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Orioles pitcher Dylan Bundy is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale maintained his third-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Sale also bolstered his Box-Toppers points lead among American League pitchers.
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Indians pitcher Corey Kluber is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 18.1 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.0 |
| 3 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 12.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 12.1 |
| 5 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 10.0 |
| 6 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 9.4 |
| 7 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 9.4 |
| 8 | McCullers, Lance 3488 | pi sp | hou al | 9.4 |
| 9 | Wood, Alex 3246 | pi sp | lad nl | 9.0 |
| 10 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 8.7 |
Also Thursday, Box-Toppers season points leader Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers extended his lead after earning Player of the Game honors. Plus, Cubs pitcher Jon Lester rises to 20th place in career Box-Toppers points since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Kluber struck out 12 over eight innings, allowing one run, three hits and one walk, in the 5-1 win over the Rangers.
Kluber earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 8.0 for the season, rising to 13th among all players, fifth among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw struck of 12 over seven innings, allowing one run, three hits and two walks, in the 6-2 win over the Angels.
Kershaw earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 18.1 for the season, extending his season player rankings lead over second-place player, Max Scherzer of the Nationals (14.0 Box-Toppers points). With his lead of 4.1 points, Scherzer would now need at least three starts to catch or pass Scherzer.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 201.8 |
| 4 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 190.0 |
| 6 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | released | 187.0 |
| 7 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 184.3 |
| 8 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 169.7 |
| 10 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 11 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 12 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 164.8 |
| 13 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 14 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 15 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 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 | dfa by braves | 151.2 |
| 20 | Jon Lester | pi sp | chi nl | 149.2 |
With the season at the halfway point, Kershaw is now on pace to earn 36.2 Box-Toppers points this season, which would break the single-season record of 33.7 set by Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson, who did it twice, in 2000 and 2002 (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995). However, at this time last year, Kershaw led all players with 20.0 Box-Toppers points and was on pace to earn 40.0 points, but spent more than two months on the disabled list beginning in late June, and had only 4.4 points in the second half of the season, finishing with 24.4, in second place behind Scherzer’s 25.7.
The most Box-Toppers points Kershaw has earned in a single season is 31.5 in 2014, when he led all players. It is tied for the fourth-highest single-season Box-Toppers points by a player since tracking began in 1995.
Also, Kershaw now has 201.8 career Box-Toppers points, third-most among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails second-place player Pedro Martinez (244.8). Kershaw ranks first among all active players in career Box-Toppers points.
National League Batter of the Day—Randal Grichuk of the Cardinals hit a go-ahead, three-run, seventh-inning homer in the 10-4 win over the Diamondbacks. Grichuk also doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in five runs.
American League Batter of the Day—Carlos Correa of the Astros hit two home runs and went 2-for-3, driving in four runs, in the 6-1 win over the Athletics.
Notable—Two other players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points also earned Player of the Game honors Thursday:
Rankings—Jay Bruce of the Mets rises to lead NL batters in season Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.
Bruce (2B 2-3 2R 2BI in the 6-3 win over the Marlins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.0 for the season, passing previous NL batting leader Matt Adams of the Braves (6.5). Bruce ranks 21st among all players.
Debut—Willy Garcia of the White Sox made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Garcia (2B 2-3 0R 2BI in the 4-3 win over the Yankees) made his Major League debut April 14 and was playing in his 29th career game. He is the 3,841st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Kluber earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Kershaw earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Grichuk and Correa each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s 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.
