen in the All-Star Game Final Vote, according to their Box-Toppers point total.

All-Star Final Vote

Here are the candidates for the 2014 All-Star Final Vote. There are five candidates from each league. One from each league will be chosen by fans in online voting for the final All-Star roster spots. Voting ends Thursday. Players are shown here in order of their Box-Toppers points total this season.

AL players Pos Team BTP
1 Garrett Richards pi sp ana al 10.7
2 Corey Kluber pi sp cle al 10.4
3 Chris Sale pi sp chi al 10.0
4 Dallas Keuchel pi sp hou nl 8.7
5 Rick Porcello pi sp det al 5.0
NL players Pos Team BTP
1 Anthony Rizzo 1b chi nl 5.5
2 Justin Upton lf atl nl 5.2
3 Casey McGehee 3b fla nl 3.5
4 Anthony Rendon 2b dc nl 2.0
5 Justin Morneau 1b col nl 1.5
BTP: Box-Toppers points

Richards has the most points among the five American League players on the ballot and Rizzo has the most among the five National League players on the ballot in which fans vote for the 34th and final roster spots for both teams in the July 15 All-Star Game. Voting ends Thursday.

Richards has 10.7 Box-Toppers points, 10th among all players and fifth among AL pitchers, narrowly ahead of Indians pitcher Corey Kluber (10.4 Box-Toppers points, 12th among all players).

Richards is also the top-ranked AL player in Box-Toppers points who was not selected to the All-Star team.

Rizzo is the top player among the five NL players on the Final Vote ballot, but is far from the top-ranked NL player in Box-Toppers points who was not selected to the All-Star team. That honor would go to non-All-Star Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, who has 9.0 Box-Toppers points and ranks eighth among NL players.

Rizzo, by comparison, with 5.5 Box-Toppers points, ranks 29th among NL players. However, he ranks third among NL batters and is the top-ranked NL batter not selected to the All-Star team.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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.

Indians' Corey Kluber (8.1IP 1R 10K) tops players for Sunday, July 6, Angels' Richards rises to 10th in Box-Toppers rankings

Indians pitcher Corey Kluber is Sunday’s Player of the Day. Kluber struck out 10 over 8 1/3 innings, allowing one run, in the 4-1 win over the Royals.

Kluber earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.4 for the season and rising to 12th in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Diamondbacks pitcher Wade Miley is National League Player of the Day. Miley struck out eight over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run, in the 3-1 win over the Braves.

Jacoby Ellsbury of the Yankees is American League Batter of the Day. Ellsbury homered and went 2-for-5, driving in four runs, in the 9-7 win over the Twins.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis of the Mets is NL Batter of the Day. Nieuwenhuis homered and scored three times in the 8-4 win over the Rangers.

Notable: Angels pitcher Garrett Richards rose to 10th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Richards (7.1IP 1R 11K W in the 6-1 win over the Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.7 for the season. He ranks fifth in Box-Toppers points among AL pitchers. His move up to 10th place bumps the only batter, Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies (10.6 Box-Toppers points), off the top 10 list.

There are now 14 players with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points—Richards and Kluber both joined that group Sunday.

Also, pitcher Jeff Samardzija, traded this weekend from the Cubs, earned Player of the Game honors in his debut with his new team, the Athletics. Samardzija (7IP 1R 5K W in the 4-2 win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season.

Kluber receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Miley receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Ellsbury and Nieuwenhuis each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Sunday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

