Rangers' Lewis tops players for Friday, Sept. 11; Cubs' Arrieta regains Box-Toppers points lead

Shawn Plank September 12, 2015

Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Also Friday, Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta regained the top spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings, three days after losing the lead to Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of Sept. 11.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	22.1
2	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	21.7
3	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	20.4
4	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	19.4
5	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	19.4
6	Price, David 2593	pi sp	tor al	19.1
7	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	lad nl	18.0
8	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	17.1
9	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	17.0
10	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	16.8

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Lewis pitched a complete-game, two-hit shutout, striking out four, in the 4-0 win over the Athletics. He allowed no hits until the eighth inning.

National League Player of the Day—Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out six, in the 4-2 win over the Mariners.

National League Batter of the Day—Nick Ahmed of the Diamondbacks hit a two-run homer, a double and went 4-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 12-4 win over the Dodgers.

American League Batter of the Day—Steve Clevenger of the Orioles hit a grand slam and scored two runs in the 14-8 win over the Royals.

Rankings—Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta regained the top spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Arrieta (8IP 6H R 7K W in the 5-1 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 22.1. He passes previous leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (21.7). Arrieta and Kershaw have traded three-day turns with the Box-Toppers season points lead since since Sept. 2, with Arrieta leading twice and Kershaw leading twice.

Notable—Three other Players of the Game from Friday hit notable milestones:

Lead changes
Here are the season’s lead changes among players in Box-Toppers points. Chart shows the date and the player’s Box-Toppers point (BTP) total when they took the lead.  





  
    
    
    
    
  

    Date
    Player
    Team
    BTP
  

    4/5
    Adam Wainwright
    stl nl
    2.0
  

    4/6
    Felix Hernandez
    sea al
    2.0
  

    4/13
    Scott Kazmir
    oak al
    3.7
  

    4/18
    Felix Hernandez
    sea al
    4.0
  

    6/26
    Max Scherzer
    dc nl
    14.0
  

    7/9
    Felix Hernandez
    sea al
    14.4
  

    7/12
    Max Scherzer
    dc nl
    15.0
  

    7/24
    Felix Hernandez
    sea al
    15.4
  

    7/26
    Jacob deGrom
    nym nl
    16.4
  

    9/2
    Clayton Kershaw
    lad nl
    20.7
  

    9/5
    Jake Arrieta
    chi nl
    21.1
  

    9/8
    Clayton Kershaw
    lad nl
    21.7
  

    9/11
    Jake Arrieta
    chi nl
    22.1
  
 

Giants pitcher Jake Peavy now has 134.8 career Box-Toppers points, maintaining his rank of 25th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Peavy (7IP 2H R 2K W in the 9-1 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point. He trails 24th-ranked player David Ortiz (136.9) and has 3.0 Box-Toppers points this season.
Angels pitcher Jered Weaver rises to 36th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995 (when record keeping began). Weaver (6IP 5H 2R 7K W in the 3-2 win over the Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 123.1 for his career. With his point Friday, he passes Justin Verlander (122.9) on the “all-time” list and trails 33rd-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1). Weaver has 7.7 Box-Toppers points this season.
Yoenis Cespedes of the Mets became the 35th player (and fifth batter) with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points this season. Cespedes (HR 2B 3-5 R 3BI in the 5-1 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.9 for the season. He rises to second place among NL batters —behind Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies (11.5)—and 26th among all players.

Scoring—Lewis earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Bettis earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Ahemd and Clevenger each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    9/11
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    Rangers
    Colby Lewis (W,15-8)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    2
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    AL
    7.0
    Rockies
    Chad Bettis (W,7-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    6
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Dbacks
    Nick Ahmed, SS
    4
    2
    4
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Orioles
    Steve Clevenger, PH-C
    2
    2
    1
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Cubs
    Jake Arrieta (W,19-6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    6
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    
    5.0
    Giants
    Jake Peavy (W,6-6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    1
    1
    0
    2
  

    
    4.0
    Blue Jays
    Russell Martin, C
    5
    2
    3
    4
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Cubs
    Kyle Schwarber, LF
    4
    3
    2
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Twins
    Trevor Plouffe, 3B
    5
    2
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Mark Melancon (S,45)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    `Marlins
    Jarred Cosart
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    4
    0
    0
    3
    5
  

    
    2.0
    Mets
    Yoenis Cespedes, CF
    5
    1
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Rays
    J.P. Arencibia, PH-C
    2
    1
    1
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Angels
    Jered Weaver (W,7-10)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    2
    2
    2
    7
  

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

Indians' Carlos Carrasco (9IP 0R H 7K ND) tops players for Tuesday, Aug. 4

Shawn Plank August 5, 2015

Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Also Tuesday, Giants pitcher Jake Peavy rises to 25th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of Aug. 4.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	16.4
2	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	16.0
3	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	15.4
4	Price, David 2593	pi sp	tor al	15.1
5	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	15.0
6	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	14.4
7	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	14.1
8	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	13.7
9	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	lad nl	13.0
10	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	13.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Carrasco pitched nine scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out seven, in the 2-0, 12-inning win over the Angels. Carrasco did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because when he exited, the game was tied 0-0.

Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 13.0 for the season, rising to 11th place in season player rankings. He ranks seventh among American League pitchers.

National League Player of the Day—Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out five, in the 5-0 win over the Pirates.

Arrieta earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 12.7 for the season, rising to 13th in player rankings. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.

American League Batter of the Day—Chris Young of the Yankees homered and went 3-for-4, scoring four times and driving in three runs, in the 13-3 win over the Red Sox.

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

Notable—Giants pitcher Jake Peavy rose to 25th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995 after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.

Peavy (6IP 5H R 8K ND in the 8-3 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 133.8 for his career. With his point Tuesday, Peavy passes two players on Box-Toppers “all-time” list—Miguel Cabrera (132.9) and Jason Giambi (133.4). Peavy trails 24th-place player David Ortiz (135.9). Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995.

Peavy ranks 10th among active players in career Box-Toppers points. He has 2.0 Box-Toppers points this season.

Debut—Mariners pitcher Rob Rasmussen made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Rasmussen (1.1IP 0H 0R 2K in the 10-4 win over the Rockies) made his Major League debut May 20, 2014, and was playing in his 13th career game. He is the 3,549th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Arrieta earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Young earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    8/4
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    14.0
    `Indians
    Carlos Carrasco
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    1
    0
    0
    1
    7
  

    
    7.0
    Athletics
    Chris Bassitt (W,1-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    7
  

    NL
    7.0
    Cubs
    Jake Arrieta (W,12-6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    5
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Yankees
    Chris Young, LF
    4
    4
    3
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Mets
    Jonathon Niese (W,6-9)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    6.0
    `Giants
    Jake Peavy
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    8
  

    
    5.2
    Blue Jays
    Marco Estrada (W,9-6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    2
    1
    1
    2
    5
  

    
    5.2
    Brewers
    Jimmy Nelson (W,9-9)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    3
    1
    0
    1
    4
  

    
    4.0
    `Reds
    Anthony DeSclafani (W,7-7)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    7
    2
    2
    0
    9
  

    
    3.1
    Phillies
    Ken Giles (S,3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    1
    3
  

    
    3.1
    Mariners
    Rob Rasmussen (W,1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Royals
    Salvador Perez, C
    4
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    `Rangers
    Spencer Patton (H,2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Rays
    Asdrubal Cabrera, SS
    4
    3
    2
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Nationals
    Drew Storen (W,2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    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.
  

Cubs' Jon Lester tops players for Wednesday, July 29; Peavy, Verlander each earn 1st Box-Toppers points of 2015

Shawn Plank July 30, 2015

Cubs pitcher Jon Lester is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Also Wednesday, two players who earned their first Player of the Game honors of the season extended their streaks of seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point:

Giants pitcher Jake Peavy—14 seasons.
Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander—10 seasons.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of July 29.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	16.4
2	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	15.4
3	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	15.0
4	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	14.4
5	Price, David 2593	pi sp	det al	13.1
6	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	13.1
7	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	13.0
8	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	13.0
9	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	13.0
10	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	12.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Lester struck out 14 over eight innings, allowing two runs and five hits, in the 3-2 win over the Rockies.