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.
| 6/29 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | CLE 5, TEX 1 | Corey Kluber (W, 7-2) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 12 | |
| 13.0 | BAL 2, TOR 0 | Ubaldo Jimenez (W, 3-3) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| NL | 13.0 | LAD 6, LAA 2 | Clayton Kershaw (W, 12-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 12 | |
| 10.0 | MIL 11, CIN 3 | Jimmy Nelson (W, 6-4) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 10.0 | SD 6, ATL 0 | Dinelson Lamet (W, 3-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | STL 10, ARI 4 | Randal Grichuk (CF-LF) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 5.0 | HOU 6, OAK 1 | Carlos Correa (SS) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | `CHC 5, WSH 4 | Jon Lester | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 3.2 | DET 7, KC 3 | Michael Fulmer (W, 7-6) | - | - | - | - | 8.2 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | NYM 6, MIA 3 | Jay Bruce (RF) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | BOS 6, MIN 3 | David Price (W, 3-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 1.1 | PIT 4, TB 0 | Jameson Taillon (W, 4-2) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 1.0 | CHW 4, NYY 3 | Willy Garcia (RF) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 18.1 | 42.5 | 142.2 | 201.8 | -6.3 |
| Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 8.0 | 29.2 | 73.4 | 73.4 | -13.2 |
| Bruce, Jay 2453 | rf | nym nl | 7.0 | 15.5 | 32.7 | 65.8 | -1.5 |
| Nelson, Jimmy 3299 | pi sp | mil nl | 7.0 | 10.0 | 20.4 | 20.4 | 4.0 |
| Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 | 28.1 | 73.6 | 149.2 | -16.1 |
| Fulmer, Michael 3640 | pi sp | det al | 4.7 | 17.4 | 17.4 | 17.4 | -8.0 |
| Correa, Carlos 3506 | ss | hou al | 4.0 | 11.7 | 18.9 | 18.9 | -3.7 |
| Grichuk, Randal 3474 | rf cf lf | stl nl | 4.0 | 5.0 | 14.5 | 14.5 | 3.0 |
| Lamet, Dinelson 3808 | pi sp | sd nl | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | pit nl | 3.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Price, David 2593 | pi sp | bos al | 2.7 | 15.1 | 77.1 | 108.9 | -9.7 |
| Jimenez, Ubaldo 2349 | pi sp | bal al | 2.0 | 6.7 | 38.6 | 81.5 | -2.7 |
| Garcia Willy 3841 | rf | chi al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Twins pitcher Ervin Santana is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, becoming the third player this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 14.4 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 12.0 |
| 3 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 11.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 5 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 8.0 |
| 6 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 7 | McCullers, Lance 3488 | pi sp | hou al | 7.7 |
| 8 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 7.4 |
| 9 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 7.4 |
| 10 | Wood, Alex 3246 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.0 |
Santana pitched a four-hit, complete-game shutout, walking one and striking out five, in the 4-0 win over the Giants.
Santana earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.4 for the season, maintaining his third-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings, first among American League pitchers. He trails Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (14.4) and Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer (12.0).
This is the fifth time Santana has earned 10 or more Box-Toppers points in a season in the 13 seasons he has earned Box-Toppers points. He last did it in 2014 with the Braves, when he had 11.0 points for the season.
Santana also rises to 56th place among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Friday he now has 108.7 career Box-Toppers points, passing five players on the “all-time” list—Carlos Beltran of the Astros (107.6), Red Sox pitcher David Price (107.9), Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3) and Billy Wagner (108.7). Santana now trails 55th-ranked player Jeff Kent (109.7).
National League Player of the Day—Tyler Moore of the Marlins hit two homers and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 12-7 win over the Pirates.
American League Batter of the Day—Mallex Smith of the Rays homered and went 2-for-3, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 13-4 win over the Athletics.
This was Smith’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Smith made his Major League debut April 11, 2016, and was playing in his 82nd career game. He is the 3,819th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Friday because the overall NL Player of the Day is batter Tyler Moore.
Scoring—Santana earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Moore earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Smith earns 1.5 points for being AL 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.