706 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 11.1 Indians Corey Kluber (W, 8-6) - - - - - - 8.1 4 1 1 1 10
9.1 Angels Garrett Richards (W, 10-2) - - - - - - 7.1 6 1 1 1 11
NL 6.2 Dbacks Wade Miley (W, 4-6) - - - - - - 6.2 5 1 1 1 8
5.0 Pirates Jeff Locke (W, 2-1) - - - - - - 8.0 3 2 1 1 4
5.0 Athletics Jeff Samardzija (W, 1-0) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 1 5
5.0 Orioles Brad Brach (W, 4-0) - - - - - - 3.0 1 0 0 1 4
4.2 White Sox Hector Noesi (W, 3-6) - - - - - - 6.2 5 0 0 2 5
3.1 Giants Tim Lincecum (W, 8-5) - - - - - - 6.1 3 1 1 4 6
BAT 3.0 Yankees Jacoby Ellsbury CF 5 2 2 4 0 0 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Mets Kirk Nieuwenhuis LF 2 3 1 1 2 1 - - - - - -
3.0 `Nationals Jordan Zimmermann - - - - - - 6.0 7 0 0 1 5
2.0 Dodgers Matt Kemp LF 5 1 4 2 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Rays Ben Zobrist SS 5 2 4 1 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Reds Jay Bruce RF 4 2 1 3 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Marlins Henderson Alvarez (W, 6-3) - - - - - - 7.0 5 1 1 1 3

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

 

Brewers' Matt Garza (CG 2H 0R 9K) tops players for Saturday, July 5

Brewers pitcher Matt Garza is Saturday’s Player of the Day. Garza pitched a complete game, two-hit shutout, striking out nine, in the 1-0 win over the Reds.

Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir is American League Player of the Day. Kazmir struck out eight over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 5-1 win over the Blue Jays. Kazmir rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) He has 11.4 points for the season and moves up to ninth place among all players. He is in fourth place among AL pitchers. He becomes the 12th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points.

Kazmir had a Box-Toppers game score of 8.0, the same as two other AL players (Felix Hernandez of the Mariners and Jon Lester of the Red Sox), but Kazmir won AL Player of the Day on a tie-breaker—he earned the win in his game, while the other two pitchers had no-decisions.

Nelson Cruz of the Orioles is AL Batter of the Day. Cruz homered and went 5-for-5 with two RBIs in the 7-4 win over the Red Sox.

Justin Upton of the Braves is National League Batter of the Day. Upton homered and tripled, going 2-for-3 with three RBIs, in the 10-4 win over the Diamondbacks.

Notable: Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to seventh place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Hernandez (8IP 2R 8K ND in the 3-2 win over the White Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.8 for the season. He ranks third among AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points.

Garza receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kazmir receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Cruz and Upton each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Saturday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

705 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 14.0 Brewers Matt Garza (W, 6-5) - - - - - - 9.0 2 0 0 2 9
10.0 Nationals Gio Gonzalez (W, 6-4) - - - - - - 8.0 4 0 0 1 7
AL 8.0 Athletics Scott Kazmir (W, 10-3) - - - - - - 7.0 3 1 1 2 8
8.0 `Mariners Felix Hernandez - - - - - - 8.0 3 2 2 1 8
8.0 `Red Sox Jon Lester - - - - - - 8.0 5 2 0 0 7
5.0 `Giants Tim Hudson - - - - - - 6.0 3 1 1 0 4
4.0 Angels Michael Roth (W, 1-0) - - - - - - 2.0 0 0 0 0 2
BAT 3.0 Orioles Nelson Cruz LF 5 1 5 2 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Rays Kevin Kiermaier RF 4 1 3 3 0 0 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Braves Justin Upton LF 3 1 2 3 1 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Marlins Christian Yelich LF 5 2 2 3 0 2 - - - - - -
2.0 Rangers Robinson Chirinos C 4 1 2 3 0 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Rockies Drew Stubbs CF 4 2 2 2 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Pirates Edinson Volquez (W, 7-6) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 4 5
2.0 `Twins Yohan Pino - - - - - - 6.0 3 1 1 2 3
1.0 Indians Jason Kipnis 2B 4 2 2 1 0 0 - - - - - -

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

 

Dodgers' Kershaw, Tigers' Scherzer rise to top of Box-Toppers weekly player rankings

Last year’s Box-Toppers points leaders in both leagues gained the top spots in this year’s player rankings this week, through the games of Thursday, July 3.