Lester earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 117.1 for his career, rising to 40th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his points Wednesday, he passes two players on the “all-time” list, Todd Helton (116.4) and Mark Buehrle (116.7). He trails 39th-place player Barry Zito (117.4).

Lester is also the season’s highest-ranked of the 15 who earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday. With 8.0 Box-Toppers points this season, Lester ranks 31st among all players and 15th among NL pitchers.

Lester had a Box-Toppers game score of 12 Wednesday, the same as Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander (Player of the Game in the win over the Rays) but Lester won overall Player of the Day on a tiebreaker—he had more strikeouts than Verlander (14 vs. 10).

American League Player of the Day—Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander struck out 10 over eight innings, allowing one run and four hits, in the 2-1 win over the Rays.

Verlander, earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2015, has now earned Box-Toppers points for 10 straight seasons. He earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Tigers. His best season was 2012 with the Tigers when he had 24.8 Box-Toppers points, first among all players that season. Verlander also led AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points in 2011, when he had 24.4. In 2014, he had 4.0 Box-Toppers points.

Verlander earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day and now has 119.9 for his career, rising to 35th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his points Wednesday, Verlander passes two players on the “all-time” list, Cliff Lee (119.1) and Jered Weaver (119.4). He trails 34th-place player Cole Hamels (120.8).

National League Batter of the Day—Bryce Harper of the Nationals hit two home runs and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four, in the 7-2 win over the Marlins.

Harper earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 8.0 for the season and rises to second place among NL batters, behind Randal Grichuk of the Cardinals (8.5).

American League Batter of the Day—Troy Tulowitzki of the Blue Jays homered, doubled twice and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 8-2 win over the Phillies.

This was Tulowitzki’s first game since being traded from the Rockies. Tulowitzki led all NL batters in Box-Toppers points in 2014 with 11.6. With the 1.5 Box-Toppers points earned Wednesday for being AL Batter of the Day, Tulowitzki now has 6.0 for the season and ranks eighth among AL batters.

Streak—Giants pitcher Jake Peavy has now earned Box-Toppers points for 14 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.

Peavy (6IP 4H 0R 3K ND in the 5-0 win over the Brewers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

Peavy earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2002 with the Padres. His best year was 2007 with the Padres when he had 23.4 Box-Toppers points, first among all players that season. In 2014, Peavy had 5.7 Box-Toppers points with the Red Sox and Giants.

Peavy has 132.8 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 27th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He trails 26th-place player Miguel Cabrera (132.9). Peavy’s 132.8 career Box-Toppers points ranks fifth among active NL pitchers.

Debut—Enrique Hernandez of the Dodgers made his Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Hernandez (PH 2B 1-1 R 2BI in the 10-7 win over the Athletics) made his Major League debut July 1, 2014, and was playing in his 91st career game. He is the 3,541st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Lester earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Verlander earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Harper and Tulowitzki each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    7/29
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    12.0
    Cubs
    Jon Lester (W,6-8)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    14
  

    AL
    12.0
    Tigers
    Justin Verlander (W,1-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    0
    10
  

    
    7.0
    Indians
    Corey Kluber (W,6-11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    6.2
    Orioles
    Chris Tillman (W,8-7)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.2
    4
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Nationals
    Bryce Harper, RF
    4
    3
    3
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Astros
    Lance McCullers (W,5-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    5.0
    Dbacks
    Patrick Corbin (W,2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    6
  

    
    5.0
    `Giants
    Jake Peavy
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Blue Jays
    Troy Tulowitzki, SS
    5
    3
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Reds
    Anthony DeSclafani (W,6-7)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    3
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Andrew McCutchen, CF
    4
    2
    2
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Dodgers
    Enrique Hernandez, PH
    1
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Rangers
    Shawn Tolleson (S,18)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Padres
    Yangervis Solarte, 3B
    5
    2
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    White Sox
    Adam Eaton, CF
    6
    2
    3
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

A look at Box-Toppers 'all-time' top 100 player list, led by Hall inductee Randy Johnson

Shawn Plank July 17, 2015

The Big Unit leads the list of the top 100 players in Box-Toppers points since record keeping began in 1995. A look at all 100 ...

Dodgers' Greinke tops players for Thursday, June 18, rises to 26th in Box-Toppers points among players since 1995

Shawn Plank June 19, 2015

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Greinke pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out eight and allowing four hits, in the 1-0 win over the Rangers. Greinke did not earn the win because he left with the score tied 0-0. The Dodgers won the game in the bottom of the ninth inning on a walk-off balk.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of June 18.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	13.4
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	12.0
3	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	11.0
4	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	11.0
5	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	10.4
6	Price, David 2593	pi sp	det al	10.1
7	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	9.7
8	Martinez, Carlos 3371	pi sp	stl nl	9.7
9	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	9.7
10	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	9.4

What are those numbers after players' names?

Greinke earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 132.7 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 26th place among all players since 1995 when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Greinke passes Jake Peavy (131.8) on the “all-time” list and now trails 25th-place player Miguel Cabrera (132.9). Greinke has 7.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, ranking 16th among all players and eighth among NL pitchers.

American League Player of the Day—Angels pitcher C.J. Wilson struck out nine over eight innings, allowing one run, in the 7-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Wilson earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 7.4 for the season. Wilson is the season’s highest ranked player of the 14 who earned Player of the Game honors Thursday—he ranks 15th among all players and seventh among AL pitchers.

American League Batter of the Day—Domingo Santana of the Astros hit a three-run, pinch-hit home run in the 8-4 win over the Rockies. This was Santana’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut July 1, 2014, and was playing in his eighth career game. He is the 3,507th 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 Thursday because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors.

Streak—Brian McCann of the Yankees has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons. McCann was Player of the Game in Thursday’s 9-4 win over the Marlins (3-4 2R BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

McCann earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2006 with the Braves. His best season was 2009 with the Braves when he had 8.5 Box-Toppers points, first among NL catchers. In 2014, he had 6.5 Box-Toppers points with the Yankees, first among AL catchers.

McCann has 49.7 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 22nd among active AL batters and first among active AL catchers (second place is Russell Martin of the Blue Jays—38.5 career Box-Toppers points).

Notable—Two pitchers with more than 10.0 Box-Toppers points this season started games on Thursday, but did not earn Player of the Game honors:

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole, second place in overall Box-Toppers player rankings with 12.0 points, did not earn Player of the Game honors in his team’s 3-2 win over the White Sox. Cole (7IP 3H 2R 4K W) had a Box-Toppers game score of 1. Player of the Game was closer Mark Melancon (1IP 0H 0R 2K Sv), who had a Box-Toppers game score of 3.
Rays pitcher Chris Archer, fourth place in overall Box-Toppers player rankings with 11.0 points, did not earn Player of the Game honors in his team’s 5-3 win over the Nationals. Archer (5IP 8H 3R 3K W) had a Box-Toppers game score of −8. Player of the Game was closer Brad Boxgerger (1IP H 0R 2K Sv), who had a Box-Toppers game score of 2.

