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The New York Yankees are the top-ranked team in Box-Toppers’ 2019 preseason rankings, rising from second place at the end of the 2018 season.
The 2018 World Series-champion Boston Red Sox fall from first at the end of last season to second place in the 2019 preseason rankings.
Meanwhile, the Cincinnati Reds made the biggest offseason improvement in players’ accumulated Box-Toppers points, while the Arizona Diamondbacks had the biggest decline.
Read MoreKhris Davis of the Athletics led all players in home runs in 2018 but ranked relatively low in Box-Toppers player rankings—just 47th among American League batters.
Meanwhile, J.D. Martinez of the Red Sox, who led all batters in Box-Toppers points in 2018 with 12.5, ranked second in home runs. And just three of the top 10 home run hitters in 2018 are among the top 100 ranked players in Box-Toppers points for the season.
Read MoreDiamondbacks pitcher Patrick Corbin is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fifth place in season player rankings.
Corbin struck out 12 over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 2-1, 13-inning win over the Pirates. Corbin picked up a no-decision and did not earn the win because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.
Read MoreIndians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Carrasco struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 4-0 win over the White Sox.
Read MoreHalf of the top 10 runs batted in leaders are among their league’s top 10 batters in Box-Toppers points in 2017.
Overall RBI leader Giancarlo Stanton of the Marlins (132) ranked second among National League batters in Box-Toppers points with 14.2.
Read MoreGiancarlo Stanton of the Marlins led all players in home runs in 2017 and ranked second among all batters in Box-Toppers points for the season. Four of the top 10 home run leaders in 2017 are among the overall top 100 players.
Read MoreOnly 7 of 17 Silver Slugger Award winners also led their position in Box-Toppers points
Read MoreA look at top players in Box-Toppers points by position in both leagues over both 2017 and the combined 2016-17 seasons.
Read More
Matt Adams of the Braves is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Adams homered twice and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 11-10 win over the Nationals.
| 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 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 10.0 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 6 | Judge, Aaron 3767 | rf | nyy al | 8.2 |
| 7 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 8 | McCullers, Lance 3488 | pi sp | hou al | 7.7 |
| 9 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 7.5 |
| 10 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 7.4 |
American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Jake Petricka pitched 2 1/3 innings of scoreless middle relief, allowing one hit, no walks and striking out four, in the 10-7 win over the Orioles.
American League Batter of the Day—Nelson Cruz of the Mariners doubled and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 14-3 win over the Twins.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Monday because the overall Player of the Day is NL batter Matt Adams.
Notable—Rangers pitcher Yu Davish is Box-Toppers’ highest ranked player among the nine who earned Player of the Game honors Monday.
Darvish (7IP H R 3BB 4K W in the 6-1 win over the Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.0 for the season and ranks 21st among all players, ninth among AL pitchers.
Also notable—Jay Bruce of the Mets rises to lead NL batters in Box-Toppers points for the season after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.
Bruce (HR 2B 3-3 2R 2BI in the 6-1 win over the Cubs) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.0 for the season. He passes Bryce Harper of the Nationals for the NL batting lead in Box-Toppers points. Though both Harper and Bruce have 6.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, Bruce ranks ahead because he has more 2016 Box-Toppers points—8.5 vs. 3.0. Bruce ranks 22nd among all players in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Scoring—Adams earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Petricka earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Cruz 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.
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.
| 6/12 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 6.0 | ATL 11, WSH 10 | Matt Adams, 1B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| AL | 5.1 | CHW 10, BAL 7 | Jake Petricka (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| BAT | 5.0 | SEA 14, MIN 3 | Nelson Cruz, DH | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | TEX 6, HOU 1 | Yu Darvish (W,6-4) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 4.2 | `NYY 5, LAA 3 | Masahiro Tanaka | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | NYM 6, CHC 1 | Jay Bruce, RF | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 6, PHI 5 (F/11) | Matt Barnes (W,5-2) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 3.0 | SD 9, CIN 3 | Austin Hedges, C | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | PIT 7, COL 2 | Jameson Taillon (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | tex al | 6.0 | 16.4 | 61.6 | 61.6 | -4.4 |
| Bruce, Jay 2453 | rf | nym nl | 6.0 | 14.5 | 31.7 | 64.8 | -2.5 |
| Adams, Matt 3220 | 1b | atl nl | 5.0 | 6.0 | 14.5 | 14.5 | 4.0 |
| Cruz, Nelson 2224 | dh rf | sea al | 3.5 | 10.0 | 31.0 | 57.2 | -3.0 |
| Hedges, Austin 3790 | ca | sd nl | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
| Tanaka, Masahiro 3305 | pi sp | nyy al | 2.7 | 16.8 | 37.5 | 37.5 | -11.4 |
| Barnes, Matt 3466 | pi mr cp | bos al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| Petricka, Jake 3388 | pi mr | chi al | 1.7 | 1.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 1.7 |
| Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | pit nl | 1.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | -4.0 |
Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Godley is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 2 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 7.7 |
| 3 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.0 |
| 4 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.0 |
| 5 | Vargas, Jason 2055 | pi sp | kc al | 6.0 |
| 6 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 5.4 |
| 7 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 5.4 |
| 8 | Triggs, Andrew 3723 | pi sp | oak al | 5.4 |
| 9 | Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bos al | 5.0 |
| 10 | Nova, Ivan 2796 | pi sp | pit nl | 5.0 |
Godley allowed one run and one hit over 6 2/3 innings, striking out seven, in the 7-3 win over the Mets. Godley did not earn the win, picking up a no decision because the game was tied, 1-1, when he exited.