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.
| 6/9 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 9.0 | MIN 4, SF 0 | Ervin Santana (W,8-3) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | |
| NL | 5.0 | MIA 12, PIT 7 | Tyler Moore, 1B-RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | NYY 8, BAL 2 | Jordan Montgomery (W,4-4) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 5.0 | LAD 7, CIN 2 | Kenta Maeda (S,1) | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 4.1 | MIL 8, ARI 6 | Corey Knebel (S,8) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | TB 13, OAK 4 | Mallex Smith, CF | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | SD 6, KC 3 | Jhoulys Chacin (W,5-5) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | `STL 3, PHI 2 | Matt Bowman (H,12) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | TEX 5, WSH 2 | Jonathan Lucroy, C | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | BOS 5, DET 3 | Mitch Moreland, 1B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | CLE 7, CHW 3 | Edwin Encarnacion, DH | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | LAA 9, HOU 4 | Cameron Maybin, CF | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | SEA 4, TOR 2 | Edwin Diaz (S,10) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | ATL 3, NYM 2 | Dansby Swanson, SS | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | COL 5, CHC 3 | Ryan Hanigan, C | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 11.4 | 15.4 | 48.2 | 108.7 | 7.4 |
| Chacin, Jhoulys 2711 | pi sp | sd nl | 4.7 | 10.4 | 17.1 | 32.5 | -1.0 |
| Knebel, Corey 3757 | pi cp | mil nl | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.0 |
| Swanson, Dansby 3751 | ss | atl nl | 3.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 2.5 |
| Maeda, Kenta 3609 | pi sp cp | lad nl | 3.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | -7.0 |
| Encarnacion, Edwin 2098 | dh 1b | cle al | 3.0 | 11.0 | 46.1 | 70.1 | -5.0 |
| Diaz, Edwin 3690 | pi cp | sea al | 3.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | -4.0 |
| Maybin, Cameron 2672 | lf cf | ana al | 3.0 | 6.0 | 11.5 | 18.5 | 0.0 |
| Moore, Tyler 3045 | 1b rf ph | fla nl | 2.7 | 2.7 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 2.7 |
| Moreland, Mitch 2799 | 1b ph | bos al | 2.0 | 5.5 | 18.7 | 20.7 | -1.5 |
| Bowman, Matt 3699 | pi mr | stl nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 |
| Montgomery, Jordan 3814 | pi sp | nyy al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Smith, Mallex 3819 | cf | tb al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Lucroy, Jonathan 2744 | ca | tex al | 1.0 | 6.7 | 21.8 | 28.3 | -4.7 |
| Hanigan, Ryan 2708 | ca | col nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 12.0 | 0.0 |
Trevor Hoffman leads closing pitchers in career Box-Toppers points, ahead of Mariano Rivera, the all-time saves leader.
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Yankees pitcher Chad Green is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| 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.
| 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.
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 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 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 |
Cubs pitcher John Lackey is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to ninth in season player rankings.
| 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 | Lackey, John 1640 | pi sp | chi nl | 12.4 |
| 10 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 11.7 |
Also Tuesday, Jose Altuve of the Astros retakes the Box-Toppers points lead among American League batters after earning AL Batter of the Day honors.
Player of the Day—Lackey allowed one run over eight innings, giving up three hits and one walk, striking out six, in the 5-1 win over the Angels.
Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.4 for the season. Cubs pitchers now occupy the eighth, ninth and 10th place spots in Box-Toppers season player rankings:
Lackey rises to seventh place among National League pitchers in Box-Toppers points.
Lackey also rises to 40th place in career Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Tuesday, Lackey now has 120.2 Box-Toppers points, passing Cliff Lee (119.1) on the “all-time” list and now trails 39th-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1).
Lackey had a Box-Toppers game score Tuesday of +8.0, the same as Marlins pitcher Tom Koehler, Player of the Game in the 2-0 win over the Giants (7IP 2H 0R 3BB 6K W). But Lackey held the tiebreaker, winning overall Player of the Day, because he pitched more innings—eight vs. seven.
American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits, walking two and striking out four, in the 3-1 win over the Nationals.
Nationals’ starting pitcher in the game, Max Scherzer (18.7 Box-Toppers points), had a chance to pass season player rankings leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (20.0). While Scherzer’s Box-Toppers game score of +10 (7IP 3H 2R ER BB 10K) was high enough to earn him Player of the Day honors Tuesday, he did not earn Player of the Game honors because the Nationals did not win and Scherzer himself picked up the loss, his seventh of the season (12-7).