Top players

Through Thursday, July 3


 OVERALL LEADERS POS TEAM BTP
1 Kershaw, Clayton 2494 pi sp lad nl 14.4
2 Scherzer, Max 2588 pi sp det al 14.4
3 Wainwright, Adam 2150 pi sp stl nl 14.0
4 Cueto, Johnny 2400 pi sp cin nl 12.7
5 Tanaka, Masahiro 3305 pi sp nyy al 12.7
6 Bumgarner, Madison 2753 pi sp sf nl 12.5
7 Teheran, Julio 3176 pi sp atl nl 11.4
8 Hernandez, Felix 2064 pi sp sea al 10.8
9 Tulowitzki, Troy 2308 ss col nl 10.6
10 Greinke, Zack 1871 pi sp lad nl 10.1
AL PITCHERS POS TEAM BTP
1 Scherzer, Max 2588 pi sp det al 14.4
2 Tanaka, Masahiro 3305 pi sp nyy al 12.7
3 Hernandez, Felix 2064 pi sp sea al 10.8
4 Kazmir, Scott 1947 pi sp oak al 9.7
5 Richards, Garrett 3042 pi sp ana al 9.7
6 Darvish, Yu 3003 pi sp tex al 9.4
7 Price, David 2593 pi sp tb al 9.4
8 Hutchison, Drew 3038 pi sp tor al 9.0
9 Keuchel, Dallas 3050 pi sp hou al 8.7
10 Kluber, Corey 3200 pi sp cle al 8.4
AL BATTERS POS TEAM BTP
1 Abreu, Jose 3308 1b chi al 9.5
2 Encarnacion, Edwin 2098 1b dh lf tor al 8.0
3 Cabrera, Miguel 1776 1b det al 7.5
4 Donaldson, Josh 3144 3b oak al 6.5
5 Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 lf oak al 6.5
6 Aybar, Erick 2416 ss ana al 6.0
7 Hunter, Torii 1190 rf det al 5.5
8 Ramirez, Alexei 2537 ss chi al 5.5
9 Colabello, Chris 3235 1b dh rf min al 5.2
10 Seager, Kyle 3031 3b sea al 5.0
NL PITCHERS POS TEAM BTP
1 Kershaw, Clayton 2494 pi sp lad nl 14.4
2 Wainwright, Adam 2150 pi sp stl nl 14.0
3 Cueto, Johnny 2400 pi sp cin nl 12.7
4 Bumgarner, Madison 2753 pi sp sf nl 12.5
5 Teheran, Julio 3176 pi sp atl nl 11.4
6 Greinke, Zack 1871 pi sp lad nl 10.1
7 Strasburg, Stephen 2736 pi sp dc nl 9.0
8 Colon, Bartolo pi sp nym nl 8.7
9 Hammel, Jason 2235 pi sp chi nl 8.7
10 Lohse, Kyle 1487 pi sp mil nl 8.4
NL BATTERS POS TEAM BTP
1 Tulowitzki, Troy 2308 ss col nl 10.6
2 Freeman, Freddie 2887 1b atl nl 7.7
3 Rizzo, Anthony 3063 1b chi nl 5.5
4 Morse, Michael 2020 lf sf nl 5.5
5 McCutchen, Andrew 2637 cf pit nl 5.0
6 Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 rf fla nl 4.7
7 Murphy, Daniel 2589 2b nym nl 4.5
8 Braun, Ryan J. 2300 rf mil nl 4.5
9 Howard, Ryan 2040 1b phi nl 4.2
10 Smith, Seth 2489 lf rf sd nl 4.0
BTP: Box-Toppers points

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw took the overall points lead (and National League lead) with 14.4, passing previous overall leader, Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (14.0), who falls to third overall. Kershaw was last year’s overall leader with 21.7 points. (On Friday, Kershaw was NL Player of the Day and now has 16.1 Box-Toppers points.)

Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer rises to become the top American League player with 14.4 Box-Toppers points. He ranks second overall and passed last week’s AL leader, Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka (12.7), who now ranks fifth overall. Scherzer was last year’s AL points leader with 18.1.

Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies remains the leader among NL batters with 10.6 Box-Toppers points. Jose Abreu of the White Sox still leads among AL batters with 9.5 Box-Toppers points. 

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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.

What are those numbers after players' names?

