Indians pitcher Danny Salazar is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Saturday, Cubs pitcher Jon Lester rises to 18th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” career points list after earning National League Player of the Day honors.
Read MoreRoyals' Ian Kennedy tops players for Sunday, April 16; Braves' Colon tops NL players
Royals pitcher Ian Kennedy is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Kennedy struck out 10 over eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks, in the 1-0 win over the Angels. Kennedy picked up a no-decision and did not earn the win or save because when he exited, the game was in a scoreless tie.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2017 season as of April 16:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 4.7 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 4.0 |
| 3 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 3.4 |
| 4 | Morrison, Logan 2794 | 1b | tb al | 3.2 |
| 5 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 6 | Marte, Starling 3122 | lf cf | pit nl | 3.0 |
| 7 | Vargas, Jason 2055 | pi sp | kc al | 3.0 |
| 8 | Holland, Greg 2906 | pi cp | col nl | 3.0 |
| 9 | Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | det al | 2.7 |
| 10 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 2.7 |
National League Player of the Day—Braves pitcher Bartolo Colon allowed one hit and one run in seven innings, striking out six, in the 9-2 win over the Padres.
Colon earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 151.2 for his career. He ranks 19th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began, trailing 18th-ranked player Greg Maddux (151.7). (It should be noted that Maddux made his debut in 1986 and had seven 15-plus win seasons before Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995 and so, based on very rough extrapolations, would likely have about 250 career Box-Toppers points if his entire career were tracked.)
National League Batter of the Day—Bryce Harper of the Nationals hit two home runs, including a game-winning, walk-off, three-run homer, in the 6-4 win over the Phillies. Harper also hit a two-run homer and went 3-for-5, driving in five total runs.
American League Batter of the Day—Greg Bird of the Yankees homered, doubled and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 9-3 win over the Cardinals.
Rankings—Rockies closing pitcher Greg Holland rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Holland (1IP 0H 0R 0BB K Sv in the 4-3 win over the Giants) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.
Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
- Adam Frazier of the Pirates (3-R HR 2B 3-4 R 3BI in the 6-1 win over the Cubs) made his Major League debut June 24, 2016, and was playing in his 77th career game. He is the 3,771st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
- Mitch Haniger of the Mariners (3-R HR 1-3 R 4BI in the 8-7 win over the Rangers) made his Major League debut Aug. 16, 2016, and was playing in his 47th career game. He is the 3,772nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Kennedy earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Colon earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Harper and Bird each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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.
Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score| 4/16 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | `KC 1, LAA 0 | Ian Kennedy | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | |
| NL | 9.0 | ATL 9, SD 2 | Bartolo Colon (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| 6.0 | BAL 11, TOR 4 | Dylan Bundy (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 5.1 | `MIA 4, NYM 2 | Dan Straily | - | - | - | - | 5.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | WSH 6, PHI 4 | Bryce Harper, RF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | ARI 3, LAD 1 | Taijuan Walker (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | NYY 9, STL 3 | Greg Bird, 1B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | PIT 6, CHC 1 | Adam Frazier, LF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | SEA 8, TEX 7 | Mitch Haniger, RF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | DET 4, CLE 1 | Alex Avila, C | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | MIL 4, CIN 2 | Neftali Feliz (S,4) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | BOS 7, TB 5 | Craig Kimbrel (S,5) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | CHW 3, MIN 1 (F/10) | Nate Jones (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | COL 4, SF 3 | Greg Holland (S,7) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
AL—Overall American League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
NL—Overall National League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
BAT—Top AL or NL Batter of the Day, worth 1.5 total Box-Toppers points.
All other players listed here earn Player of the Game honors, worth 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
` Pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’17). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’16-17), the period 2012-2017 (’12-17) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2017 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2016 total (+/-).| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Holland, Greg 2906 | pi cp | col nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 33.0 | 36.0 | 3.0 |
| Colon, Bartolo | pi sp | atl nl | 2.7 | 11.1 | 52.0 | 151.2 | -5.7 |
| Kennedy, Ian 2723 | pi sp | kc al | 2.0 | 12.0 | 43.1 | 68.5 | -8.0 |
| Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bos al | 2.0 | 10.0 | 54.7 | 60.7 | -6.0 |
| Bundy, Dylan 3655 | pi sp | bal al | 2.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -4.0 |
| Harper, Bryce 3011 | rf | dc nl | 1.5 | 4.5 | 28.9 | 28.9 | -1.5 |
| Bird, Greg 3562 | 1b | nyy al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 1.5 |
| Walker, Taijuan 3453 | pi sp | ari nl | 1.0 | 8.7 | 22.4 | 22.4 | -6.7 |
| Straily, Dan 3080 | pi sp | fla nl | 1.0 | 8.0 | 18.7 | 18.7 | -6.0 |
| Jones, Nate 3125 | pi mr | chi al | 1.0 | 5.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | -3.0 |
| Feliz, Neftali 2651 | pi cp mr | mil nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 8.0 | 19.7 | 0.0 |
| Avila, Alex 2642 | ca | det al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 8.5 | 18.0 | 0.0 |
| Frazier, Adam 3771 | lf | pit nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Haniger, MItch 3772 | rf | sea al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Reds' Finnegan tops players for Wednesday, April 5; Braves' Colon rises to 19th in ‘all-time' career Box-Toppers points
Reds pitcher Brandon Finnegan is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Braves pitcher Bartolo Colon rose to 19th place among all players in Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | released | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 186.0 |
| 6 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 185.7 |
| 7 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 182.3 |
| 8 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 168.7 |
| 10 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 11 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 12 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 156.1 |
| 16 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 17 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 18 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 19 | Bartolo Colon | pi sp | atl nl | 149.5 |
| 20 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
List of top 100 players since 1995 at the close of the 2016 season.
Player of the Day—Finnegan struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk, in the 2-0 win over the Phillies.
American League Player of the Day—Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale struck out seven over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 3-0, 12-inning win over the Pirates. Sale did not pick up the win because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.
American League Batter of the Day—Francisco Lindor of the Indians hit two homers, including a grand slam, in the 9-6 win over the Rangers. Lindor went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in five runs.