American League Batter of the Day—Jose Altuve of the Astros went 4-for-4, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 7-5 win over the Twins.
Altuve earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 11.5 for the season, rising to 11th place in season player rankings and first among AL batters, passing previous leader Manny Machado of the Orioles (10.2). Machado had just retaken the AL batting lead from Altuve on Sunday.
National League Batter of the Day—Howie Kendrick of the Dodgers homered, doubled and went 2-for-4, driving in three runs, in the 9-3 win over the Phillies.
Notable—Adrian Beltre of the Rangers rises to 56th place in career Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began, after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Beltre (2B 2-4 R 2BI in the 7-5 win over the Rockies) now has 108.3 career Box-Toppers points and passes two players on the “all-time” list—Lance Berkman (108.1) and Kevin Millwood (108.3). He trails 55th-ranked player Billy Wagner (108.7).
Beltre has 6.5 Box-Toppers points for the season, 14th among AL batters.
Debut—Athletics pitcher Zach Neal made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Neal (5.1IP 2H R 0BB K W in the 2-1 win over the Orioles) made his Major League debut May 11 and was playing in his 12th career game. He is the 3,700th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Bauer earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Altuve and Kendrick 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 8/9 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | CHC 5, LAA 1 | John Lackey (W, 9-7) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| 8.0 | MIA 2, SF 0 | Tom Koehler (W, 9-8) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | ||
| AL | 4.1 | CLE 3, WSH 1 | Trevor Bauer (W, 8-5) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | |
| 4.0 | TB 9, TOR 2 | Erasmo Ramirez (S, 1) | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | HOU 7, MIN 5 | Jose Altuve (2B) | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.1 | OAK 2, BAL 1 | Zach Neal (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | 5.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | BOS 5, NYY 3 | Dustin Pedroia (2B) | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | LAD 9, PHI 3 | Howie Kendrick (LF) | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | CIN 7, STL 4 | Billy Hamilton (CF) | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | ATL 2, MIL 1 | Mauricio Cabrera (S, 3) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.1 | CHW 7, KC 5 (10) | Dan Jennings (S, 1) | - | - | - | - | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | SEA 6, DET 5 (15) | Kyle Seager (3B) | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | PIT 6, SD 4 | David Freese (3B) | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | TEX 7, COL 5 | Adrian Beltre (3B) | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | ARI 5, NYM 3 | Paul Goldschmidt (1B) | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Lackey, John 1640 | pi sp | chi nl | 12.4 | 22.1 | 41.8 | 120.2 | 2.7 |
| Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 11.5 | 18.5 | 28.0 | 28.0 | 4.5 |
| Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | cle al | 9.4 | 18.8 | 27.5 | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| Beltre, Adrian 1141 | 3b | tex al | 6.5 | 19.0 | 44.9 | 108.3 | -6.0 |
| Seager, Kyle 3031 | 3b | sea al | 6.0 | 11.0 | 25.0 | 25.0 | 1.0 |
| Koehler, Tom 3159 | pi sp | fla nl | 5.0 | 9.0 | 17.0 | 17.0 | 1.0 |
| Ramirez, Erasmo 1786 | pi sp mr cp | tb al | 3.7 | 10.7 | 12.7 | 14.7 | -3.3 |
| Kendrick, Howie 2191 | 2b lf | lad nl | 3.0 | 7.0 | 19.0 | 33.0 | -1.0 |
| Cabrera, Mauricio 3689 | pi cp mr | atl nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 | 1b | ari nl | 2.5 | 12.7 | 37.9 | 37.9 | -7.7 |
| Hamilton, Billy 3287 | cf | cin nl | 2.0 | 4.0 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 0.0 |
| Pedroia, Dustin 2320 | 2b | bos al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 22.4 | 34.5 | 2.0 |
| Freese, David 2710 | 1b 3b | pit nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 22.2 | 24.2 | 2.0 |
| Jennings, Dan 3591 | pi cp | chi al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Neal, Zach 3700 | pi sp | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Angels pitcher Matt Shoemaker is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 14.4 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.0 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 13.4 |
| 5 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 12.5 |
| 6 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 11.4 |
| 7 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
| 8 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.7 |
| 9 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.7 |
| 10 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 10.5 |
Shoemaker pitched a complete-game shutout, striking out 13 and allowing six hits and no walks, in the 1-0 win over the White Sox.
