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Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, earning the third-highest Box-Toppers game score by a batter this season.
Also Tuesday, Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale failed to secure Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors in his start Tuesday, as his team lost, leaving the door open for Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer or Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw to pass him in starts later this week in the season’s final days.
Read MoreReds pitcher Luis Castillo is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Sunday, Mariners pitcher James Paxton rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning American League Player of the Day honors.
Read MoreRed Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, maintaining his player rankings lead among American League pitchers and becoming the 79th player since 1995 with 100 or more career Box-Toppers points.
Also Friday, Edwin Encarnacion of the Indians rises to first place in Box-Toppers points among AL batters after earning AL Batter of the Day honors.
Read MoreClayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer hold dominant lead among players in Box-Toppers points over last several years. Using longer term measure, Chris Sale rises to lead AL pitchers, Yoenis Cespedes rises to lead NL batters.
Read MoreManny Ramirez leads outfielders in career Box-Toppers points. Carlos Beltran leads active outfielders in career points. Mike Trout leads outfielders in recent seasons.
Read More3 of 4 major postseason award winners are among Box-Toppers top-ranked pitchers or batters on their teams. The exception: AL Cy Young Rick Porcello, who ranks 6th among Red Sox players.
Read MoreFour players appear on Box-Toppers All-Star teams over all three major time periods (2016, 2015-16, 2011-16)—Kershaw, Scherzer, Hamels and Trout.
Read More
| OVERALL | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 2016 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | Nationals | 25.7 |
| 2015-16 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 50.1 |
| 2011-16 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 150.2 |
| 1995-16 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Retired | 278.8 |
| AL PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 2016 | Corey Kluber | pi sp | Indians | 21.2 |
| 2015-16 | Corey Kluber | pi sp | Indians | 34.6 |
| 2011-16 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | Mariners | 91.4 |
| AL BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 2016 | Manny Machado | 3b ss | Orioles | 12.7 |
| 2015-16 | Mike Trout | cf | Angels | 24.5 |
| 2011-16 | Miguel Cabrera | 1b | Tigers | 65.3 |
| NL PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 2016 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | Nationals | 25.7 |
| 2015-16 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 50.1 |
| 2011-16 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 150.2 |
| NL BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 2016 | Nolan Arenado | 3b | Rockies | 10.7 |
| 2015-16 | Nolan Arenado | 3b | Rockies | 19.2 |
| 2011-16 | Andrew McCutchen | cf | Pirates | 48.2 |
| PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 1995-16 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Retired | 278.8 |
| BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 1995-16 | Alex Rodriguez | 3b | Released | 187.0 |
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw leads two of Box-Toppers’ four main leaderboards:
• He leads all players in Box-Toppers points over the past two seasons (2015-16) with 50.1.
• He leads all players in Box-Toppers points over the past six seasons (2011-16) with 150.2.
Kershaw finished second among all players in Box-Toppers points in both 2015 (25.7) and 2016 (24.4) and finished either first or second among all players in each of the past six seasons. (A look at Kershaw’s Box-Toppers points for the past six seasons.)
Pitcher Randy Johnson tops Box-Toppers’ all-time leaderboard with 278.8 points, recorded from 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began until his retirement in 2009.
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.
Other highlights from the leaderboards:
Box-Toppers maintains separate AL and NL categories for three of the main leaderboards—2016, 2015-16 and 2011-16. But the 1995-2016 “all-time” leaderboard includes players who are retired, released or not currently affiliated with a team, so all players are grouped into single pitching leader or batting leader lists.
Box-Toppers leaderboards, showing the top 10 players in each category (overall and AL and NL pitchers and batters):
An analysis of 22 years of Box-Toppers points leaders in pitching & batting in both leagues.
Read MoreKershaw, who has ranked 1st or 2nd among all players in Box-Toppers points each of the past six seasons, has a dominating lead among players over 2011-2016.
Read MoreDodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Box-Toppers’ top-ranked player over both the past two seasons and the past six seasons. Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer ranks second on both lists.
Read More
Athletics pitcher Daniel Mengden is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 23.7 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 21.0 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 20.4 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 20.2 |
| 5 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 20.1 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 16.8 |
| 7 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym al | 15.7 |
| 8 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 15.4 |
| 9 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 15.1 |
| 10 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | lad nl | 14.4 |
Also Thursday, Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Mengden pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits, no walks and striking out six, in the 14-5 win over the Royals.