National League Batter of the Day—Jeremy Hazelbaker of the Diamondbacks hit a pinch-hit double, going 1-for-1, scoring a run and driving in a run, in the 8-6 win over the Giants.
This was Hazelbaker’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut April 3, 2016, and was playing in his 117th career game. He is the 3,759th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Notable—Braves pitcher Bartolo Colon rises to 19th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995 (when player tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Colon (6IP 2H R BB 6K ND in the 3-1, 12-inning win against the Mets) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 149.5 for his career. He passes Chipper Jones (149.0) on the “all-time” list and now trails 18th-ranked player Greg Maddux (151.7).
Scoring—Finnegan earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Sale earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Lindor and Hazelbaker each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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.
Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 4/5 | Score | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | CIN 2, PHI 0 | Brandon Finnegan (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| AL | 10.0 | `BOS 3, PIT 0 (F/12) | Chris Sale | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| 10.0 | `HOU 5, SEA 3 (F/13) | Chris Devenski | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 9.0 | BAL 3, TOR 1 | Dylan Bundy (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | CLE 9, TEX 6 | Francisco Lindor, SS | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 7.0 | `ATL 3, NYM 1 (F/12) | Bartolo Colon | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | MIL 6, COL 1 | Wily Peralta (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 4.2 | `LAA 5, OAK 0 | Garrett Richards | - | - | - | - | 4.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | MIN 9, KC 1 | Eduardo Escobar, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | WSH 6, MIA 4 | Tanner Roark (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | LAD 3, SD 1 | Rich Hill (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | ||
| 2.2 | TB 4, NYY 1 | Alex Cobb (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | ARI 8, SF 6 | Jeremy Hazelbaker, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| `Pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’17). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’16-17), the period 2012-2017 (’12-17) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2017 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2016 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Finnegan, Brandon 3535 | pi sp | cin nl | 2.0 | 9.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | -5.0 |
| Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 1.7 | 15.1 | 83.1 | 88.1 | -11.7 |
| Lindor, Francisco 3586 | ss | cle al | 1.5 | 8.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | -5.5 |
| Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | lad nl | 1.0 | 15.4 | 19.4 | 39.1 | -13.4 |
| Roark, Tanner 3261 | pi sp | dc nl | 1.0 | 13.7 | 29.7 | 29.7 | -11.7 |
| Colon, Bartolo | pi sp | atl nl | 1.0 | 9.4 | 50.3 | 149.5 | -7.4 |
| Bundy, Dylan 3655 | pi sp | bal al | 1.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | -5.0 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr | hou al | 1.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | -2.7 |
| Peralta, Wily 3123 | pi sp | mil nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 20.0 | 20.0 | 0.0 |
| Richards, Garrett 3042 | pi sp | ana al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 34.4 | 34.4 | 1.0 |
| Escobar, Eduardo 3135 | ss | min al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 12.7 | 12.7 | 1.0 |
| Cobb, Alex 2916 | pi sp | tb al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 31.4 | 32.4 | 1.0 |
| Hazelbaker, Jeremy 3759 | ph | ari nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Box-Toppers top pitchers by time frame
Randy Johnson leads pitchers in career Box-Toppers points. CC Sabathia and Clayton Kershaw lead active pitchers in points.
Read MoreA look at Box-Toppers top 100 players of 'all-time'
Randy Johnson holds commanding lead in career Box-Toppers points since 1995. Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw jumped from 13th to 6th on career list and at current pace could catch Johnson in 2020.
Read MoreYankees' Chad Green tops players for Monday, Aug. 15; Mariners' Hernandez rises to 10th on career Box-Toppers points list
Yankees pitcher Chad Green is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of Aug. 15:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 18.7 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 16.2 |
| 5 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 14.1 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.1 |
| 8 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 13.4 |
| 9 | Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 12.7 |
| 10 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 12.5 |
Also Monday, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to 10th place in career Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors. Hernandez passes Johan Santana who had been among Box-Toppers “all-time” top 10 players for more than six years.
Player of the Day—Green pitched six scoreless innings, striking out 11 and allowing two hits and no walks, in the 1-0 win over the Blue Jays.
National League Player of the Day—Marlins pitcher David Phelps struck out eight over 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs, four hits and one walk, in the 6-3 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Adrian Beltre of the Rangers hit a grand slam, going 1-for-2, in the 5-2 win over the Athletics.
Beltre earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 109.8 for his career, rising to 53rd place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Monday, Beltre passes three players on the “all-time” list—Billy Wagner (108.7), Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (109.0) and Jeff Kent (109.7). Beltre now trails 52nd-ranked player Tom Glavine (110.6).
Beltre also has 8.0 Box-Toppers points for the season, rising to seventh place among AL batters.
National League Batter of the Day—Wellington Castillo of the Diamondbacks hit two doubles and went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 10-6 win over the Mets.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | released | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 182.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 181.3 |
| 7 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 179.3 |
| 8 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 10 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 166.7 |
| 11 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 12 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 156.1 |
| 16 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 17 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 18 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 19 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
Hernandez—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to 10th place in career Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.
Hernandez (6.2IP 4H 2R 4BB 8K W in the 3-2 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 166.7 for his career. He passes Johan Santana (166.6) on the “all-time” list. Santana has been in the top 10 since July 23, 2010, when he reached 151.9 career Box-Toppers points, passing Greg Maddux (151.7). Hernandez now trails ninth-place player Manny Ramirez (167.2).
Hernandez has 4.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, 15.4 points below his 2015 total of 19.4, when he ranked eighth among all players.
Notable—Red Sox pitcher Drew Pomeranz has the highest Box-Toppers season point total of the 10 who earned Player of the Game honors Monday.
Pomeranz (7.2IP 5H 2R 2BB 6K W in the 3-2 win over the Indians) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.4 for the season, rising to 15th place among all players and fourth among AL pitchers. It is the first point he has earned since being traded from the Padres to the Red Sox July 15.
Scherzer—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer had the chance to take the season Box-Toppers points lead Monday, but did not earn Player of the Game honors in his team’s 5-4 win over the Rockies.