Scoring—Greinke earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Wilson earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Santana earns 1.5 Box-Toppers 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    6/18
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    `Dodgers
    Zack Greinke
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    8
  

    
    7.2
    Giants
    Ryan Vogelsong (W, 5-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    3
    0
    0
    2
    6
  

    AL
    7.0
    Angels
    C.J. Wilson (W, 5-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    8
    1
    1
    0
    9
  

    
    4.1
    Blue Jays
    R.A. Dickey (W, 3-6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    3
    1
    1
    5
    7
  

    
    4.1
    Indians
    Zach McAllister (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    1
    4
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Astros
    Domingo Santana   PH, RF
    1
    1
    1
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    `Twins
    Mike Pelfrey
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    3
  

    
    4.0
    `Phillies
    Sean O’Sullivan
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    
    3.0
    Padres
    Ian Kennedy (W, 4-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

    
    3.0
    Royals
    Greg Holland (S, 12)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Red Sox
    Koji Uehara (S, 14)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Mark Melancon (S, 23)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Yankees
    Brian McCann   C
    4
    2
    3
    1
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Rays
    Brad Boxberger (S, 16)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

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

Pirates' Cole tops players for Friday, May 22, rises to 2nd in player rankings; Hernandez extends player rankings lead

Shawn Plank May 23, 2015

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole is Friday’s Player of the Day and rises to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Also Friday, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez extended his overall player rankings lead and Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rose to third place in player rankings.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 22.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	9.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	8.0
3	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	7.0
4	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	7.0
5	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
6	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	6.7
7	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	6.5
8	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	5.7
9	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	5.7
10	Lincecum, Tim 2288	pi sp	sf nl	5.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Cole struck out 10 over 8 1/3 innings and allowed one run in the 4-1 win over the Mets. Cole earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 8.0 for the season, rising to second in Box-Toppers player rankings. He passes Braves pitcher Shelby Miller (7.0 Box-Toppers points) to lead National League pitchers on the season.

American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Jeff Samardzija struck out nine over eight innings and allowed two runs in the 3-2 win over the Twins.

American League Batter of the Day—Kendrys Morales of the Royals homered twice and drove in five runs, going 3-for-4, in the 5-0 win over the Cardinals.

National League Batter of the Day—Ryan Braun of the Brewers homered, hit two doubles and drove in four runs, going 3-for-3 and scoring twice, in the 11-0 win over the Braves.

Leader—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez maintained his top spot in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.

Hernandez (7IP R 8K W in the 4-3 win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 9.7 for the season. He has led player rankings all but six days this season (Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals led April 5, Scott Kazmir of the Athletics led from April 13 to 17).

Hernandez now has 153.0 career Box-Toppers points, 15th among all players since 1995 when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He is just behind Barry Bonds (153.2) and Tim Hudson (154.0). Hernandez’s 153.0 career points ranks third among active pitchers currently in the AL, behind CC Sabathia of the Yankees (174.3) and Johan Santana of the Blue Jays (166.6).

Rankings—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rose to third place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Scherzer (8IP R 6K W in the 2-1 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.0 for the season. While Scherzer and two other players have 7.0 points this season, Scherzer holds the tiebreaker because he had more points in 2014—Scherzer (22.1), Chris Archer (12.4), Shelby Miller (9.0).

Notable—Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rises to 27th place in Box-Toppers points since 1995, when record keeping began, after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.

Grienke (7.2IP R 5K ND in the 2-1 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.0 for the season and 130.7 for his career. With his point Friday, he passes Trevor Hoffman (129.4) in Box-Toppers points earned since 1995. Greinke now trails Jake Peavy (131.8) on that list.

Scoring—Cole earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Samardzija earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Morales and Braun each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/22
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    10.1
    Pirates
    Gerrit Cole (W, 6-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.1
    6
    1
    0
    1
    10
  

    AL
    9.0
    White Sox
    Jeff Samardzija (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    2
    2
    1
    9
  

    
    7.0
    Nationals
    Max Scherzer (W, 5-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    7.0
    Mariners
    Felix Hernandez (W, 7-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    8
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Royals
    Kendrys Morales   DH
    4
    2
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Brewers
    Ryan Braun   RF
    3
    2
    3
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Giants
    Ryan Vogelsong (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    2
    0
    0
    3
    5
  

    
    5.0
    Tigers
    Alfredo Simon (W, 5-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    2
    0
    1
    5
  

    
    3.2
    `Dodgers
    Zack Greinke
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    
    3.0
    Rangers
    Prince Fielder   DH
    5
    2
    2
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Orioles
    Caleb Joseph   C
    4
    2
    3
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Indians
    Jason Kipnis   2B
    4
    2
    3
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Rays
    Evan Longoria   3B
    3
    1
    2
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Dbacks
    Paul Goldschmidt   1B
    5
    1
    3
    3
    1
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Angels
    Chris Iannetta   C
    3
    1
    1
    3
    2
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

Pirates' Gerrit Cole tops players for Wednesday, April 29, rises to 2nd in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank April 30, 2015

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole is Wednesday’s Player of the Day and rises to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Cole struck out eight over six innings, allowing one run, in the 8-1 win over the Cubs. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season.

While Cole has the same number of Box-Toppers points as overall leader Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez, Cole is in second place in player rankings because he had fewer points in 2014—Hernandez had 20.8, Cole had 5.7.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of April 29.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	6.0
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
5	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
6	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	cin nl	4.4
7	Kazmir, Scott 1947	pi sp	oak al	3.7
8	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	3.7
9	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	3.7
10	DeSclafani, Anthony 3441	pi sp	cin nl	3.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

American League Player of the Day—Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel allowed one run over eight innings in the 7-2 win over the Padres. Keuchel rose to fourth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He earned 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season.

Keuchel had a Box-Toppers game score Wednesday of 7.0, tied with three other AL players—Orioles pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez, Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello and Rays pitcher Drew Smyly. But Keuchel beat Smyly in a tiebreaker because he earned the win in his game, while Smyly had a no-decision. And Keuchel beat Jimenez and Porcello in a tiebreaker because he had more innings pitched—he had eight, while the other two both had seven.

National League League Batter of the Day—Ryan Braun of the Brewers hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and went 3-for-5, in the 8-3 win over the Reds.

American League Batter of the Day—Roberto Perez of the Indians homered, doubled and went 3-for-3 with three runs and two RBIs, in the 7-5 win over the Royals.

Rankings—Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday (2HR 2B 3-5 2R 4BI in the 10-7 win over the Twins). Cabrera earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.7 for the season. He leads all American League batters.

Cabrera now has 131.9 career Box-Toppers points and moves up to 25th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With Wednesday’s point, Cabrera passes Giants pitcher Jake Peavy (131.8 Box-Toppers points). Cabrera now trails Jason Giambi and David Ortiz (who both have 133.4)

Cabrera ranks ninth among all batters since 1995 and is the fourth-ranked active batter, behind Alex Rodriguez (181.8), Albert Pujols (167.3) and David Ortiz (133.4).

Scoring—Cole earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Keuchel earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Braun and Perez each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

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

    MLB
    9.0
    Pirates
    Gerrit Cole (W, 4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    0
    1
    8
  

    
    8.0
    Dbacks
    Josh Collmenter (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    1
    0
    0
    6
  

    AL
    7.0
    Astros
    Dallas Keuchel (W, 3-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    1
    1
    0
    4
  

    
    7.0
    Orioles
    Ubaldo Jimenez (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    2
    0
    1
    6
  

    
    7.0
    Red Sox
    Rick Porcello (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    1
    1
    2
    6
  

    
    7.0
    `Rays
    Drew Smyly
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    2
    2
    1
    10
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Brewers
    Ryan Braun   RF
    5
    2
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Indians
    Roberto Perez   C
    3
    3
    3
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Tigers
    Miguel Cabrera   1B
    5
    2
    3
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Angels
    Mike Trout   CF
    3
    2
    2
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Marlins
    Sam Dyson (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Nationals
    Danny Espinosa   3B
    5
    2
    4
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.1
    `Mariners
    Danny Farquhar (H, 4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    2.0
    `Cardinals
    Jordan Walden (H, 8)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Dodgers
    Scott Van Slyke   LF
    2
    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.
  

A look at Box-Toppers season-by-season AL & NL pitching & batting leaders, 1995-2014

Shawn Plank January 24, 2015

Box-Toppers leading pitchers win postseason awards four times as often as Box-Toppers leading batters. Randy Johnson has led his league category in Box-Toppers points more than any other player (six). And the Cardinals and Red Sox have had more players win season Box-Toppers points titles than any other team.

A look at Box-Toppers top 100 players of 'all-time'

Shawn Plank January 3, 2015

Randy Johnson’s perch atop Box-Toppers’ “all-time” player standings was safe during 2014.The flame-throwing, likely Hall-of-Fame pitcher retired in 2009 with 278.8 Box-Toppers points, the most of any player since record keeping began in 1995.