National League Player of the Day—Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright pitched a complete-game, three-hit shutout, allowing two walks and striking out five, in the 5-0 win over the Marlins.
Wainwright earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 109.0 for his career, rising to 54th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Saturday, Wainwright passes three players on the “all-time” list—Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3) and Billy Wagner (108.7). Wainwright now trails 53rd-place player Jeff Kent (109.7). Wainwright has 7.2 Box-Toppers points on the season, 14th among NL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day—Sandy Leon of the Red Sox hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-4, driving in four runs, in the 5-2 win over the Yankees.
National League Batter of the Day—Ryan Schimpf of the Padres homered, tripled and went 2-for-3, driving in two runs, in the 7-6, 10-inning win over the Giants.
This was Schimpf’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Schimpf made his Major League debut June 14 and was playing in his 23rd career game. He is the 3,686th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Notable—Nationals pitcher Tanner Roark has the most season Box-Toppers points of any of the 15 who earned Player of the Game honors Saturday.
Roark (8IP 5H 0R BB 5K W in the 6-0 win over the Pirates) has 8.7 Box-Toppers points for the season, ranking 21st among all players, 13th among NL pitchers.
Debut—Ryon Healy of the Athletics made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday,the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.
Healy (three-run HR 2-3 3BI in the 5-4 win over the Blue Jays) made his Major League debut July 15 and was playing in his second career game. He is the 3,685th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Shoemaker earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Wainwright earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Leon and Schimpf each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 7/16 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 16.0 | LAA 1/CHW 0 | Matt Shoemaker (W,5-9) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | |
| 12.0 | SEA 1/HOU 0 | Hisashi Iwakuma (W,10-6) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| NL | 9.0 | STL 5/MIA 0 | Adam Wainwright (W,9-5) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | |
| 7.0 | DC 6/PIT 0 | Tanner Roark (W,9-5) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 7.0 | CHC 3/TEX 1 | Jason Hammel (W,8-5) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 6.0 | MIL 9/CIN 1 | Jimmy Nelson (W,6-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | BOS 5/NYY 2 | Sandy Leon, C | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | OAK 5/TOR 4 | Ryon Healy, 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | BAL 2/TB 1 | Zach Britton (S,29) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | SD 7/SF 6 | Ryan Schimpf, 2B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | `MIN 5/CLE 4 | Fernando Abad | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | PHI 4/NYM 2 | Jeanmar Gomez (S,25) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | COL 4/ATL 3 | Carlos Estevez (S,5) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | `ARI 2/LAD 1 | Tyler Clippard | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0.0 | KC 8/DET 4 | Eric Hosmer, 1B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Roark, Tanner 3261 | pi sp | dc nl | 8.7 | 9.7 | 24.7 | 24.7 | 7.7 |
| Wainwright, Adam 2150 | pi sp | stl nl | 7.2 | 10.2 | 58.3 | 109.0 | 4.2 |
| Hammel, Jason 2235 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 | 15.7 | 39.1 | 52.2 | -3.7 |
| Shoemaker, Matt 3290 | pi sp | ana al | 6.0 | 11.7 | 24.4 | 24.4 | 0.3 |
| Hosmer, Eric 2886 | 1b | kc al | 4.0 | 13.0 | 26.5 | 26.5 | -5.0 |
| Nelson, Jimmy 3299 | pi sp | mil nl | 3.0 | 11.4 | 13.4 | 13.4 | -5.4 |
| Clippard, Tyler 2291 | pi mr | ari nl | 3.0 | 4.0 | 19.0 | 30.4 | 2.0 |
| Gomez, Jeanmar 2759 | pi cp | phi nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 3.0 |