Scherzer (4IP 7H 4R 2BB 3K ND) had a Box-Toppers game score of −10, uncharacteristically low for him. Player of the Game was Jayson Werth (HR 2-4 R 2BI) with a Box-Toppers game score of +1.0.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has led Box-Toppers season player rankings since May 7 and continues to lead even after being on the disabled list for six weeks. Kershaw has 20.0 Box-Toppers points, Scherzer has 18.7. Had Scherzer won overall Player of the Day or NL Player of the Day honors, he would have passed Kershaw for the lead. Kershaw could return to pitch as soon as late August.
Scoring—Green earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Phelps earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Beltre and Castillo each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 8/15 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 15.0 | NYY 1, TOR 0 | Chad Green (W,2-2) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 6.0 | TB 8, SD 2 | Drew Smyly (W,5-11) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| NL | 4.1 | MIA 6, CIN 3 | David Phelps (W,6-6) | - | - | - | - | 5.1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | |
| BAT | 4.0 | TEX 5, OAK 2 | Adrian Beltre, 3B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.2 | KC 3, DET 1 | Ian Kennedy (W,7-9) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | ARI 10, NYM 6 | Welington Castillo, C | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | PIT 8, SF 5 | Gregory Polanco, RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.2 | BOS 3, CLE 2 | Drew Pomeranz (W,9-9) | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2.2 | SEA 3, LAA 2 | Felix Hernandez (W,7-4) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 1.0 | WSH 5, COL 4 | Jayson Werth, LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Pomeranz, Drew 3061 | pi sp | bos al | 11.4 | 14.4 | 22.4 | 22.4 | 8.4 |
| Beltre, Adrian 1141 | 3b | tex al | 8.0 | 20.5 | 46.4 | 109.8 | -4.5 |
| Kennedy, Ian 2723 | pi sp | kc al | 8.0 | 14.7 | 58.5 | 64.5 | 1.3 |
| Smyly, Drew 3009 | pi sp | tb al | 7.4 | 13.4 | 35.5 | 35.5 | 1.4 |
| Phelps, David 2994 | pi mr sp | fla nl | 5.7 | 9.1 | 22.5 | 22.5 | 2.3 |
| Polanco, Gregory 3361 | rf | pit nl | 5.5 | 8.5 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 2.5 |
| Werth, Jayson 1664 | lf | dc nl | 4.5 | 7.5 | 21.5 | 48.7 | 1.5 |
| Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 4.0 | 23.4 | 89.4 | 166.7 | -15.4 |
| Castillo, Wellington 3251 | ca | ari nl | 3.0 | 6.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | -0.5 |
| Green, Chad 3675 | pi sp | nyy al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
Clayton Kershaw rockets up ‘All-Time' Top 100 list, earning 36.7 Box-Toppers points since last year's All-Star break
Dodgers pitcher Kershaw has earned more Box-Toppers points in past year (36.7) than the 33.7 Randy Johnson earned in his record breaking single seasons (2000 and 2002).
Read MoreDiamondbacks' Greinke tops players for Thursday, June 2, rises to 10th in season player rankings, 16th in all-time rankings
Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to 10th place in season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of June 2:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 14.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 9.7 |
| 3 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 9.0 |
| 4 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 8.7 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 8.7 |
| 6 | Machado, Manny 3087 | ss 3b | bal al | 8.7 |
| 7 | Matz, Steven 3516 | pi sp | nym nl | 8.7 |
| 8 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 8.4 |
| 9 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc al | 7.0 |
| 10 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.0 |
Greinke also rises two spots to 16th place in career Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began.
Greinke pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out 11 and allowing four hits, in the 3-0 win over the Astros.
Greinke earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points, giving him 7.0 for the season, rising to 10th in season player rankings, seventh among National League pitchers.
Greinke also now has 153.4 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 16th in “all-time” rankings, passing two players—Greg Maddux (151.7) and Barry Bonds (153.2). (It should be noted that both Bonds and Maddux began their careers before 1995 when tracking began and so both would likely have many more Box-Toppers points if their entire careers were tracked.) Greinke now trails 15th-ranked player Mike Mussina (155.6).
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | nyy al | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 181.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 176.3 |
| 7 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 173.3 |
| 8 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 10 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 11 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 12 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 164.7 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 16 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 153.4 |
| 17 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 18 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 19 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
American League Player of the Day—Dae-Ho Lee of the Mariners homered and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 16-13 win over the Padres.
National League Batter of the Day—Eugenio Suarez of the Reds hit two homers, including a three-run shot, in the 11-4 win over the Rockies. Suarez also doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in four total runs.
Suarez earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season and now ranks second among NL batters in season Box-Toppers points.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Thursday because the AL Player of the Day was batter Dae-Ho Lee.
Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
- Marlins pitcher Nick Wittgren (3IP 0H 0R 3K W in the 4-3 win over the Pirates) made his Major League debut April 19 and was playing in his seventh career game. He is the 3,647th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
- Twins pitcher Taylor Rogers (2IP 0H 0R 2K W in the 6-4 win over the Rays) made his Major League debut April 14 and was playing in his ninth career game. He is the 3,648th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Greinke earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lee earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Suarez earns 1.5 points for being NL Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 6/2 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | ARI 3/HOU 0 | Zack Greinke (W,7-3) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 12.2 | SF 6/ATL 0 | Madison Bumgarner (W,7-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | ||
| 6.2 | MIL 4/PHI 1 | Chase Anderson (W,3-6) | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| AL | 6.0 | SEA 16/SD 13 | Dae-Ho Lee, PH-1B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | CHC 7/LAD 2 | Kyle Hendricks (W,4-4) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | MIA 4/PIT 3 | Nick Wittgren (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | CIN 11/COL 4 | Eugenio Suarez, 3B | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.2 | `NYY 5/DET 4 | Michael Pineda | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | MIN 6/TB 4 | Taylor Rogers (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | BAL 12/BOS 7 | Mark Trumbo, RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.2 | CLE 5/KC 4 | Tommy Hunter (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.0 | 27.7 | 92.8 | 153.4 | -13.7 |
| Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 7.0 | 24.0 | 94.0 | 99.7 | -10.0 |
| Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | cin nl | 6.0 | 9.0 | 11.5 | 11.5 | 3.0 |
| Lee, Dae-Ho 3627 | 1b ph | sea al | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 |
| Hendricks, Kyle 3386 | pi sp | chi nl | 4.0 | 13.7 | 18.7 | 18.7 | -5.7 |
| Anderson, Chase 3328 | pi sp | mil nl | 4.0 | 8.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 0.0 |
| Trumbo, Mark 2851 | dh rf | bal al | 2.5 | 5.0 | 28.2 | 28.2 | 0.0 |
| Pineda, Michael 2841 | pi sp | nyy al | 1.0 | 11.7 | 29.1 | 29.1 | -9.7 |
| Hunter, Tommy 2623 | pi cp | cle al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 9.0 | 16.0 | 0.0 |
| Rogers, Taylor 3648 | pi mr | min al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Wittgren, Nick 3647 | pi cp | fla nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Mets' Syndergaard tops players for Sunday, May 22, rises to 6th in Box-Toppers rankings
Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to sixth place in player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of May 22:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 10.0 |
| 2 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 8.7 |
| 3 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 8.7 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 8.0 |
| 5 | Machado, Manny 3087 | ss 3b | bal al | 7.7 |
| 6 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 7.0 |
| 7 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 6.7 |
| 8 | Matz, Steven 3516 | pi sp | nym nl | 6.7 |
| 9 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 6.4 |
| 10 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 6.4 |
Also Sunday, Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels rose to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings and five players with 100 or more career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors—Zack Greinke, David Ortiz, Miguel Cabrera, Cole Hamels and Max Scherzer.
Player of the Day—Syndergaard struck out 11 over seven innings, allowing one run (none earned) and six hits, in the 3-1 win over the Brewers.
Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 7.0 for the season, rising to sixth in player rankings, fourth among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels struck out 11 over eight innings, allowing two runs (one earned) and five hits, in the 9-2 win over the Astros.
Hamels earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 6.4 for the season, rising to ninth in player rankings, second among AL pitchers, behind Chris Sale of the White Sox (8.7).
Hamels also now has 132.6 career Box-Toppers points, maintaining his spot in 28th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 27th-ranked player Jason Giambi (133.4).
American League Batter of the Day—Carlos Perez of the Angels hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4, driving in five runs, in the 10-2 win over the Orioles.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no NL Batter of the Day for Sunday because no NL batters earned Player of the Game honors.
Notable—Five players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors Sunday. In addition to Hamels, mentioned previously (132.6 points, 28th “all-time”), they are:
- Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke (8IP 6H 2R 8K W in the 7-2 win over the Cardinals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 151.4 career points, maintaining his rank of 18th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 17th-ranked player Greg Maddux (151.7).
- David Ortiz of the Red Sox (HR 2B 4-4 R 3BI in the 5-2 win over the Indians) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 139.9 career points, maintaining his rank of 23rd among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 22nd-ranked player, Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon (142.1).
- Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers (HR 3-3 R 2BI in the 9-4 win over the Rays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 135.4 career points, maintaining his rank of 26th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 25th-ranked player, Giants pitcher Jake Peavy (137.8).
- Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer (8IP 6H 2R 8K W in the 8-2 win over the Marlins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 112.0 for his career, maintaining his rank of 51st among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 50th-ranked player, Cubs pitcher John Lackey (112.5).
Scoring—Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hamels earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Perez earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’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
| 5/22 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | Mets | Noah Syndergaard (W,5-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| AL | 9.0 | Rangers | Cole Hamels (W,5-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 11 | |
| 8.2 | Giants | Madison Bumgarner (W,6-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 7.0 | Dbacks | Zack Greinke (W,5-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 6.0 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W,5-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Angels | Carlos Perez, C | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Red Sox | David Ortiz, DH | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Phillies | Jerad Eickhoff (W,2-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 3.2 | Blue Jays | Marcus Stroman (W,5-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Tigers | Miguel Cabrera, 1B | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | `Dodgers | J.P. Howell | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 3.0 | `Yankees | Dellin Betances | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | White Sox | David Robertson (S,11) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Mariners | Steve Cishek (S,12) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 7.0 | 17.4 | 17.4 | 17.4 | -3.4 |
| Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 6.4 | 21.8 | 73.4 | 132.6 | -9.0 |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.0 | 27.0 | 91.6 | 112.0 | -15.0 |
| Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 6.0 | 23.0 | 93.0 | 98.7 | -11.0 |
| Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 5.0 | 25.7 | 90.8 | 151.4 | -15.7 |
| Cishek, Steve 2997 | pi cp | sea al | 4.0 | 5.0 | 24.0 | 24.0 | 3.0 |
| Robertson, David 2774 | pi cp | chi al | 3.0 | 11.0 | 23.0 | 24.0 | -5.0 |
| Eickhoff, Jerad 3566 | pi sp | phi nl | 3.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Stroman, Marcus 3327 | pi sp | tor al | 2.7 | 5.4 | 19.1 | 19.1 | 0.0 |
| Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 2.5 | 7.2 | 55.8 | 135.4 | -2.2 |
| Ortiz, David | dh | bos al | 2.0 | 6.5 | 37.9 | 139.9 | -2.5 |
| Howell, J.P. 2016 | pi mr | lad nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 20.0 | 1.0 |
| Perez, Carlos 3484 | ca | ana al | 1.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 0.5 |
| Betances, Dellin 3333 | pi mr cp | nyy al | 1.0 | 5.0 | 9.7 | 9.7 | -3.0 |
Giants' Bumgarner tops players for Tuesday, May 17; Kershaw extends Box-Toppers points lead
Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of May 17:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 10.0 |
| 2 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 7.7 |
| 3 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 6.7 |
| 4 | Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b ss | bal al | 6.7 |
| 5 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 6.1 |
| 6 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 6.0 |
| 7 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 6.0 |
| 8 | Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | chi al | 5.7 |
| 9 | De La Rosa, Rubby 3342 | pi sp | ari nl | 5.7 |
| 10 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.7 |
Also Tuesday, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw extended his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings and Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke became the 18th player since 1995 with 150 or more career Box-Toppers points.