Lorenzo Cain tops players as Royals blow out Giants in World Series Game 6, Tuesday, Oct. 28

Shawn Plank October 29, 2014

Lorenzo Cain led an offensive onslaught in World Series Game 6 as the Royals beat the Giants 10-0, pushing the series to a decisive seventh game Wednesday. Cain is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Cain doubled and went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in three runs as the Royals evened the series 3-3.

Cain had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, highest of any Royals player in Tuesday’s game. It is the second time this postseason he has earned Player of the Game honors. Previously, he was top player in the American League Championship Series Game 2 win over the Orioles on Oct. 11.

During the regular season, Cain had 2.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 421st among all players, 107th among AL batters and 50th among AL outfielders.

Royals starting pitcher in Game 6, Yordano Ventura, also had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, the same as Cain’s. But under Box-Toppers rules, in cases of game score ties, batters hold the tiebreaker over pitchers. Ventura pitched seven scoreless innings, allowed three hits, walked five and struck out four, earning the win.

Giants starting pitcher in Game 6, Jake Peavy, who picked up the loss, had a Box-Toppers game score of −13.9. He gave up five runs and six hits over 1 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out two.

The baseball season ends Wednesday:

World Series Game 7: Giants at Royals, series tied 3-3

The pitching matchup Wednesday:

Royals: Jeremy Guthrie, 7.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 113rd among all players, 40th among AL pitchers.

Giants: Tim Hudson, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 71st among all players, 34th among NL pitchers.

This is a rematch of Game 3 of the World Series, won by the Royals 3-2. Guthrie picked up the win (5IP 4H 2R 0K) and Hudson picked up the loss (5.2IP 4H 3R BB 2K). Royals middle relief pitcher Wade Davis was Box-Toppers Player of the Game.

Guthrie has started twice this postseason and Hudson has started three times. Neither pitcher has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors so far this postseason.

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.

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Giants have clear Box-Toppers advantage over Royals in World Series, but since 2014 is underdog year, watch out for David slaying 'Giant'

Royals sweep Giants in series—in regular season, interleague series back in August, that is

Can a Royals diehard fan of the 1970s rekindle lapsed fandom with Kansas City's 2014 World Series team? A personal essay

Top 7 players in World Series Game 6

Here are the top seven Royals players in Friday's World Series Game 6, ranked from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (how game score is calculated). Lorenzo Cain, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.0, is Player of the Game (POG). Starting pitcher Yordano Ventura also had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, but under Box-Toppers rules, batters hold the tiebreaker over pitchers in cases of game score ties.

  
    1028
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    3.0
    Royals
    Lorenzo Cain   CF, RF
    3
    1
    2
    3
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Royals
    Yordano Ventura (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    5
    4
  

    
    2.0
    Royals
    Mike Moustakas   3B
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Royals
    Tim Collins
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    0.0
    Royals
    Eric Hosmer   1B
    5
    1
    2
    2
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Royals
    Omar Infante   2B
    4
    2
    2
    0
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Royals
    Norichika Aoki   RF
    3
    1
    1
    1
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

Giants' Madison Bumgarner earns fourth postseason Player of Game honors in World Series Game 5, Sunday, Oct. 26

Shawn Plank October 27, 2014

Madison Bumgarner pitched a complete game shutout, leading the Giants Sunday to a World Series Game 5 win, moving them within one game of the title and earning Box-Toppers Player of the Day honors.

Bumgarner allowed four hits, walked none and struck out eight in the 5-0 win over the Royals. The Giants now have a 3-2 game lead in the best-of-seven World Series.

Bumgarner had a Box-Toppers game score of +13.0, the most of any Giants player. The second-highest Box-Toppers game score was +3.0, by Juan Perez (who went 1-for-1 with a run and two RBIs).

This was the fourth time this postseason Bumgarner earned Player of the Game honors, the most of any player in the postseason. No other player has been Player of the Game more than twice. Bumgarner was Player of the Game previously:

• Oct. 1 in the National League Wild Card win over the Pirates.

• Oct. 11 in the NL Championship Series Game 1 win over the Cardinals.

• Oct. 21 in the World Series Game 1 win over the Royals.

During the regular season, Bumgarner earned 22.6 Box-Toppers points, ranking third among all players and second among NL pitchers. He is the highest-ranked player remaining in the postseason and the only player in the World Series in Box-Toppers top 10 player rankings.

The World Series takes a day off Monday and resumes Tuesday in Kansas City:

World Series Game 6: Giants lead Royals, 3-2

The pitching matchup Tuesday:

Giants: Jake Peavy, 5.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 165th among all players, 58th among NL pitchers.

Royals: Yordano Ventura, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 75th among all players, 33rd among AL pitchers.

This is a rematch of Game 2 starting pitchers, won by the Royals, 7-2. Peavy earned the loss in that game.

Both pitchers have earned Player of the Game honors once during the postseason, both on Oct. 3 in each team’s League Division Series games—Peavy in NLDS Game 1 vs. the Nationals and Ventura in ALDS Game 2 vs. the Angels.

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Giants have clear Box-Toppers advantage over Royals in World Series, but since 2014 is underdog year, watch out for David slaying 'Giant'

Royals sweep Giants in series—in regular season, interleague series back in August, that is

Can a Royals diehard fan of the 1970s rekindle lapsed fandom with Kansas City's 2014 World Series team? A personal essay

Top 5 players in World Series Game 5

Here are the top five Giants players in Sunday’s World Series Game 3, ranked from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (how game score is calculated). Madison Bumgarner, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +13.0, is Player of the Game (POG). Juan Perez was the Giants’ batter with the highest Box-Toppers game score of +3.

  
    1026
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    13.0
    Giants
    Madison Bumgarner (W, 2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    8
  

    
    3.0
    Giants
    Juan Perez   PR, LF
    1
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Giants
    Brandon Crawford   SS
    4
    0
    2
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Giants
    Pablo Sandoval   3B
    4
    2
    2
    0
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Giants
    Hunter Pence   RF
    4
    2
    2
    0
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

Giants ace Madison Bumgarner tops players in World Series Game 1, Tuesday, Oct. 21

Shawn Plank October 22, 2014

Madison Bumgarner allowed one run in seven innings to lead the Giants to a World Series Game 1 win Tuesday. He is Box-Toppers.com Player of the Day.

Bumgarner allowed three hits, one walk and struck out five in the 7-1 win over the Royals. The Giants take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven game World Series.

Bumgarner had a Box-Toppers game score of +6, more than any other Giants player Tuesday. It is the third time this postseason Bumgarner has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors. He did it previously:

• Oct. 1 in the National League Wild Card win over the Pirates.

• Oct. 11 in the NL Championship Series Game 1 win over the Cardinals.

Coming Wednesday:

World Series Game 2: Giants lead Royals, 1-0

The pitching matchup Wednesday:

Giants: Jake Peavy, 5.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 165th among all players, 58th among NL pitchers.

Royals: Yordano Ventura, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 75th among all players, 33rd among AL pitchers.

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Giants have clear Box-Toppers advantage over Royals in World Series, but since 2014 is underdog year, watch out for David slaying 'Giant'

Royals sweep Giants in series—in regular season, interleague series back in August, that is

Can a Royals diehard fan of the 1970s rekindle lapsed fandom with Kansas City's 2014 World Series team? A personal essay

Top 6 players in World Series Game 1

Here are the top six Giants players in Tuesday’s World Series Game 1, ranked from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (how game score is calculated). Madison Bumgarner, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +6.0, was Player of the Game (POG). Hunter Pence was the Giants’ top batter, hitting a homer and a double and going 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs. He had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.0.

  
    1021
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    6.0
    Giants
    Madison Bumgarner (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    
    3.0
    Giants
    Hunter Pence   RF
    3
    2
    2
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Giants
    Hunter Strickland
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    1.0
    Giants
    Gregor Blanco   CF
    3
    2
    1
    1
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Giants
    Pablo Sandoval   3B
    5
    1
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Giants
    Javier Lopez
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    0
  

Giants' Bumgarner, Royals' Cain top players in LCS games, Saturday, Oct. 11

Shawn Plank October 12, 2014

Madison Bumgarner pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, leading the Giants to a Game 1 National League Championship Series win over the Cardinals and earning Box-Toppers.com Player of the Day honors for Saturday.