Godley also has the most Box-Toppers points among the eight who earned Player of the Game honors Monday. Godley earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season. He ranks 56th among all players for 2017, 15th among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Yuli Gurriel of the Astros hit a grand slam, doubled and went 2-for-4, in the 7-2 win over the Marlins.
This was Gurriel’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Gurriel made his Major League debut Aug. 21, 2016, and was playing in his 70th career game. He is the 3,796th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—Hunter Renfroe of the Padres hit a walk-off, two-run, 10th-inning homer in the 6-5 win over the Brewers. Renfroe also doubled and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Monday because the overall AL Player of the Day is batter Yuli Gurriel.
Streak—Nelson Cruz of the Mariners has now earned Box-Toppers points for 12 straight seasons after earning his first Player of the Game honor of the season.
Cruz (HR 1-3 R 2BI in the 6-5 win over the Athletics) earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2006 with the Rangers and has 54.7 career points, seventh among active AL designated hitters. His best year was 2014 with the Orioles when he had 8.5 points, sixth among AL batters. In 2016, he had 6.5 points with the Mariners, seventh among AL designated hitters.
Scoring—Godley earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Gurriel earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Renfroe earns 1.5 points for being NL 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.
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.
| 5/15 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 5.2 | `ARI 7, NYM 3 | Zack Godley | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 7 | |
| BAT | 4.0 | SD 6, MIL 5 (F/10) | Hunter Renfroe, RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | ATL 10, TOR 6 | Matt Kemp, LF | 4 | 3 | 4 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| AL | 3.0 | HOU 7, MIA 2 | Yuli Gurriel, 1B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | CLE 8, TB 7 | Lonnie Chisenhall, CF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.1 | LAA 5, CHW 3 | Bud Norris (S,8) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | SF 8, LAD 4 | Eduardo Nunez, LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | SEA 6, OAK 5 | Nelson Cruz, DH | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Godley, Zack 3538 | pi sp | ari nl | 3.0 | 4.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 2.0 |
| Kemp, Matt 2151 | lf | atl nl | 2.5 | 10.0 | 33.0 | 61.6 | -5.0 |
| Norris, Bud 2638 | pi cp sp | ana al | 2.0 | 7.7 | 32.4 | 48.1 | -3.7 |
| Gurriel, Yuli 3796 | 1b | hou al | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| Renfroe, Hunter 3749 | rf | sd nl | 1.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -1.0 |
| Cruz, Nelson Ramon 2224 | dh | sea al | 1.0 | 7.5 | 28.5 | 54.7 | -5.5 |
| Nunez, Eduardo 2795 | lf 3b | sf nl | 1.0 | 6.5 | 13.5 | 16.0 | -4.5 |
| Chisenhall, Lonnie 2959 | cf | cle al | 1.0 | 4.5 | 12.5 | 14.5 | -2.5 |
Home run leader Mark Trumbo of the Orioles ranked 14th among AL batters in Box-Toppers points. Only three of the overall top 10 in home runs were among their league’s top 10 batters in Box-Toppers points.
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Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, maintaining his third-place spot in season player rankings.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 5 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 12.5 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 12.1 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 11.4 |
| 8 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
| 9 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 11.0 |
| 10 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.7 |
Also Saturday, Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto maintained his fourth-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Scherzer struck out 10 over seven innings, allowing two runs, four hits and no walks, in the 3-2 win over the Padres. Scherzer did not earn the win, picking up a no decision, because he exited with the game tied.
Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 16.0 for the season, maintaining his spot in third place in season player rankings. He also ranks third among National League pitchers, behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (20.0) and Jose Fernandez of the Marlins (16.4).
Scherzer also now has 122.0 Box-Toppers points for his career, 38th-most since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 37th-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1).