Trade lifts Athletics to top of Box-Toppers team rankings, pushes Cubs to bottom

The trade Friday sending Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija from the Chicago Cubs to the Oakland Athletics sends the Athletics to the top of Box-Toppers team rankings and the Cubs to the bottom. 

These players were traded from the Cubs to the Athletics:

• Pitcher Jason Hammel, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, previously ranked ninth among National League pitchers, now ranked 10th among American League pitchers. (Hammel had been the Cubs leader in Box-Toppers points.)

• Pitcher Jeff Samardzija, 3.0 Box-Toppers points. 

These players were reported to have been traded from the Athletics to the Cubs:

• Shortstop prospect Addison Russell, who has yet to make his Major League debut.

• Outfield prospect Billy McKinney, who has yet to make his Major League debut.

• Pitcher Dan Straily, who has 1.0 Box-Toppers point this season.

In the short term, the Athletics have a net gain of 10.7 Box-Toppers points—picking up the 11.7 points from the Cubs and losing Straily’s 1.0 point.

For Box-Toppers rankings, each team inherits the total points of players acquired and loses the points of players traded away. This provides the Athletics a huge boost. At the July 3 team rankings report, the Athletics were the second-ranked team with 59.9 Box-Toppers points, just behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (61.6). The trade would boost that total to 70.6, giving them a 9.0-point lead over the Dodgers.

Conversely, the trade puts the Cubs at the bottom of Box-Toppers rankings. As of July 3, the Cubs rank 20th among all teams with 45.9 Box-Toppers points. Their net loss of 10.7 points (nearly a quarter of their season total) gives them 35.2 for the season, below the current lowest-ranked team, the Arizona Diamondbacks (41.1 Box-Toppers points).

But of course, the Cubs are playing for the long term, hoping the prospects pan out to be stars, racking up huge Box-Toppers points in the coming seasons.

White Sox' Sale tops players for Friday, July 4, Dodgers' Kershaw increases Box-Toppers player ranking lead

White Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Friday’s Player of the Day, while Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw increases his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Sale pitched a complete game, allowing one run and striking out 12, in the 7-1 win over the Mariners. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.0 for the season, putting him in 11th place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He is the 11th player this season to earn 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points.

Kershaw, already leading in Box-Toppers player rankings, earns 1.7 points for being National League Player of the Day. Kershaw pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out eight, in the 9-0 win over the Rockies. Kershaw now has 16.1 Box-Toppers points for the season (see the updated top 10 player list on the home page).

Sale and Kershaw had identical Box-Toppers game scores of 13.0, but Sale was given the nod as Player of the Day because he had more innings pitched—nine vs. eight.

Albert Pujols of the Angels is American League Batter of the Day. Pujols homered, went 3-for-4, scored three times and drove in two runs in the 7-6 win over the Astros.

Lucas Duda of the Mets is NL Batter of the Day. Duda hit a two-run homer and scored twice in the 6-5 win over the Rangers.

Sale receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kershaw receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Pujols and Duda each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Friday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

704 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 13.0 White Sox Chris Sale (W, 8-1) - - - - - - 9.0 6 1 1 0 12
NL 13.0 Dodgers Clayton Kershaw (W, 10-2) - - - - - - 8.0 2 0 0 1 8
8.0 Pirates Gerrit Cole (W, 7-4) - - - - - - 5.0 1 0 0 1 5
7.0 Padres Eric Stults (W, 3-11) - - - - - - 7.0 4 0 0 2 6
7.0 `Athletics Tommy Milone - - - - - - 6.0 4 0 0 1 6
6.0 Yankees David Huff (W, 2-0) - - - - - - 3.0 0 0 0 0 3
4.2 Cardinals Lance Lynn (W, 9-6) - - - - - - 6.2 5 0 0 3 6
BAT 4.0 Angels Albert Pujols DH 4 3 3 2 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Royals Christian Colon 2B 4 3 3 1 0 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Rays Evan Longoria 3B 2 2 2 1 2 0 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Mets Lucas Duda 1B 2 2 1 2 2 1 - - - - - -
2.1 Braves Ervin Santana (W, 7-5) - - - - - - 7.1 6 2 2 1 6
2.0 Cubs Justin Ruggiano CF 5 2 3 2 0 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Reds Aroldis Chapman (S, 17) - - - - - - 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.