Bumgarner struck out seven and allowed four hits in the 3-0 win as the Giants take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven game series. Bumgarner had the highest Box-Toppers game score of any Giants player of +9.2.

During the regular season, Bumgarner had 22.6 Box-Toppers points, ranked third among all players, second among NL pitchers.

Bumgarner is the first player to earn Player of the Game honors for a second time during this postseason. He was also Player of the Day on Oct. 1 in the Giants’ NL Wild Card win over the Pirates.

Bumgarner outdueled Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright, who picked up the loss. Wainwright gave up three runs (two earned) and six hits over 4 2/3 innings, striking out two. He had a Box-Toppers game score of −7.8. During the regular season, Wainwright had 18.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked eighth among all players, fourth among NL pitchers.

ALCS Game 2: Royals 6, Orioles 4

Lorenzo Cain went 4-for-5 to earn Player of the Game honors Saturday in the Royals win over the Orioles in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series.

Cain also doubled, scored twice and drove in a run in the 6-4 win. He had the Royals’ high Box-Toppers game score of +2.

During the regular season, Cain had 2.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 421st among all players and 107th among AL batters.

The Royals take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven game series. Game 3 is Monday in Kansas City.

Coming Sunday:

NLCS Game 2, Giants lead Cardinals, 1-0

The pitching matchup Sunday:

Giants: Jake Peavy, 5.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 165th among all players, 58th among NL pitchers.

Cardinals: Lance Lynn, 10.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 48th among all players, 22nd among NL pitchers.

Top player from each game

Players of the Game (POG) listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    1011
    Score
    Team
    Player of the Game
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    9.2
    Giants
    Madison Bumgarner (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    4
    0
    0
    1
    7
  

    POG
    2.0
    Royals
    Lorenzo Cain   CF, RF
    5
    2
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

Royals' Yordano Ventura tops players in day of 4 playoff games, Friday, Oct. 3

Shawn Plank October 4, 2014

Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura, who allowed one run in seven innings in the American League Division Series Game 2 win over the Angels, is Friday’s Player of the Day.

Ventura, who also struck out five and walked one, did not earn the win in the 4-1, 11-inning win, because he exited the game with the score tied, 1-1. Ventura had the highest Box-Toppers game score of any Royals player of +4, which was also enough to earn Player of the Day honors in a day of four league division series playoff games.

During the regular season, Ventura had 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranking 75th among all players, 33rd among AL pitchers.

The Royals now lead the Angels in the best-of-five series, 2-0. The Angels are first in Box-Toppers team rankings with 124.2 Box-Toppers points. The Royals are 10th with 101.1. The Royals can sweep the series in Game 3 Sunday in Kansas City.

In Friday’s other games:

NLDS Game 1: Giants 3, Nationals 2

Giants pitcher Jake Peavy, who pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in the win over the Nationals is Player of the Game in the National League Division Series Game 1.

Peavy, who led the Giants to a 3-2 win, had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.2.

During the regular season, Peavy had 5.7 Box-Toppers points, ranking 165th among all players and 58th among NL pitchers.

Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg, who was 10th among all players in Box-Toppers player rankings during the regular season, picked up the loss. Strasburg gave up eight hits and two runs over five innings, striking out two. His Box-Toppers game score was -5. Strasburg had 16.7 Box-Toppers points during the regular season.

The Giants now lead the Nationals in the best-of-five series, 1-0.

NLDS Game 1: Cardinals 10, Dodgers 9

Matt Carpenter of the Cardinals, who homered, doubled and drove in four runs, is Player of the Game in the Cardinals 10-9 NL Division Series Game 1 win over the Dodgers.

Carpenter also went 2-for-5 and scored twice and had the Cardinals’ high Box-Toppers game score of +3.

During the regular season, Carpenter had 2.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking 407th among all players, 96th among NL batters.

In a game that was billed as a matchup of two pitching aces—Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals and Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers—both pitchers had to make early, ignominious exits:

• Wainwright (18.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked eighth) gave up 11 hits and six runs over 4 1/3 innings, striking out five and had a Box-Toppers game score of −14.9. Wainwright earned no decision because the Cardinals later came back to take the lead and win.

• Kershaw (31.5 Box-Toppers points, ranked first) gave up eight runs on eight hits over 6 2/3 innings, striking out 10 and picking up the loss. He had a Box-Toppers game score of −7.8.

The Cardinals now lead the Dodgers in the best-of-five series, 1-0.

ALDS Game 2: Orioles 7, Tigers 6

Delmon Young of the Orioles, who hit a pinch-hit, go-ahead three-run double is Player of the Game in the AL Division Series Game 2.

Young’s eighth-inning hit put the Orioles ahead in the game they won 7-6. He had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.

During the regular season, Young had 5.5 Box-Toppers points, ranking 178th among all players and 31st among AL batters.

The Orioles now lead the Tigers in the best-of-five series, 2-0. The series resumes Sunday in Detroit.

Coming Saturday:

National League Division Series Game 2, Giants lead Nationals, 1-0

The pitching matchup Saturday:

Giants: Tim Hudson, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 71st among all players, 34th among NL pitchers.

Nationals: Jordan Zimmermann, 15.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 16th among all players, seventh among NL pitchers.

National League Division Series Game 2, Cardinals lead Dodgers, 1-0

The pitching matchup Saturday:

Cardinals: Lance Lynn, 10.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 48th among all players, 22nd among NL pitchers.

Dodgers: Zack Greinke, 16.5 Box-Toppers points, ranked 11th among all players, sixth among NL pitchers.

Top player from each game

Players of the Game (POG) listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    1003
    Score
    Team
    Player of the Game
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    4.0
    `Royals
    Yordano Ventura
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    POG
    3.2
    Giants
    Jake Peavy (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.2
    2
    0
    0
    3
    3
  

    POG
    3.0
    Cardinals
    Matt Carpenter   3B
    5
    2
    2
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    POG
    3.0
    Orioles
    Delmon Young   PH
    1
    0
    1
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

Orioles' Cruz, Royals' Holland top players in pair of opening ALDS games for Thursday, Oct. 2

Shawn Plank October 3, 2014

Nelson Cruz led the Orioles offense to a Game 1 win in the American League Division Series win over the Tigers and is Thursday’s Player of the Day.

Cruz homered and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 12-3 win over the Tigers to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Cruz had the Orioles’ high Box-Toppers game score of +3.

During the regular season, Cruz earned 8.5 Box-Toppers points, 77th among all players and sixth among AL batters.

Max Scherzer, Box-Toppers' fifth-ranked player this season, started the game for the Tigers and picked up the loss. Scherzer (7.1 IP 7H 5R 6K) had a Box-Toppers game score of -4.9. He has 22.1 Box-Toppers points on the season, ranked second among AL pitchers.

Royals pitcher Greg Holland is Player of the Game in the other AL Division Series Game 1. Holland closed out the Angels in the bottom of the 11th, pitching one scoreless inning, striking out two and earning the save, in the 3-2 win over the Angels. The Royals take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Holland had the Royals’ high Box-Toppers game score of +3. While both of Thursday’s Players of the Game had Box-Toppers game scores of +3, Cruz edged out Holland as overall Player of the Day because in a tie-breaker, batters beat pitchers when Box-Toppers game scores are tied.

Holland earned 7.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, 106th among all players, 37th among all AL pitchers and fourth among AL closing pitchers.

Coming Friday:

American League Division Series Game 2, Orioles lead Tigers, 1-0

The pitching matchup Friday:

Tigers: Justin Verlander, 4.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 237th among all players, 68th among AL pitchers.

Orioles: Wei-Yen Chen, 6.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 131st among all players, 50th among AL pitchers.