This was Mengden’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Mengden made his Major League debut June 11 and was playing in his 12th career game. He is the 3,741st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Player of the Day—Diamondbacks pitcher Patrick Corbin pitched three scoreless innings, allowing no runs, hits or walks, striking out four and earning the save, in the 7-3 win over the Dodgers.
National League Batter of the Day—Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates hit two homers and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 15-2 win over the Phillies.
American League Batter of the Day—Evan Longoria of the Rays hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-5, driving in five runs, in the 7-6 win over the Orioles.
Rankings—Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.
Cueto (CG 5H 2R BB 7K W in the 6-2 win over the Cardinals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 15.4 for the season, rising from ninth to eighth place. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.
Notable—Russell Martin of the Blue Jays became the 41st player (and seventh batter) with 10 or more Box-Toppers points in 2016 after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.
Martin (HR 1-3 R 4BI in the 7-2 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.5 for the season. He ranks 35th among all players and fourth among AL batters.
This is Martin’s first season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points. His previous best season was 2007 with the Dodgers, when he had 8.5 Box-Toppers points.
Also notable—David Ortiz of the Red Sox rises to 23rd place in career Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Day honors Thursday.
Ortiz (HR 2B 3-4 R 3BI in the 7-5 win over the Yankees) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 144.9 career points. He passes Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers (143.9) on the “all-time” list and now trails 22nd-ranked player, Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon (145.8). Ortiz also rises to seventh place among active players in career points, second among active batters, behind only Albert Pujols of the Angels (182.3). Ortiz also now rises to seventh among all batters in career points since 1995 and trails sixth-ranked batter Jim Thome (146.7) on the “all-time” list.
Ortiz has 7.0 Box-Toppers points for the season, 19th among AL batters and fourth among AL designated hitters. Ortiz has said he will retire at the end of the season.
Scoring—Mengden earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Corbin earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. McCutchen and Longoria 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 9/15 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 10.0 | OAK 14, KC 5 | Daniel Mengden (W,2-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
| NL | 7.0 | ARI 7, LAD 3 | Patrick Corbin (S,1) | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 6.0 | SF 6, STL 2 | Johnny Cueto (W,16-5) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 6.0 | `CHW 2, CLE 1 | James Shields | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | PIT 15, PHI 2 | Andrew McCutchen, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 3.0 | TB 7, BAL 6 | Evan Longoria, 3B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | BOS 7, NYY 5 | David Ortiz, DH | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | TOR 7, LAA 2 | Russell Martin, C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | MIL 5, CHC 4 | Scooter Gennett, PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | MIN 5, DET 1 | Eddie Rosario, LF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `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 | +/- |
| Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 15.4 | 28.2 | 79.4 | 98.8 | 2.6 |
| Martin, Russell 2202 | ca | tor al | 10.5 | 15.5 | 32.0 | 53.0 | 5.5 |
| McCutchen, Andrew 2637 | cf | pit nl | 7.0 | 17.5 | 48.2 | 53.9 | -3.5 |
| Ortiz, David | dh | bos al | 7.0 | 11.5 | 42.9 | 144.9 | 2.5 |
| Longoria, Evan 2423 | 3b | tb al | 5.5 | 8.5 | 25.0 | 46.0 | 2.5 |
| Corbin, Patrick 3027 | pi sp cp | ari nl | 3.7 | 9.1 | 32.5 | 32.5 | -1.7 |
| Shields, James 2157 | pi sp | chi al | 3.0 | 10.4 | 68.6 | 99.4 | -4.4 |
| Rosario, Eddie 3542 | lf | min al | 3.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 1.5 |
| Gennett, Scooter 3254 | 2b ph | mil nl | 2.5 | 4.5 | 11.5 | 11.5 | 0.5 |
| Mengden, Daniel 3741 | pi sp | oak al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
A look at leaders in Box-Toppers points by position and league over both 2016 and 2015-16.