 

Los Angeles Dodgers rise to top of Box-Toppers team rankings

The Los Angeles Dodgers have risen to the top of Box-Toppers team rankings this week.

Dodgers players have accumulated 61.6 Box-Toppers points to rise from third place overall and pass last week’s leader, the San Francisco Giants. The Giants, scoring only 1.7 Box-Toppers points this past week, fell to fourth place with 58.6 points.

Top 10 teams

Here are Box-Toppers' Top 10 teams, through the games of Thursday, July 3. The column BTP shows the number of Box-Toppers points players on the team have accumulated so far this season. The column BTP/wk shows have many points teams have accumulated during the past week.



703

Teams

BTP
BTP
/wk		 Last 
wk 
rank
1 Dodgers 61.6 5.4 3
2 Athletics 59.9 4.0 4
3 Blue Jays 59.3 3.0 2
4 Giants 58.6 1.7 1
5 Angels 58.5 4.0 6
6 Mariners 57.7 6.7 8
7 Brewers 57.6 2.0 5
8 Cardinals 54.5 3.0 7
9 Tigers 54.4 6.5 12
10 Braves 54.2 8.2 15
BTP: Box-Toppers points

The Dodgers are led by pitchers Clayton Kershaw (14.4 Box-Toppers points, who leads all players in Box-Toppers points) and Zack Greinke (10.1 Box-Toppers points, 10th place among all players, sixth among National League pitchers).

The Giants have the sixth-best winning percentage in baseball (.557), second best in the NL behind the Milwaukee Brewers (.593). The Brewers have 57.6 Box-Toppers points, ranked seventh among all teams.

The Oakland Athletics are the top American League team in Box-Toppers points with 59.9. They are ranked second overall, just behind the Dodgers. They pass last week’s AL leading team, the Toronto Blue Jays (59.3 Box-Toppers points). The Blue Jays fell from second overall to third in Box-Toppers team rankings.

The Athletics are led by pitchers Scott Kazmir (9.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked fourth among AL pitchers) and Jesse Chavez (6.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 15th among AL pitchers).

The Athletics have baseball’s best winning percentage (.612).

The Atlanta Braves are the hottest team of the week, picking up 8.2 points, giving them 54.2 for the season and rising from 15th to 10th in team rankings.

Along with the Braves, the Detroit Tigers rise into the top 10, rising from 12th to ninth place. Two teams fell out of the top 10—the Washington Nationals fell from ninth to 11th and the Cincinnati Reds fell from 10th to 12th.

The Arizona Diamondbacks remain the lowest-ranked team with 41.1 Box-Toppers points, however, they picked up 6.2 points over the past week.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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.

Tigers' Scherzer tops players for Thursday, July 3, moves to 2nd in Box-Toppers rankings, 1st among AL pitchers

Box-Toppers Daily Scorecard graphic.png

Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer, Thursday’s Player of the Day, rises to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings and takes the lead among American League pitchers in Box-Toppers points.

Scherzer struck out seven over eight innings, allowing two hits and one run, in the 8-1 win over the Rays. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 14.4 for the season, moving from sixth to second in season player rankings (see the updated top 10 player list on the home page).

Scherzer passes Masahiro Tanaka of the Yankees (12.7 points) to take the Box-Toppers points lead among AL pitchers. He trails only Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (14.4) in the rankings. (Scherzer and Kershaw both have 14.4 Box-Toppers points, but Kershaw ranks ahead because he has more points since the start of 2013—36.1 vs. 32.5.) In 2013, both Kershaw and Scherzer led their leagues in the final Box-Toppers points standings—Kershaw had 21.7, Scherzer had 18.1.

David Peralta of the Diamondbacks is National League Player of the Day. Peralta homered, went 3-for-5, scored twice and drove in four runs in the 10-2 win over the Pirates. This was Peralta’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,370th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut June 1 and was playing in his 27th game.