National League Division Series Game 1, Giants at Nationals

The Nationals have an edge in Box-Toppers team rankings. Nationals players have accumulated 115.5 Box-Toppers points this season, ranking fourth among all teams. The Giants rank eighth with 110.8 points. The Nationals also had the hottest final 10 days of the season of any team, picking up 11.5 Box-Toppers points over that period. The Giants picked up 4.5 during the same period.

The pitching matchup Friday:

Giants: Jake Peavy, 5.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 165th among all players, 58th among NL pitchers.

Nationals: Stephen Strasburg, 16.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 10th among all players, fifth among NL pitchers.

National League Division Series Game 1, Cardinals at Dodgers

The Dodgers have the edge in Box-Toppers team rankings. Dodgers players have accumulated 123.2 Box-Toppers points this season, second among all teams and first among NL teams. The Cardinals have 114.8 Box-Toppers points, ranked fifth among all teams

The pitching match up Friday:

Cardinals: Adam Wainwright, 18.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked eighth among all players, fourth among NL pitchers.

Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw, 31.5 Box-Toppers points, ranked first among all players.

American League Division Series Game 2, Royals lead the Angels, 1-0

The pitching match up Friday:

Royals: Yordano Ventura, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, rank 75th among all players, 33rd among AL pitchers.

Angels: Matt Shoemaker, 11.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 38th among all players, 22nd among AL pitchers.

Top player from each game

Players of the Game (POG) listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    1002
    Score
    Team
    Player of the Game
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    POG
    3.0
    Orioles
    Nelson Cruz   DH
    4
    2
    2
    3
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    POG
    3.0
    Royals
    Greg Holland (S, 1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

Blue Jays' Hutchison tops players for Saturday, Aug. 30; White Sox' Sale rises to 8th in Box-Toppers rankings

Shawn Plank August 31, 2014

Blue Jays pitcher Drew Hutchison is Saturday’s Player of the Day, while White Sox pitcher Chris Sale rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Hutchison pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out nine, in the 2-0 win over the Yankees. Hutchison earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 13.0 for the season. He ranks 18th among all players and 10th among American League pitchers.

Sale rose to eighth 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.) Sale (7IP 13K W in the 6-3 win over the Tigers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 15.7 for the season. He ranks fifth among AL pitchers.

Giants pitcher Jake Peavy is National League Player of the Day. Peavy took a no-hitter into the eighth inning before giving up a one-out single. He pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing just the one hit and striking out eight, in the 3-1 win over the Brewers.

Matt Holliday of the Cardinals is NL Batter of the Day. Holliday hit two home runs and drove in five runs in the 13-2 win over the Cubs.

Ian Kinsler of the Tigers is AL Batter of the Day. Kinsler went 3-for-5, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 8-4 win over the White Sox.

Notable: Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg rose to 15th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. Strasburg (7.2IP R 8K W in the 3-1 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.7 for the season. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.

Hutchison receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Peavy receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Holliday and Kinsler 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, 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

  
    830
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    13.0
    Blue Jays
    Drew Hutchison (W, 9-11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    1
    0
    0
    2
    9
  

    NL
    11.2
    Giants
    Jake Peavy (W, 3-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    1
    0
    0
    3
    8
  

    
    10.0
    Astros
    Scott Feldman (W, 8-10)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    3
    0
    0
    1
    5
  

    
    10.0
    Rays
    Jake Odorizzi (W, 10-11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    1
    0
    0
    3
    7
  

    
    8.0
    `Angels
    Cory Rasmus
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    3.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    
    7.2
    Nationals
    Stephen Strasburg (W, 11-10)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    0
    8
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Cardinals
    Matt Holliday   LF
    3
    2
    2
    5
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    White Sox
    Chris Sale (W, 11-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    3
    3
    2
    13
  

    
    6.0
    `Padres
    Ian Kennedy
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    3
    8
  

    
    5.0
    Rockies
    Tyler Matzek (W, 4-9)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    4
  

    
    4.0
    Marlins
    Jarred Cosart (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    7
    0
    0
    1
    5
  

    
    3.0
    Orioles
    Zach Britton (S, 30)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.2
    `Indians
    Trevor Bauer
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.2
    4
    0
    0
    5
    6
  

    
    2.1
    `Pirates
    Vance Worley (W, 6-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    3
    2
    1
    2
    4
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Tigers
    Ian Kinsler   2B
    5
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Cubs
    Logan Watkins   RF
    3
    2
    2
    1
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Phillies
    Ryan Howard   1B
    4
    1
    1
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

Retired saves king Mariano Rivera ranks as 2nd-best all-time closer in Box-Toppers points

Shawn Plank February 19, 2014

Box-Toppers’ Stick-A-Fork-In-Them series looks at 14 players whose careers are done or may be done. Included is a look at how they have fared in Box-Toppers points over their careers, reflecting their impact on the game over time. This is the seventh of the series:

7. Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera, considered the greatest closing pitcher of all time, is only the second-best closer in career Box-Toppers points.

Mariano Rivera

Here are Mariano Rivera's Box-Toppers statistics. The third column shows his Box-Toppers points (BTP) per season. The final column shows his All-Star Selections, his Box-Toppers key season rankings and his standing in key postseason awards voting.

Year	Team	BTP	Notes
1995	nyy al	3.0
1996	nyy al	8.4	BTP-77, BTP-AL pi-11, CYA-3, MVP-12
1997	nyy al	5.0	AS, MVP-25
1998	nyy al	4.0
1999	nyy al	8.0	AS, BTP-82, BTP-AL pi-13, CYA-3, MVP-14
2000	nyy al	4.0	AS
2001	nyy al	12.0	AS, BTP-30, BTP-AL pi-8, MVP-11
2002	nyy al	4.0	AS
2003	nyy al	6.0	MVP-27
2004	nyy al	5.0	AS, BTP-189, BTP-AL pi-37, CYA-3, MVP-9
2005	nyy al	11.0	AS, BTP-37, BTP-AL pi-9, CYA-2, MVP-9
2006	nyy al	4.0	AS, MVP-26
2007	nyy al	12.0	BTP-27, BTP-AL pi-11
2008	nyy al	14.0	AS, BTP-17, BTP-AL pi-8, CYA-5
2009	nyy al	8.0	AS, BTP-84, BTP-AL pi-18, MVP-14
2010	nyy al	7.0	AS
2011	nyy al	6.0	AS, CYA-8
2012	nyy al	0.0
2013	nyy al	5.0	AS
Total		126.4	BTP-25, BTP-pi-16

AS All-star selection
BTP Finish among all players in Box-Toppers points
BTP-AL pi Finish among all AL pitchers in BTP
CYA Finish in league Cy Young Award voting
MVP Finish in league Most Valuable Player Award voting

Source: Information for player awards comes from Baseball-Reference.com

Rivera retired amid great fanfare at the end of the 2013 season at the age of 43. He recorded more saves than any other pitcher with 652. He helped the New York Yankees, the team with which he spent his entire 19-season career, win five World Series championships, earning World Series Most Valuable Player once (in 1999) and American League Championship Series MVP once (in 2003).

And yet, despite all this, Rivera trails one other closing pitcher in all-time Box-Toppers points. Rivera recorded 126.4 Box-Toppers points, ranking 25th among all players and 16th among all pitchers. But ahead of him, with 129.4 Box-Toppers points, ranking 21st among all players and 14th among all pitchers is Trevor Hoffman.

Hoffman, who pitched primarily for the San Diego Padres and the Milwaukee Brewers from 1993 to 2010, has 601 career saves—he was passed by Rivera in 2011. And even though Rivera was only 3.0 Box-Toppers points from tying him, Hoffman would likely have a higher point total since his career began before Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995—Hoffman picked up 25 of his career saves in 1993 and 1994.

More about the comparison of Rivera and Hoffman ahead, but first a look back at the career of Rivera, who finished among the top 10 in AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points for a season three times during his career. Here are some career highlights:

• In 1996, he had 8.4 Box-Toppers points and finished third in AL Cy Young Award voting. (Pat Hentgen of the Blue Jays won the award—he had 10.0 Box-Toppers points that season, fifth among AL pitchers.)

• In 1999, he had 9.0 Box-Toppers points and finished third in AL Cy Young voting. (Pedro Martinez of the Red Sox won the award—he had 31.4 Box-Toppers points, the most of any AL pitcher.)