| Leon, Sandy 3676 | ca | bos al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Iwakuma, Hisashi 3048 | pi sp | sea al | 2.0 | 15.1 | 50.2 | 50.2 | -11.1 |
| Britton, Zachary 2835 | pi cp | bal al | 2.0 | 10.7 | 30.1 | 30.1 | -6.7 |
| Abad, Fernando 3653 | pi mr | min al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Estevez, Carlos 3641 | pi mr cp | col nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Schimpf, Ryan 3686 | 3b | sd nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Healy, Ryon 3685 | 3b | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to first place in season player rankings.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.0 |
| 2 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 5.0 |
| 3 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.0 |
| 4 | Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 | cf lf dh ph | nym nl | 4.5 |
| 5 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 4.4 |
| 6 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 4.4 |
| 7 | Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b ss | bal al | 4.2 |
| 8 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 4.0 |
| 9 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 4.0 |
| 10 | De La Rosa, Rubby 3342 | pi sp mr | ari nl | 4.0 |
In addition, Kershaw rises to 10th place among all players in career Box-Toppers points since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began).
Kershaw pitched a complete game shutout, striking out 14 and allowing three hits, in the 1-0 win over the Padres.
Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, rising to first place in player rankings, displacing previous leader, Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta (5.0 Box-Toppers points).
Kershaw also now has 165.3 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 10th place in “all-time” rankings, passing two players—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez (163.7) and Roger Clemens (164.8). Kershaw now trails ninth-place player Johan Santana (166.6).
Kershaw had a Box-Toppers game score Sunday of +20.0, the third time this season a player has had a game score of +20.0 or more. It is the second-highest game score of the season, behind only the +22.0 earned April 14 by Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez.
American League Player of the Day—Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman struck out nine over eight innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 5-1 win over the Rays.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | nyy al | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 179.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 175.3 |
| 7 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 8 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 9 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 10 | 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 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 19 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 148.4 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
National League Batter of the Day—Chris Carter of the Brewers homered twice and doubled, going 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 14-5 win over the Marlins.
American League Batter of the Day—Nick Castellanos of the Tigers homered and went 1-for-3, driving in four runs, in the 6-5 win over the Twins.
Rankings—Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez rose to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. Velasquez (6IP 2H 0R 6K W in the 2-1 win over the Indians) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.0 for the season.
Notable—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rose to 53rd place in “all-time” Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Scherzer (7IP 4H 0R 9K W in the 6-1 win over the Cardinals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 109.0 for his career. With his point, he passes three players on Box-Toppers “all-time” list—Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3) and Billy Wagner (108.7). Scherzer now trails the 52nd-ranked player on the list, Jeff Kent (109.7). (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.) Scherzer has 3.0 Box-Toppers points for the season.