Steve Pearce of the Orioles is AL Batter of the Day. Pearce went 4-for-5 and drove in two runs in the 5-2 win over the Rangers.

Notable: Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rose to 10th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Greinke (8IP 8K W in the 3-2 win over the Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.1 for the season.

Scherzer receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Peralta receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Pearce receives 1.5 for being AL Batter of the Day.

All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Thursday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

703 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 10.0 Tigers Max Scherzer (W, 10-3) - - - - - - 8.0 2 1 1 1 7
NL 4.0 Dbacks David Peralta LF 5 2 3 4 0 1 - - - - - -
3.0 Athletics Sonny Gray (W, 8-3) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 3 5
3.0 Cardinals Carlos Martinez (W, 2-3) - - - - - - 5.0 5 1 1 1 6
3.0 Yankees David Robertson (S, 19) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 1 3
BAT 2.0 Orioles Steve Pearce LF 5 1 4 2 0 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Angels David Freese 3B 3 1 2 2 0 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Dodgers Zack Greinke (W, 11-4) - - - - - - 8.0 9 2 1 2 8
2.0 Phillies Jonathan Papelbon (S, 19) - - - - - - 1.0 1 0 0 0 2

Padres' Ross tops players for Wednesday, July 2; Wainwright, Teheran bolster spots in Box-Toppers top 10

Box-Toppers Daily Scorecard graphic.png

Padres pitcher Tyson Ross is Wednesday’s Player of the Day. Ross pitched a complete game shutout, allowing three hits and striking out nine in the 3-0 win over the Reds.

Mariners pitcher Chris Young is American League Player of the Day. Young struck out eight over seven innings, allowing two hits and two runs, in the 5-2 win over the Astros.

Justin Ruggiano of the Cubs is National League Batter of the Day. Ruggiano homered, went 3-for-6 and drove in five runs in the 16-9 win over the Red Sox.

Adam Jones of the Orioles is AL Batter of the Day. Jones homered and went 2-for-3, driving in three runs, in the 6-4 win over the Rangers.

Notables: Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday to maintain his spot in second place in Box-Toppers player rankings. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Wainwright (7.2IP 0R W in the 2-0 win over the Giants) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.0 for the season. He trails overall Box-Toppers leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (14.4).

Braves pitcher Julio Teheran rose to seventh place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Teheran (7IP 1R 5K W in the 3-1 win over the Mets) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.4 for the season. He is in fifth place among NL pitchers in Box-Toppers points.

Ross receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Young receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Ruggiano and Jones each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Wednesday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

702 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 15.0 Padres Tyson Ross (W, 7-8) - - - - - - 9.0 3 0 0 0 9
9.0 Marlins Tom Koehler (W, 6-6) - - - - - - 6.0 3 0 0 1 7
AL 8.0 Mariners Chris Young (W, 8-4) - - - - - - 7.0 2 2 2 1 8
6.0 Royals Jason Vargas (W, 8-3) - - - - - - 7.0 4 0 0 2 5
5.2 `White Sox John Danks - - - - - - 7.2 7 2 2 1 10
BAT 3.0 Cubs Justin Ruggiano CF 6 1 3 5 0 2 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Orioles Adam Jones CF 3 1 2 3 0 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Braves Julio Teheran (W, 8-5) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 3 5
3.0 Rays Brad Boxberger (S, 1) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 2
2.2 Cardinals Adam Wainwright (W, 11-4) - - - - - - 7.2 4 0 0 2 1
2.0 Tigers Torii Hunter DH 4 0 3 3 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Blue Jays Edwin Encarnacion LF, 1B 4 1 2 3 1 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Pirates Gregory Polanco RF 4 2 2 2 1 1 - - - - - -
2.0 Nationals Ian Desmond SS 3 1 2 2 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Indians David Murphy PH, RF 1 1 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.

 

Blue Jays' Hutchison, Giants' Lincecum top players for Tuesday, July 1

Blue Jays pitcher Drew Hutchison is Tuesday’s Player of the Day. Hutchison struck out 10 over seven innings, allowing only one run and three hits, in the 4-1 win over the Brewers.

Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum is National League Player of the Day. Lincecum pitched eight shutout innings and struck out six in the 5-0 win over the Cardinals.

Eduardo Nunez of the Twins is American League Batter of the Day. Nunez homered and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in two runs in the 10-2 win over the Royals.

Seth Smith of the Padres is NL Batter of the Day. Smith homered and went 3-for-4, scoring three runs, in the 8-2 win over the Reds.

Hutchison receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Lincecum receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Nunez and Smith each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Tuesday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

701 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 10.0 Blue Jays Drew Hutchison (W, 6-6) - - - - - - 7.0 3 1 1 2 10
NL 8.0 Giants Tim Lincecum (W, 7-5) - - - - - - 8.0 4 0 0 2 6
7.2 Nationals Stephen Strasburg (W, 7-6) - - - - - - 7.2 5 1 1 1 8
7.0 Angels Garrett Richards (W, 9-2) - - - - - - 8.0 2 3 3 2 9
7.0 Rays David Price (W, 7-7) - - - - - - 7.0 4 1 1 3 9
5.0 Tigers Rick Porcello (W, 11-4) - - - - - - 9.0 4 0 0 0 0
4.0 Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 6-4) - - - - - - 6.0 7 1 1 0 7
4.0 Braves Craig Kimbrel (S, 26) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 3
BAT 3.0 Twins Eduardo Nunez SS 5 3 3 2 1 1 - - - - - -
BAT 3.0 Padres Seth Smith RF, LF 4 3 3 1 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Angels Howie Kendrick 2B 3 2 2 2 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Orioles Caleb Joseph C 3 2 1 3 1 0 - - - - - -
3.0 Marlins Bryan Morris (W, 6-0) - - - - - - 2.0 0 0 0 0 1
2.0 Indians Yan Gomes C 4 2 2 2 0 1 - - - - - -
1.0 Pirates Ike Davis PH 1 0 1 1 0 0 - - - - - -
1.0 Cubs Pedro Strop (W, 1-3) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 0

Cubs' Jake Arrieta (7.2 IP 1H 0R 10K) tops players for Monday, June 30

Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta is Monday’s Player of the Day. Arrieta, who took a no-hitter into the eighth inning, pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out 10 in the 2-0 win over the Red Sox.

Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 7.7 for the season. He is in 25th place in Box-Toppers player rankings and 11th among National League pitchers.

Orioles pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez is American League Player of the Day. Jimenez struck out seven over eight innings, allowing one run, in the 7-1 win over the Rangers.

Rajai Davis of the Tigers is AL Batter of the Day. Davis hit a walk-off grand slam and went 2-for-5 in the 5-4 win over the Athletics.

Ryan Zimmerman of the Nationals is NL Batter of the Day. Zimmerman went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 7-3 win over the Rockies.

Arrieta receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Jimenez receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Davis and Zimmerman each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Monday, click here.

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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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

630 Score Team Player AB R H BI BB K IP H R ER BB K
MLB 15.2 Cubs Jake Arrieta (W, 5-1) - - - - - - 7.2 1 0 0 1 10
10.0 Dodgers Dan Haren (W, 8-4) - - - - - - 7.0 1 0 0 1 5
AL 9.0 Orioles Ubaldo Jimenez (W, 3-8) - - - - - - 8.0 4 1 0 1 7
9.0 Padres Jesse Hahn (W, 4-1) - - - - - - 5.0 3 0 0 2 9
3.0 Rays Brad Boxberger (W, 1-1) - - - - - - 2.0 0 0 0 0 1
BAT 2.0 Tigers Rajai Davis LF 5 1 2 4 0 2 - - - - - -
2.0 Mariners Robinson Cano 2B 5 2 2 3 0 1 - - - - - -
BAT 2.0 Nationals Ryan Zimmerman 3B 4 2 3 1 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Royals Alcides Escobar SS 4 0 2 4 0 0 - - - - - -
2.0 Braves Craig Kimbrel (S, 25) - - - - - - 1.0 0 0 0 0 1