• In 2001, he had 12.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking eighth among AL pitchers. (He received no Cy Young votes.)

• In 2004, he had 5.0 Box-Toppers points and finished third in AL Cy Young voting. (Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins won the award—he had 26.8 Box-Toppers points, the most of any player that season.)

• In 2005, he had 11.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking ninth among AL pitchers and finishing second in Cy Young voting, his highest finish ever. (Bartolo Colon of the Angels won the award—he had 9.4 Box-Toppers points that year, ranking 13th among AL pitchers.)

• In 2007, he had 12.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking 11th among AL pitchers. (He received no Cy Young votes.)

• In 2008, he had a career-high-for-a-season 14.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking eighth among AL pitchers and finishing fifth in Cy Young voting. (Cliff Lee of the Indians won the award —he had 15.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking sixth among AL pitchers.)

• In 2011, he had 6.0 Box-Toppers points and finished eighth in Cy Young voting. (Justin Verlander of the Tigers won the award—he had 24.4 Box-Toppers points, first among AL pitchers.)

Rivera had four seasons with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He had 17 straight seasons in which he earned at least one Box-Toppers point. That streak was cut short in 2012, when he was injured for the season in May and earned no Box-Toppers points that year. He came back from that injury in 2013 to earn 5.0 Box-Toppers points in his final season.

Rivera vs. Hoffman

Trevor Hoffman

Here are Trevor Hoffman's Box-Toppers statistics. The third column shows his Box-Toppers points (BTP) per season. The final column shows his All-Star Selections, his Box-Toppers key season rankings and his standing in key postseason awards voting.

Year	Team	BTP	Notes
1993	fla nl/sd nl	*
1994	sd nl	*
1995	sd nl	9.0	BTP-42, BTP-NL pi-8
1996	sd nl	14.7	BTP-12, BTP-NL pi-5, CYA-5, MVP-22
1997	sd nl	14.0	BTP-17, BTP-Nl pi-7
1998	sd nl	11.0	AS, BTP-31, BTP-NL pi-12, CYA-2, MVP-7
1999	sd nl	7.0	AS, BTP-111, BTP-NL pi-27, CYA-6, MVP-28
2000	sd nl	11.0	AS, BTP-30, BTP-NL pi-8
2001	sd nl	12.0	BTP-29, BTP-NL pi-13
2002	sd nl	8.0	AS, BTP-88, BTP-NL pi-30
2003	sd nl	0.0
2004	sd nl	8.7	BTP-65, BTP-NL pi-22
2005	sd nl	7.0	MVP-17
2006	sd nl	7.0	AS, BTP-115, BTP-NL pi-33, CYA-2, MVP-10
2007	sd nl	3.0	AS
2008	sd nl	9.0	BTP-69, BTP-NL pi-27
2009	mil nl	7.0	AS
2010	mil nl	1.0
Total		129.4	BTP-21, BTP-pi-14

* Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995. Hoffman appeared in 67 games in 1993 and 47 games in 1994, recording 25 of his 601 career saves.

AS All-star selection
BTP Finish among all players in Box-Toppers points
BTP-NL pi Finish among all NL pitchers in BTP
CYA Finish in league Cy Young Award voting
MVP Finish in league Most Valuable Player Award voting

Source: Information for player awards comes from Baseball-Reference.com

So why does Rivera have fewer Box-Toppers points than Hoffman?

First: Box-Toppers measures which player most contributes to a team’s win. While Rivera was with the Yankees, there was a cavalcade of stars who made contributions who regularly edged out Rivera to earn Player of the Game honors (and thus, Box-Toppers points)—Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Andy Pettitte, CC Sabathia, Jason Giambi … the names roll off the tongue and are among all-time career leaders in Box-Toppers points. But Hoffman did not have as many stars around him (his San Diego teammate Jake Peavy is the only one that comes to mind at present) and so the competition among team members to earn Box-Toppers points was less, allowing Hoffman to, perhaps, put up bigger numbers.

In addition, it’s simply harder for a closer to accumulate a lot of Box-Toppers points. When they pitch only one inning, it is hard for them to amass a large enough Box-Toppers game score in comparison with their teammates. For a closer to earn Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors, they almost have to dominate their inning, striking out the side and allowing no hits, while their teammates either completely fail or make only minor contributions to the win. The closer may only win Player of the Game honors because the starting pitcher got shelled and no batter had a decent hitting line.

Box-Toppers doesn’t give credence to the so-called “clutch” or late-inning situation in which most closers find themselves. In the view of the Box-Toppers statistic, the first inning is as important as the ninth and the first game is as important as the 162nd. So, a closer who pitches one inning and faces just three batters may do it well and may give his team an emotional boost, but it is hard for him to compete statistically with the pitcher who goes seven innings or the batter who makes four plate appearances and gets three hits.

Given all those obstacles, it is really remarkable that Rivera and Hoffman could accumulate so many points over their careers—for comparison here are the next highest-ranked closers on the all-time Box-Toppers points list:

• Billy Wagner (1996-2010), 108.7, ranked 44th overall.

• Troy Percival (1995-2009), 80.7, ranked 102nd overall.

• Rob Nen (1993-2004), 66.0, ranked 157th overall.

Given his status as “saves king” and his reputation for postseason dominance, it may be true to say Rivera is the greatest closer of all time. But it can also be fair to say that Hoffman is actually the closer who contributed most often to his teams’ wins.

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.

Coming next in the series: Roy Oswalt

Previously in the series: Alex Rodriguez, Roy Halladay, Manny Ramirez, Johan Santana, Jim Thome, Derek Jeter

Alex Rodriguez leads Box-Toppers' series on players who have (or may have) played their final game

Shawn Plank February 3, 2014

It is rare for a baseball player to have the luxury of a formal news conference to announce his retirement. It is rare if they even issue a press release.

Most players who are skillful and lucky enough to make it even to the big leagues toil in relative obscurity. Their career fades, they are released, they are designated for assignment, no other team signs them—and the fact that their career is over is an almost personal, private matter that an overwhelming majority of the time goes unregistered even on baseball’s copious and comprehensive transactions wires.

Alex Rodriguez

Here are Alex Rodriguez' Box-Toppers statistics. The third column shows his Box-Toppers points (BTP) per season. The final column shows his All-Star Selections, his Box-Toppers key season rankings and his standing in Most Valuable Player Award voting.

Year	Team	BTP	Notes
1994	sea al	*
1995	sea al	0.0
1996	sea al	11.2	AS, BTP-32, BTP-AL bat-9, MVP-2
1997	sea al	6.2	AS
1998	sea al	5.0	AS, MVP-9
1999	sea al	13.7	BTP-18, BTP-AL bat-7, MVP-15
2000	sea al	17.0	AS, BTP-7, BTP-AL bat-2, MVP-3
2001	tex al	12.5	AS, BTP-25, BTP-AL bat-2, MVP-6
2002	tex al	15.2	AS, BTP-11, BTP-AL bat-4, MVP-2
2003	tex al	6.7	AS, BTP-121, BTP-AL bat-33, MVP-1
2004	nyy al	4.5	AS, MVP-14
2005	nyy al	11.9	AS, BTP-28, BTP-AL bat-6, MVP-1
2006	nyy al	12.5	AS, BTP-27, BTP-AL bat-6, MVP-13
2007	nyy al	18.9	AS, BTP-2, BTP-AL bat-1, MVP-1
2008	nyy al	11.2	AS, BTP-34, BTP-AL bat-3, MVP-8
2009	nyy al	6.9	MVP-10
2010	nyy al	13.7	AS, BTP-23, BTP-AL bat-2, MVP-15
2011	nyy al	4.7	AS
2012	nyy al	4.5
2013	nyy al	3.0
Total		179.3	BTP-4, BTP-bat-1

* Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995. Rodriguez played 17 games in 1994.
AS All-star selection
BTP Finish among all players in Box-Toppers points
BTP-AL bat Finish among all AL batters in BTP
MVP Finish in league Most Valuable Player Award voting

Source: Information for player awards comes from Baseball-Reference.com

Many players active in 2013 will not play in 2014. Some notable players have been given the grand treatment of a formal retirement, with ceremonies, gifts, retrospectives and news conferences—namely Mariano Rivera, Todd Helton and Roy Halladay. But other players may not be back in 2014. Some players may be limited by injury (Johan Santana). Some who still want to play another year may be limited by age (Jim Thome and Manny Ramirez, both of whom did not play in 2013). And some may be limited by drug suspension (Alex Rodriguez and maybe Manny Ramirez, come to think of it).