Debut—Reds pitcher Tim Adleman made his Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Adleman (6IP 3H 2R 6K ND in the 6-5 win over the Pirates) was making his Major League debut. He is the 3,625th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Stroman earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Carter and Castellanos 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/1 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 20.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | |
| 13.0 | `Braves | Julio Teheran | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 12.0 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
| AL | 10.0 | Blue Jays | Marcus Stroman (W,4-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
| 6.0 | Phillies | Vince Velasquez (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Brewers | Chris Carter, 1B | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Giants | Madison Bumgarner (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | Rockies | Nolan Arenado, 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Tigers | Nick Castellanos, 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | `Reds | Tim Adleman | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Ian Kennedy (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | Red Sox | Craig Kimbrel (S,8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Angels | Kole Calhoun, RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | White Sox | Melky Cabrera, LF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Astros | Luke Gregerson (S,5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 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. | ||||||||||||||||
| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.0 | 31.7 | 131.8 | 165.3 | -19.7 |
| Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | col nl | 3.5 | 12.0 | 13.5 | 13.5 | -5.0 |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 3.0 | 24.0 | 88.6 | 109.0 | -18.0 |
| Kennedy, Ian 2723 | pi sp | kc al | 3.0 | 9.7 | 53.5 | 59.5 | -3.7 |
| Castellanos, Nick 3349 | 3b | det al | 3.0 | 9.2 | 11.2 | 11.2 | -3.2 |
| Carter, Chris 2828 | 1b dh | mil nl | 2.5 | 3.5 | 21.4 | 22.4 | 1.5 |
| Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 2.0 | 19.0 | 89.0 | 94.7 | -15.0 |
| Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bos al | 2.0 | 8.0 | 51.7 | 52.7 | -4.0 |
| Gregerson, Luke 2563 | pi cp | hou al | 2.0 | 8.0 | 12.0 | 17.0 | -4.0 |
| Stroman, Marcus 3327 | pi sp | tor al | 1.7 | 4.4 | 18.1 | 18.1 | -1.0 |
| Teheran, Julio 3176 | pi sp | atl nl | 1.0 | 8.7 | 36.8 | 36.8 | -6.7 |
| Calhoun, Kole 3279 | rf | ana al | 1.0 | 4.2 | 11.7 | 11.7 | -2.2 |
| Cabrera, Melky 2143 | lf | chi al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 16.5 | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| Adleman, Tim 3625 | pi sp | cin nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Cubs pitcher John Lackey is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Lackey struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 5-0 win over the Cardinals.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.0 |
| 2 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 3.4 |
| 3 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 3.0 |
| 4 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 3.0 |
| 5 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 6 | Morton, Charlie 2503 | pi sp | phi nl | 3.0 |
| 7 | Santiago, Hector 3109 | pi sp | ana al | 2.7 |
| 8 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 2.7 |
| 9 | Bettis, Chad 3481 | pi sp | col nl | 2.7 |
| 10 | Ross, Joe 3499 | pi sp | dc nl | 2.7 |
Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first points of the season, giving him 109.8 for his career. Lackey rises to 51st place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began, passing five players on the “all-time” list—Max Scherzer of the Tigers (108.0), Lance Berkman (108.1), Kevin Millwood (108.3), Billy Wagner (108.7) and Jeff Kent (109.7). He trails 50th-place player Tom Glavine (110.6).
American League Player of the Day—Angels pitcher Hector Santiago struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 7-0 win over the White Sox.
Santiago earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, rising to seventh in season player rankings.
American League Batter of the Day—Byung Ho Park of the Twins homered and went 2-for-3, in the 7-4 win over the Brewers.
This was Park’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Park made his Major League debut April 4 and was playing in his 11th career game. He is the 3,616th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no NL Batter of the Day for Monday because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors.
Notable—Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Syndergaard (7IP 5H R 8K W in the 5-2 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.
Scoring—Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Santiago earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day and Park earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 4/18 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | Cubs | John Lackey (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| AL | 12.0 | Angels | Hector Santiago (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | |
| 6.0 | Mets | Noah Syndergaard (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 6.0 | Marlins | Jose Fernandez (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | ||
| 5.0 | Rockies | Jordan Lyles (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | Blue Jays | J.A. Happ (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Dbacks | Rubby De La Rosa (W,1-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 1.0 | Twins | Byung Ho Park, DH | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 | 13.4 | 13.4 | 13.4 | -7.4 |
| Santiago, Hector 3109 | pi sp | ana al | 2.7 | 10.7 | 23.1 | 23.1 | -5.3 |
| Lackey, John 1640 | pi sp | chi nl | 2.0 | 11.7 | 31.4 | 109.8 | -7.7 |
| Park, Byung Ho 3616 | dh | min al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 1.0 | 14.1 | 29.5 | 37.5 | -12.1 |
| De La Rosa, Rubby 3342 | pi mr | ari nl | 1.0 | 7.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | -5.0 |
| Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 1.0 | 5.7 | 31.7 | 31.7 | -3.7 |
| Lyles, Jordan 3100 | pi sp | col nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 1.0 |
Who are each franchise's top 4 players in career Box-Toppers points since 1995?