Player of the Day—Bumgarner pitched a complete game five-hitter, allowing one run and striking out 11, in the 5-1 win over the Padres.
Bumgarner had a Box-Toppers game score of +13.0, tied with Kershaw’s Tuesday game score, but Bumgarner won overall Player of the Game honors on a tiebreaker because he had more innings pitched—9 vs. 8.
American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Danny Salazar struck out eight over 7 1/3 innings, allowing one run and five hits, in the 13-1 win over the Reds.
Salazar earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 6.1 for the season, rising to fifth in season player rankings, second among AL pitchers, behind Chris Sale of the White Sox (6.7).
American League Batter of the Day—Khris Davis of the Athletics hit three home runs, including a walk-off grand slam, in the 8-5 win over the Rangers. Davis went 3-for-5 with six total RBIs.
National League Batter of the Day—John Jaso of the Pirates doubled and went 3-for-3, scoring once and driving in two runs, in the 12-9 win over the Braves.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | nyy al | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 180.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 176.3 |
| 7 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 8 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 169.3 |
| 9 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 10 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 11 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 12 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 163.7 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 16 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 17 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 18 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 150.4 |
| 19 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
Kershaw—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw extended his lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Kershaw (8IP 4H R 11K W in the 5-1 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.0 for the season. Kershaw is the first player this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points and it is the eighth straight season in which he has earned 10 or more points.
Kershaw also now has 169.3 career Box-Toppers points, maintaining his rank of eighth place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails seventh-place player Roy Halladay (170.7).
Greinke—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke becomes the 18th player with 150 or more Box-Toppers points since 1995, when player tracking began, after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Greinke (7IP 5H 3R 7K W in the 5-3 win over the Yankees) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 150.4 career points. He maintains his rank of 18th place on the “all-time” Box-Toppers points list, trailing 17th-ranked player Greg Maddux (151.7). Greinke has 4.0 Box-Toppers points for the season.
Rankings—Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Velasquez (5IP 3H 0R 10K W in the 3-1 win over the Marlins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.0 for the season. He ranks fourth among NL pitchers.
Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
- Tyler White of the Astros (2HR 2B 3-4 2R 2BI in the 6-5, 11-inning win over the White Sox) made his Major League debut April 5 and was playing in his 35th career game. He is the 3,638th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
- Kyle Ryan of the Tigers (1.2IP 0H 0R K W in the 7-2 win over the Twins) made his Major League debut Aug. 30, 2014, and was playing in his 38th career game. He is the 3,639th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Bumgarner earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Salazar earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Davis and Jaso each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 5/17 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | Giants | Madison Bumgarner (W,5-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | |
| 13.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W,6-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 12.0 | Mets | Noah Syndergaard (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 10.0 | Phillies | Vince Velasquez (W,5-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | ||
| AL | 7.1 | Indians | Danny Salazar (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| BAT | 7.0 | Athletics | Khris Davis, LF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 7.0 | Mariners | Nelson Cruz, DH | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 6.2 | Brewers | Chase Anderson (W,2-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | Royals | Paulo Orlando, RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Astros | Tyler White, 1B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Rays | Kevin Kiermaier, CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Pirates | John Jaso, 1B | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Dbacks | Zack Greinke (W,4-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 2.2 | Tigers | Kyle Ryan (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.2 | Rockies | Chad Bettis (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 10.0 | 35.7 | 135.8 | 169.3 | -15.7 |
| Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 6.1 | 19.5 | 28.9 | 28.9 | -7.3 |
| Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 5.0 | 22.0 | 92.0 | 97.7 | -12.0 |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 5.0 | 15.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 | -5.4 |
| Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 4.0 | 24.7 | 89.8 | 150.4 | -16.7 |
| Bettis, Chad 3481 | pi sp | col nl | 3.7 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 9.1 | -1.7 |
| Anderson, Chase 3328 | pi sp | mil nl | 3.0 | 7.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | -1.0 |
| Jaso, John 2705 | 1b ca | pit nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 14.0 | 3.0 |
| Cruz, Nelson 2224 | dh rf | sea al | 2.0 | 4.0 | 29.7 | 49.2 | 0.0 |
| Davis, Khris 3242 | lf | oak al | 1.5 | 5.5 | 11.5 | 11.5 | -2.5 |
| Kiermaier, Kevin 3373 | cf | tb al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0.0 |
| Orlando, Paulo 3526 | rf | kc al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Ryan, Kyle 3639 | pi mr | det al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| White, Tyler 3638 | 1b | hou al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Rangers' Hamels top players for Friday, May 6, rises to 6th in Box-Toppers rankings
Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to sixth place in season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of May 6:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 5.0 |
| 4 | Matz, Steven 3516 | pi sp | nym nl | 5.0 |
| 5 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.0 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 4.7 |
| 7 | Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | chi al | 4.7 |
| 8 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.7 |
| 9 | Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 | cf lf dh ph | nym nl | 4.5 |
| 10 | Cano, Robinson 2092 | 2b | sea al | 4.5 |
Hamels struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing one hit, in the 5-1 win over the Tigers. Hamels earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season, rising to sixth in player rankings, first among American League pitchers.
Hamels also now has 130.9 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 28th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes one player on the “all-time” list, Trevor Hoffman (129.4) and now trails 27th-ranked player, Jason Giambi (133.4).
National League Player of the Day—Cubs pitcher John Lackey struck out 11 over seven innings, allowing two runs and six hits, in the 8-6 win over the Nationals.
Lackey now has 111.5 career Box-Toppers points and rises to 50th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes one player on the “all-time” list, Tom Glavine (110.6) and now trails 49th-ranked player, Kevin Brown (112.8).
American League Batter of the Day—Melky Cabrera of the White Sox doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 10-4 win over the Twins.