Read More
Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 5.0 |
| 2 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 4.4 |
| 3 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 4.4 |
| 4 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 4.0 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 4.0 |
| 6 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 4.0 |
| 7 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.0 |
| 8 | Santiago, Hector 3109 | pi sp | ana al | 3.7 |
| 9 | Latos, Mat 2644 | pi sp | chi al | 3.7 |
| 10 | Davis, Chris 2478 | 1b | bal al | 3.5 |
Cueto pitched a complete game shutout, striking out 11 and allowing seven hits and one walk, in the 1-0 win over the Padres.
Cueto earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season, rising to sixth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
American League Player of the Day—Athletics pitcher Rich Hill struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 5-1 win over the Tigers.
Hill earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.4 for the season, rising to third in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
National League Batter of the Day—Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates hit three homers and went 3-for-5, driving in five runs, in the 9-4 win over the Rockies.
American League Batter of the Day—Johnny Giavotella of the Angels hit a three-run homer in the 9-4 win over the Royals. Giavotella also doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times.
Rankings—White Sox pitcher Chris Sale rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Sale (8IP 4H R 6K W in the 10-1 win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season.
Scoring—Cueto earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hill earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. McCutchen and Giavotella each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
| 4/26 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 12.0 | Giants | Johnny Cueto (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| AL | 11.0 | Athletics | Rich Hill (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| 10.0 | Red Sox | David Price (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 14 | ||
| 8.0 | Cardinals | Carlos Martinez (W,4-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 8.0 | Mariners | Nathan Karns (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | Pirates | Andrew McCutchen, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | White Sox | Chris Sale (W,5-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | Rangers | A.J. Griffin (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Angels | Johnny Giavotella, 2B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Cubs | Adam Warren (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | Mets | Yoenis Cespedes, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.1 | `Twins | Ricky Nolasco | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 3.0 | Phillies | Andres Blanco, SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.2 | Rays | Alex Colome (S,5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Marlins | Christian Yelich, LF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 4.4 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 28.1 | 0.4 |
| Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 4.0 | 22.8 | 75.0 | 77.0 | -14.8 |
| Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 4.0 | 16.8 | 68.0 | 87.4 | -8.8 |
| Price, David 2593 | pi sp | bos al | 3.0 | 24.1 | 80.1 | 96.8 | -18.1 |
| Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 | cf lf dh ph | nym nl | 3.0 | 13.9 | 34.9 | 34.9 | -7.9 |
| Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 2.0 | 15.7 | 16.7 | 16.7 | -11.7 |
| Nolasco, Ricky 2125 | pi sp | min al | 2.0 | 4.0 | 24.7 | 77.8 | 0.0 |
| McCutchen, Andrew 2637 | cf | pit nl | 1.5 | 12.0 | 42.7 | 48.4 | -9.0 |
| Giavotella, Johnny 2931 | 2b | ana al | 1.5 | 5.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Colome, Alex 3189 | pi cp sp mr | tb al | 1.0 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 9.7 | -4.0 |
| Karns, Nathan 3414 | pi sp | sea al | 1.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | -4.0 |
| Warren, Adam 3169 | pi mr sp | chi nl | 1.0 | 4.7 | 8.7 | 8.7 | -2.7 |
| Yelich, Christian 3334 | lf | fla nl | 1.0 | 3.5 | 11.0 | 11.0 | -1.5 |
| Blanco, Andres 2980 | ss | phi nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Griffin, A.J. 3074 | pi sp | tex al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 15.7 | 15.7 | 1.0 |
Andrew McCutchen replaces Ryan Braun as leader among NL batters in six-year rolling Box-Toppers totals (2011-2016 vs. 2010-2015).
Read MoreOf the 27 All-Stars for 2010-15, 14 are also among Box-Toppers' 2014-15 All-Stars and seven are among Box-Toppers All-Stars for three periods—2015, 2014-15 and 2010-15.
Read MoreAnalyzing 21 years of Box-Toppers season point leaders in pitching and batting in both leagues.
Read MoreBox-Toppers' top pitchers Jake Arrieta of the Cubs and Dallas Keuchel of the Astros are Cy Young Award finalists. But Box-Toppers' top batters Adrian Beltre of the Rangers and Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies are not MVP finalists.
Read MoreOnly 5 of 17 Silver Slugger Award winners also led their position in Box-Toppers points.
Read MoreJake Arrieta of the Cubs tops Box-Toppers player rankings in 2015. The World Champion Kansas City Royals have the most representatives among the top 100 players—seven.
Read MoreBox-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.