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Ranks shown are as of July 23, 2016.
Ken Griffey Jr., Mike Piazza elected to Hall; Curt Schilling, Mike Mussina, Jim Edmonds among players snubbed in voting.
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Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers is Saturday’s Player of the Day.
Fiers struck out 12 over six innings, allowing one run, in the 6-1 win over the Cubs.
American League Player of the Day—Orioles pitcher Miguel Gonzalez pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out six, in the 4-0 win over the Rays.
| 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 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 4.7 |
| 6 | Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | rf | fla nl | 4.5 |
| 7 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | cin nl | 4.4 |
| 8 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 3.7 |
| 9 | Kazmir, Scott 1947 | pi sp | oak al | 3.7 |
| 10 | Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 3.7 |
American League Batter of the Day—Kyle Blanks of the Rangers homered, doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in three, in the 8-7, 10-inning win over the Athletics.
National League Batter of the Day—Zack Cozart of the Reds homered and went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 8-4 win over the Braves.
Rankings—Tigers pitcher David Price rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday (CG 5H R 3K W in the 2-1 win over the Royals). Price earns 1.0 Box-Toppers points, giving him 3.7 for the season.
Streak—Two players extended their lengthy streaks of consecutive seasons scoring at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point:
Hunter was Player of the Game in Saturday’s 5-3 win over the White Sox (HR 3-4 2R 2BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.
Hunter earned his first Box-Toppers point in 1999 with the Twins. His best season was 2008 with the Angels when he had 12.4 Box-Toppers points, ranked second among AL batters.. In 2014, he had 5.5 Box-Toppers points with the Tigers.
Hunter has 108.9 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 51st among all players (since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995). With Saturday’s point, he passed three players on that list—Billy Wagner (108.7), Kevin Millwood (108.3) and Lance Berkman (108.1). Hunter ranks 16th among all batters since 1995 and ranks fifth among active batters currently in the AL.
Haren earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2003 with the Cardinals. His best season was 2011 with the Angels, when he had 16.8 Box-Toppers points, fifth among AL pitchers. In 2014, he had 8.0 Box-Toppers points with the Dodgers.
Haren has 109.2 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 50th among all players (since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995). With Saturday’s point, he also passed Billy Wagner (108.7) and Kevin Millwood (108.3) on that list. Haren ranks 35th among all pitchers since 1995 and ranks 11th among active pitchers currently in the NL, just behind Tim Lincecum of the Giants (109.3).
Scoring—Fiers earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Gonzalez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Blanks and Cozart each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/2 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | Brewers | Mike Fiers (W, 1-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 | |
| AL | 8.2 | Orioles | Miguel Gonzalez (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | |
| 8.0 | Nationals | Gio Gonzalez (W, 2-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | ||
| 6.0 | Marlins | Dan Haren (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 5.1 | Yankees | Dellin Betances (S, 1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 5.0 | Tigers | David Price (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 5.0 | Dodgers | Juan Nicasio (W, 1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Rangers | Kyle Blanks 1B | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Twins | Torii Hunter DH | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Padres | Craig Kimbrel (S, 7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Reds | Zack Cozart SS | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Astros | Colby Rasmus LF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Jose Bautista DH | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Giants | Casey McGehee 3B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Cardinals | Pete Kozma 2B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Pitchers Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez—number one and number two respectively in Box-Toppers points (since record keeping began in 1995)—will be joined in July’s induction ceremony by pitcher John Smoltz and second baseman Craig Biggio.
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One in a series
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:
Mariano Rivera, considered the greatest closing pitcher of all time, is only the second-best closer in career Box-Toppers points.
| 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.
| 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.
Previously in the series: Alex Rodriguez, Roy Halladay, Manny Ramirez, Johan Santana, Jim Thome, Derek Jeter
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.