National League Batter of the Day—Christian Yelich of the Marlins hit a two-run homer and went 2-for-4, scoring twice, in the 6-4 win over the Phillies.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | nyy al | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 180.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 175.3 |
| 7 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 8 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 9 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 10 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 165.3 |
| 11 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 12 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 163.7 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 16 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 17 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 18 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 149.4 |
| 19 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
Rankings—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rose to 18th place among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995 (when player tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Greinke (6IP 7H 2R 8K W in the 7-2 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 149.4 for his career. He passes one player on the “all-time” list, Chipper Jones (149.0) and now trails 17th-ranked player, Greg Maddux (151.7). Greinke has 3.0 Box-Toppers points for the season.
Debut—Yankees pitcher Kirby Yates made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.
Yates (0.2IP 0H 0R K W in the 3-2 win over the Red Sox) made his Major League debut June 7, 2014, and was playing in his 68th career game. He is the 3,628th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Hamels earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lackey earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Cabrera and Yelich each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/6 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | Rangers | Cole Hamels (W,4-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | |
| 11.2 | Indians | Danny Salazar (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| NL | 7.0 | Cubs | John Lackey (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 11 | |
| 6.0 | Pirates | Francisco Liriano (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 6.0 | Padres | Drew Pomeranz (W,3-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | ||
| 5.0 | Rays | Chris Archer (W,2-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | White Sox | Melky Cabrera, LF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Astros | Carlos Correa, SS | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Santiago Casilla (S,7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Marlins | Christian Yelich, LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Reds | Joey Votto, 1B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Dbacks | Zack Greinke (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 1.2 | Yankees | Kirby Yates (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Blue Jays | Kevin Pillar, CF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 4.7 | 20.1 | 71.7 | 130.9 | -10.7 |
| Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 4.4 | 17.8 | 27.2 | 27.2 | -9.0 |
| Liriano, Francisco 2104 | pi sp | pit nl | 4.0 | 18.9 | 59.4 | 99.2 | -10.9 |
| Lackey, John 1640 | pi sp | chi nl | 3.7 | 13.4 | 33.1 | 111.5 | -6.0 |
| Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 3.0 | 23.7 | 88.8 | 149.4 | -17.7 |
| Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 3.0 | 19.0 | 43.1 | 43.1 | -13.0 |
| Pomeranz, Drew 3061 | pi sp mr | sd nl | 3.0 | 6.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | 0.0 |
| Yelich, Christian 3334 | lf | fla nl | 2.5 | 5.0 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 0.0 |
| Cabrera, Melky 2143 | lf | chi al | 2.5 | 3.5 | 18.0 | 29.0 | 1.5 |
| Casilla, Santiago 2301 | pi cp | sf nl | 2.0 | 7.0 | 19.7 | 22.7 | -3.0 |
| Correa, Carlos 3506 | ss | hou al | 1.0 | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.2 | -6.2 |
| Votto, Joey 2366 | 1b | cin nl | 1.0 | 6.0 | 22.7 | 54.7 | -4.0 |
| Pillar, Kevin 3486 | cf | tor al | 1.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | -2.5 |
| Yates, Kirby 3628 | pi mr | nyy al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Box-Toppers' Franchise Four
Who are each franchise's top 4 players in career Box-Toppers points since 1995?
Read MoreA look at Box-Toppers top 100 players of 'all-time'
Randy Johnson's perch atop 'all-time' 100 is safe. A-Rod is top active player. Pujols rises in top 10. Hernandez, Kershaw both make top 20 rises. Price, Scherzer, Bumgarner all make big jumps up the list.
Read MoreDodgers' Kershaw tops players for Friday, Aug. 28, rises to 2nd in Box-Toppers player rankings
(Other duties have put us behind updating Box-Toppers. Playing catch up …)
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Box-Toppers Player of the Day for Friday, Aug. 28 and rises to second place in season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of Aug. 28.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 19.4 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 18.7 |
| 3 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | tor al | 18.1 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 17.1 |
| 5 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 17.1 |
| 6 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 17.0 |
| 7 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 16.7 |
| 8 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 16.4 |
| 9 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 |
| 10 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 15.8 |
Also, Kershaw rises to 16th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995 and Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels rises to 35th among all players since 1995.
Player of the Day—Kershaw struck out 14 over eight innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 4-1 win over the Cubs.
Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 18.7 for the season and rising to second place among all players, behind overall leader, Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom (19.4 Box-Toppers points).
Kershaw also has 152.3 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 16th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began). With his points Friday, Kershaw passes one player on the “all-time” list, Greg Maddux (151.7 Box-Toppers points). (It should be noted that Maddux made his debut in 1986 and had seven 15-plus win seasons before Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995 and so, based on very rough extrapolations, would likely have about 250 career Box-Toppers points.) Kershaw now trails 15th-place player, Barry Bonds (153.2 points).
American League Player of the Day—Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels struck out 10 over eight innings, allowing one run and two hits, in the 4-1 win over the Orioles.
Hamels earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 122.5 for his career, rising to 35th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began). With his points Friday, Hamels passes Jered Weaver (122.1 Box-Toppers points). He trails 34th-place player Justin Verlander (122.9 points).
This was Hamels first Player of the Game honor since his trade from the Phillies.
Hamels now has 11.7 Box-Toppers points on the season and ranks 20th among all players, 11th among AL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day—Didi Gregorius of the Yankees homered and went 4-for-5, driving in six runs, in the 15-4 win over the Braves.
National League Batter of the Day—Martin Prado of the Marlins homered and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 4-3 win over the Nationals.
Notable—In addition to Kershaw and Hamels, one other player with more than 10 Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors Friday—Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker (6.1IP 3H 0R 6K W in the 2-0 win over the White Sox). He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.7 for the season. He ranks 21st among all players and 12th among AL pitchers.
Scoring—Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hamels earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Gregorius and Prado 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
| 8/28 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 16.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W,11-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 14 | |
| AL | 10.0 | Rangers | Cole Hamels (W,8-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 10 | |
| 8.1 | Mariners | Taijuan Walker (W,10-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 7.0 | Phillies | Aaron Nola (W,5-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | Yankees | Didi Gregorius, SS | 5 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Indians | Trevor Bauer (W,10-10) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 5.0 | Brewers | Taylor Jungmann (W,8-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | ||
| 4.0 | Blue Jays | Roberto Osuna (S,16) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Greg Holland (S,29) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.2 | Twins | Kyle Gibson (W,9-9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Marlins | Martin Prado, 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Red Sox | Jackie Bradley Jr., LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Dbacks | Aaron Hill, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Pirates | Gregory Polanco, RF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Giants | Marlon Byrd, RF | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
A look at Box-Toppers 'all-time' top 100 player list, led by Hall inductee Randy Johnson
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 ...