Here is the first in a series of Box-Toppers’ Stick-A-Fork-In-Them look at 14 players whose careers are done or may be done. Included is a look at how they have fared in Box-Toppers points over their careers, reflecting their impact on the game over time. Not every player in this series has announced his retirement. In fact, some are continuing to try to play—even if they haven’t been on active rosters for more than a year.

1. Alex Rodriguez

The New York Yankees third baseman has been suspended for the upcoming season under baseball’s drug policy. His legal challenge to the suspension has been given a poor chance of succeeding. The soonest he could come back to the game is 2015, when he will be 39.

So the question is: Even if and when he is cleared to return to baseball, will he? Will he be too old? Will any team be willing to let someone so thoroughly viewed as a pariah actually take the field? Will shame for his transgressions keep him away? (Yeah, that one seemed unlikely to me, too.)

Is it possible that we’ve seen the last of A-Rod in baseball?

If so, then baseball loses the player who most helped his team to more wins than any other active player, according to Box-Toppers statistics. Rodriguez is the active leader in Box-Toppers points with 179.3, ahead of Yankees teammate and starting pitcher CC Sabathia, with 172.3.

Since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995, Rodriguez is also the leading batter in points, ahead of Manny Ramirez with 167.2. Rodriguez ranks fourth on the “all-time” Box-Toppers points list among all players (from 1995 to 2013).

Rodriguez’ career began just before Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995—he played 17 games in 1994.

He is a three-time American League Most Valuable Player, in 2003 with the Texas Rangers and in 2005 and 2007 with the Yankees. However, only once did he lead the league in Box-Toppers points—in 2007, he led AL players with 18.9 and was ranked second overall to then-San Diego Padres pitcher Jake Peavy with 23.4 points.

Also in 2007, he accumulated more Box-Toppers points than he did in any other season with 18.9. It was one of three seasons where he had more than 15.0 Box-Toppers points and one of 10 seasons where he had more than 10.0 points.

Rodriguez finished twice among all players in Box-Toppers’ top 10 list for the season. In 2000, he ranked seventh among all players with 17.0 and in 2007, as mentioned previously, he finished second.

He finished in the top 10 among all American League batters on the season-ending list 10 times, finishing as high as second three times (in 2000 with 17.0 Box-Toppers points, in 2001 with 12.5 and in 2010 with 13.7).

Interestingly, two of his three MVP seasons were far from his best in terms of Box-Toppers points:

• In 2003, Rodriguez was voted MVP though he scored only 6.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 121st among all players and 33rd among AL batters. (Carlos Delgado was Box-Toppers’ top AL batter with 17.7; he finished second in AL MVP voting.)

• In 2005, Rodriguez was voted MVP though he scored 11.9 Box-Toppers points, ranked 28th among all players and sixth among AL batters. (David Ortiz was Box-Toppers’ top AL batter with 14.7; he finished second in AL MVP voting.)

The past three seasons have seen Rodriguez’ Box-Toppers numbers fall off, scoring fewer than 5.0 each year. In 2013, he scored 3.0 Box-Toppers points, however, he played only 44 games, limited by injury and playing all his games while appealing his 211-game drug suspension (later reduced to 162 games).

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.

Coming next in the series: Roy Halladay

World Series Game 3 preview: Red Sox' Peavy vs. Cardinals' Kelly

Shawn Plank October 26, 2013

Red Sox pitcher Jake Peavy matches up against Cardinals pitcher Joe Kelly in Game 3 of the World Series Saturday.

Peavy had 8.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranking 84th overall. Kelly had 4.0 points, ranking 264th overall.

The best-of-seven series is tied at one game apiece as it moves to St. Louis for Game 3.

Box-Toppers tracks players who most help their team win the most games. Top players from the winning team of each game are determined by a formula using standard box score statistics. In regular season games, 2.0 Box-Toppers points are awarded for Player of the Day, 1.7 for top player in the opposite league, 1.5 for top batter in each league and 1.0 for the top player in each of the other games.

Red Sox' Lackey, Cards' Holliday top players in LCS games for Tuesday, Oct. 15

Shawn Plank October 15, 2013

John Lackey, who threw 6 2/3 shutout innings and struck out eight, leading the Red Sox to win Game 3 of the American League Championship Series, is Tuesday's Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

The Red Sox won 1-0 to take a two-games-to-one lead in the best-of-seven ALCS series.

Lackey had 6.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranking 148th among all players.

Meanwhile, Matt Holliday of the Cardinals is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in the National League Championship Series Game 4. Holliday hit a two-run home run and went 2-for-4 in the Cardinals 4-2 win over the Dodgers. The Cardinals take a three-games-to-one lead over the Dodgers in the NLCS.

Holliday had 6.5 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranking 121st among all players.

Coming Wednesday: Both League Championship Series continue Wednesday. Here are the pitching match-ups:

NLCS Game 5, Cardinals lead Dodgers 3-1

Cardinals: Joe Kelly, 4.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 264th overall

Dodgers: Zack Greinke, 19.4 Box-Toppers points, ranked third overall (see the Top 10 Player Ranking list on the home page)

While the pitching match-up in the game favors Greinke, the best pitcher hasn't always guaranteed a team's victory in this series. In fact, in the first three games of the series, the top three pitchers in Box-Toppers Player Rankings started games and in each game, his team lost:

Greinke picked up a no-decision in the Dodgers' Game 1 loss.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (21.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked first) picked up the loss in Game 2.
Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (20.2 Box-Toppers points, ranked second) picked up the loss in Game 3.

ALCS Game 4, Red Sox lead Tigers 2-1

Red Sox: Jake Peavy, 8.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 84th overall

Tigers: Doug Fister, 6.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 113th overall

In regular season games, 2.0 Box-Toppers points are awarded for Player of the Day, 1.7 for top player in the opposite league, 1.5 for top batter in each league and 1.0 for the top player in each of the other games. However, no Box-Toppers points are awarded during the postseason.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

1015ScoreTeamBATTERSABRHRBIBBSO--PITCHERSIPHRERBBSO
MLB10.2Red Sox  000000  John Lackey (W, 2-0)6.240008
NL1.0CardinalsMatt Holliday   LF412200   0.000000

Top 10 players

Lead changes

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

Top 10 players

Top player from each game

World Series Game 7: Giants at Royals, series tied 3-3

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Top 7 players in World Series Game 6

World Series Game 6: Giants lead Royals, 3-2

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Top 5 players in World Series Game 5

World Series Game 2: Giants lead Royals, 1-0

Previous Box-Toppers 2014 World Series previews:

Top 6 players in World Series Game 1

ALCS Game 2: Royals 6, Orioles 4

NLCS Game 2, Giants lead Cardinals, 1-0

Top player from each game

NLDS Game 1: Giants 3, Nationals 2

NLDS Game 1: Cardinals 10, Dodgers 9

ALDS Game 2: Orioles 7, Tigers 6

National League Division Series Game 2, Giants lead Nationals, 1-0

National League Division Series Game 2, Cardinals lead Dodgers, 1-0

Top player from each game

American League Division Series Game 2, Orioles lead Tigers, 1-0

National League Division Series Game 1, Giants at Nationals

National League Division Series Game 1, Cardinals at Dodgers

American League Division Series Game 2, Royals lead the Angels, 1-0

Top player from each game

Top player from each game

7. Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera

Rivera vs. Hoffman

Trevor Hoffman

Coming next in the series: Roy Oswalt

Alex Rodriguez

1. Alex Rodriguez

Coming next in the series: Roy Halladay

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.