Read MoreYankees' Pineda tops players for Sunday, May 10; Mariners' Hernandez extends lead among players, rises to 15th in 'all-time' rankings
Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda is Sunday’s Player of the Day.
Meanwhile, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez extended his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings and moved into 15th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings, passing Greg Maddux.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 10.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 8.7 |
| 2 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 5.0 |
| 4 | Harper, Bryce 3011 | lf rf | dc nl | 5.0 |
| 5 | Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 4.7 |
| 6 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 4.7 |
| 7 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 4.7 |
| 8 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 4.7 |
| 9 | Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | rf | fla nl | 4.5 |
| 10 | Rodriguez, Alex | dh | nyy al | 4.5 |
Player of the Day—Pineda struck out 16 batters over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-2 win over the Orioles.
Pineda had a Box-Toppers game score of 15, the highest recorded so far this season. However, another player also had a Box-Toppers game score of 15 Sunday—Indians pitcher Danny Salazar, Player of the Game in the 8-2 win over the Twins (7IP H R 11K). However, Pineda won the tiebreaker to earn overall Player of the Day because he had more strikeouts than Salazar—16 vs. 11. And though Salazar had one of the two highest Box-Toppers game scores of the season, he earns only 1.0 Box-Toppers point as Player of the Game, while Pineda earns 2.0 for being Player of the Day.
National League Player of the Day—Brewers pitcher Matt Garza struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 3-2, 11-inning win over the Cubs. After Garza exited the game, the Cubs tied the score 2-2 in the top of the eighth inning, so Garza did not earn the win, but picked up a no-decision.
National League Batter of the Day—Adrian Gonzalez of the Dodgers hit two doubles and drove in four runs in the 9-5 win over the Rockies.
American League Batter of the Day—Mike Napoli of the Red Sox hit a three-run home run in the 6-3 win over the Blue Jays.
Napoli has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Angels. His best year was 2011 with the Rangers when he had 9.0, ninth among AL batters. In 2014, he had 5.5 Box-Toppers points with the Red Sox.
Napoli has 48.2 career Box-Toppers points, ranking 23rd among active batters currently in the AL.
Rankings—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez extended his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Hernandez (7IP 2R 6K W in the 4-3 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 8.7 for the season. He is 2.7 Box-Toppers points ahead of the second place player, Gerrit Cole of the Pirates (6.0).
With the Box-Toppers point earned Sunday, Hernandez now has 152.0 for his career, which moves him up to 15th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He passes Greg Maddux (151.7) on the list. It should be noted that Maddux pitched nine seasons, many of them stellar, before Box-Toppers record keeping began, so his actual Box-Toppers career total would likely be much higher. Hernandez now trails Tim Hudson of the Giants (153.0) and Barry Bonds (153.2).
Streak—Ryan Zimmerman of the Nationals has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons.
Zimmerman was Player of the Game in Sunday’s 5-4 win over the Braves (2B 2-4 2R 2BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.
Zimmerman earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2006 with the Nationals. His best year was 2013 with the Nationals when he had 9.2, sixth among NL batters. In 2014, he had 3.5 Box-Toppers points with the Nationals.
Zimmerman has 52.8 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 13th among active batters currently in the NL.
Debut—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
- Johnny Monell of the Mets (pinch hitter: 2B 2BI in the 7-4 win over the Phillies) made his Major League debut Sept. 5, 2013, and was playing in his 10th career game. He is the 3,463rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
- Jung-Ho Kang of the Pirates (HR 2-4 2BI in the 4-3 win over the Cardinals) made his Major League debut April 8 and was playing in his 20th career game. He is the 3,464th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Pineda earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Garza earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Gonzalez and Napoli each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 5/10 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 15.0 | Yankees | Michael Pineda (W, 5-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 16 | |
| 15.0 | Indians | Danny Salazar (W, 4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 9.2 | Angels | Garrett Richards (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 10 | ||
| NL | 8.0 | `Brewers | Matt Garza | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9 | |
| 7.0 | `Rangers | Wandy Rodriguez | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | `Giants | Ryan Vogelsong | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 5.0 | `Royals | Chris Young | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.1 | `Dbacks | Daniel Hudson | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Dodgers | Adrian Gonzalez 1B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 3.0 | Red Sox | Mike Napoli 1B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Mariners | Felix Hernandez (W, 6-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 2.0 | Nationals | Ryan Zimmerman 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Mets | Johnny Monell PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Pirates | Jung-Ho Kang 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | White Sox | Tyler Flowers C | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Giants' Bumgarner tops players for Monday, May 4; Mariners' Hernandez extends player rankings lead
Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is Monday’s Player of the Day, while Mariners’ pitcher Felix Hernandez extends his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Bumgarner pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out six, in the 2-0 win over the Padres. Bumgarner rises to 10th place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 4.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 7.7 |
| 2 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 5.0 |
| 4 | Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 4.7 |
| 5 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 4.7 |
| 6 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 4.7 |
| 7 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 4.7 |
| 8 | Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | rf | fla nl | 4.5 |
| 9 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | cin nl | 4.4 |
| 10 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 4.0 |
American League Player of the Day—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez struck out eight over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 3-2 win over the Angels. Hernandez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 7.7 for the season, extending his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Hernandez also becomes the 16th player to reach 150 career Box-Toppers points since record keeping began in 1995. He has 151.0 career Box-Toppers points, just behind Greg Maddux (151.7). Hernandez ranks 16th among all players since 1995, 12th among all pitchers and third among all active pitchers currently in the AL—behind CC Sabathia (173.3) and Johan Santana (166.6).
Hernandez had a Box-Toppers game score Monday of 6.0, the same as Rangers pitcher Ross Detwiler, who was Player of the Game in the 2-1 win over the Astros. But Hernandez won the tiebreaker to earn AL Player of the Day because he earned the win in his game while Detwiler picked up a no-decision.
National League Batter of the Day—Mark Reynolds of the Cardinals hit a grand slam and went 2-for-3 with two runs in the 10-9 win over the Cubs.
American League Batter of the Day—Jordan Schafer of the Twins doubled and went 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs in the 8-7 win over the Athletics.
Debut—Brewers pitcher Michael Blazek made his Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Blazek (2IP 0R 3K W in the 4-3 win over the Dodgers) made his Major League debut June 22, 2013, and was playing in his 28th career game. He is the 3,457th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Bumgarner earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hernandez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Reynolds and Schafer each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 5/4 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 10.1 | Giants | Madison Bumgarner (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | |
| AL | 6.0 | Mariners | Felix Hernandez (W, 5-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| 6.0 | `Rangers | Ross Detwiler | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Cardinals | Mark Reynolds 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 4.0 | Twins | Jordan Schafer CF | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Rays | Jake Odorizzi (W, 3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | Nationals | Yunel Escobar 3B | 5 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Brewers | Michael Blazek (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 2.0 | Phillies | Jeff Francoeur RF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Brett Cecil (S, 2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 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. | ||||||||||||||||
A look at Box-Toppers top 100 players of 'all-time'
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.
Read MoreGiants' Tim Hudson rises onto Box-Toppers 'all-time' top 10 pitchers list
Giants pitcher Tim Hudson has moved into Box-Toppers ‘all-time’ top 10 pitchers list, passing Hall-of-Famer Greg Maddux.
Top 10 pitchers 'all-time'
Here are Box-Toppers' Top 10 'all-time' pitchers (record keeping began in 1995). The column BTP shows the number of Box-Toppers points players have accumulated since 1995.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johnson, Randy | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Martinez, Pedro J. | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Schilling, Curt | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Sabathia, C.C. 1492 | pi sp | nyy al | 173.3 |
| 5 | Halladay, Roy 1178 | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 6 | Santana, Johan 1448 | pi sp | bal al | 166.6 |
| 7 | Clemens, Roger | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 8 | Smoltz, John | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 9 | Mussina, Mike | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 10 | Hudson, Tim 1231 | pi sp | sf nl | 152.0 |
Hudson, who earned Player of the Game honors July 5, now has 152.0 career Box-Toppers points (including 7.7 this season) and passes Maddux, who had 151.7.
However, Box-Toppers record keeping did not begin until 1995 and so some of Maddux’s most productive years—1986 to 1994, in which he won 15 or more games per season seven times—are not recorded. Meanwhile, Hudson’s entire career, beginning in 1999, has been recorded.
Hudson has scored at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point in each of his 16 seasons. He has scored 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points in a season six times. His best season was in 2001 with the Oakland Athletics, when he earned 18.8 Box-Toppers points. He ranks 14th among all players in ‘all-time’ Box-Toppers points, just behind Barry Bonds (153.2).
Hudson turned 39 Monday.
The top 10 ‘all-time’ pitchers list does not change that often. The last time there was any change in the standings was June 2013, when Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia passed Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay to move into fourth place overall. Sabathia has since scored only 1.0 additional Box-Toppers point and now has 173.3 for his career.
The last time there was any change in membership in the ‘all-time’ top 10 pitcher list was September 2010, when Sabathia rose onto the list with 137.5 Box-Toppers points, passing then-Yankees pitcher Javier Vazquez, with 135.6.
While there are three active pitchers on the top 10 list—Sabathia, Johan Santana of the Orioles and Hudson—Hudson is the only pitcher who is both active and not on the disabled list. Sabathia and Santana are both likely out for the season.
Randy Johnson leads the list with 278.8 Box-Toppers points and is the overall ‘all-time’ Box-Toppers leader (again, since 1995, when record keeping began).
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.
Astros' McHugh, Giants' Hudson top players for Tuesday, May 27; Tigers' Cabrera leads AL batters in Box-Toppers points
Astros pitcher Collin McHugh is Tuesday’s Player of the Day. McHugh pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out nine in the 3-0 win over the Royals.
Giants pitcher Tim Hudson is National League Player of the Day. Hudson pitched seven scoreless innings in the 4-0 win over the Cubs.
Hudson earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season and 149.0 for his career (1999-present). He moves into 15th place on the all-time list (Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995), passing Chipper Jones (149.0) and Javier Vazquez (148.3) and just behind Greg Maddux (151.7).
Hudson is in fifth place among active players, behind CC Sabathia (179.3), Manny Ramirez (167.2), Johan Santana (166.6) and Albert Pujols (161.3).
Matt Holliday of the Cardinals is NL Batter of the Day. Holliday homered and went 3-for-3 in the 6-0 win over the Yankees. Holliday beat out teammate and pitcher Lance Lynn, who pitched a complete game shutout, for Player of the Game. Both Holliday and Lynn had Box-Toppers game scores of +3.0, but in case of game score ties, batters beat pitchers, giving Holliday the edge.
Adam Lind of the Blue Jays is American League Batter of the Day. Lind homered, went 3-for-5 and drove in two runs in the 9-6 win over the Rays.
Notables: Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rises to seventh place in Box-Toppers season player rankings. Greinke (7.2IP 3R 11K W in the 6-3 win over the Reds) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 7.4 for the season. He is in fourth place among NL pitchers in Box-Toppers points. (See the updated top 10 list on the home page.)
Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers rises to first place among AL batters in Box-Toppers points. Cabrera (HR 2-4 2R 2RBI in the 6-5 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 5.5 for the season. He passes previous AL batting leader Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox—both Ramirez and Cabrera have 5.5 Box-Toppers points but Cabrera has the edge because he has more combined points over 2013-14 (22.4 vs. 6.5). Cabrera now ranks 19th among all players in Box-Toppers points. Cabrera led AL batters in Box-Toppers points in 2013 with 16.9.
McHugh receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Hudson receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Holliday and Lind 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 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
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.