American League Player of the Day—Orioles pitcher Kevin Gausman pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out seven, in the 5-2 win over the Indians. Gausman also allowed four hits and walked three.
National League Batter of the Day—Trevor Story of the Rockies hit two home runs and went 4-for-4, scoring three times and driving in five, in the 8-4 win over the Braves.
American League Batter of the Day—Nelson Cruz of the Mariners hit two home runs, including a grand slam, in the 14-5 win over the Blue Jays. Cruz went 2-for-5, driving in seven total runs.
Rankings—Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto maintained his fourth-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday.
Cueto (6IP 6H R BB 9K ND in the 2-1, 12-inning win over the Yankees) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.4 for the season. Cueto also ranks fourth among NL pitchers.
Debut—Andrew Toles of the Dodgers made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.
Toles (2B 3-4 2R in the 7-2 win over the Cardinals) made his Major League debut July 8 and was playing in his 10th career game. He is the 3,692nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Gausman earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Story and Cruz 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
| 7/23 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 9.0 | `WSH 3, SD 2 | Max Scherzer | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 10 | |
| BAT | 8.0 | COL 8, ATL 4 | Trevor Story, SS | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| AL | 7.0 | BAL 5, CLE 2 | Kevin Gausman (W,2-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | |
| 7.0 | `SF 2, NYY 1 (12) | Johnny Cueto | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | SEA 14, TOR 5 | Nelson Cruz, DH | 5 | 2 | 2 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | MIL 6, CHC 1 | Kirk Nieuwenhuis, CF | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | HOU 7, LAA 2 | Evan Gattis, C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.2 | CIN 6, ARI 1 | Michael Lorenzen (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 4.0 | MIN 11, BOS 9 | Eddie Rosario, LF | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | TEX 7, KC 4 | Nomar Mazara, RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | MIA 7, NYM 2 | Giancarlo Stanton, RF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | PIT 7, PHI 4 | Mark Melancon (S,29) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | LAD 7, STL 2 | Andrew Toles, RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | OAK 4, TB 3 | Jake Smolinski, RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
` 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 | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 | 37.0 | 101.6 | 122.0 | -5.0 |
| Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 | 27.2 | 78.4 | 97.8 | 1.6 |
| Story, Trevor 3607 | ss | col nl | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 |
| Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | rf | fla nl | 5.5 | 11.0 | 32.7 | 38.2 | 0.0 |
| Cruz, Nelson Ramon 2224 | dh | sea al | 4.5 | 6.5 | 32.2 | 51.7 | 2.5 |
| Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | bal al | 4.4 | 10.1 | 17.8 | 17.8 | -1.3 |
| Mazara, Nomar 3614 | rf | tex al | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
| Melancon, Mark 2792 | pi cp | pit nl | 2.0 | 9.0 | 22.0 | 23.0 | -5.0 |
| Gattis, Evan 3179 | ca dh | hou al | 2.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Rosario, Eddie 3542 | lf | min al | 2.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 0.5 |
| Nieuwenhuis, Kirk 3022 | cf | mil nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 12.5 | 12.5 | -3.0 |
| Lorenzen, Michael 3479 | pi mr | cin nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Smolinski, Jake 3424 | rf | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1.0 |
| Toles, Andrew 3692 | rf | lad nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer, who tied a Major League record by striking out 20 in a single game, is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.0 |
| 2 | Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b ss | bal al | 6.7 |
| 3 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 5.7 |
| 5 | Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | chi al | 5.7 |
| 6 | De La Rosa, Rubby 3342 | pi sp | ari nl | 5.7 |
| 7 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 5.4 |
| 8 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 5.0 |
| 9 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 5.0 |
| 10 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 5.0 |
Scherzer pitched a complete game, allowing two runs, six hits and no walks, in the 3-2 win over the Tigers. His 20 strikeouts in a nine-inning game ties the record of Roger Clemens of the Red Sox (who did it twice, in 1986 and 1996) and Kerry Wood of the Cubs (1998). (In 2001, Randy Johnson of the Diamondbacks also struck out 20 in nine innings in a game that lasted 11 innings.)
While his 20 strikeouts tie a record, Scherzer’s Box-Toppers game score Wednesday of +19.0 is only the fourth-highest score of the season. (See chart at the bottom of the page for the four highest Box-Toppers game scores of 2016.) In 2015, Scherzer had three games with a Box-Toppers game score of +19.0 or more, including the season’s highest score of +26.0 in his Oct. 3 no-hitter. He also had the season’s third-highest score (+23.0 on June 14 in a one-hitter) and 11th-highest score (+19.0 on June 20 in a no-hitter).
Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points Wednesday for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, rising to eighth place in season player rankings, fourth among NL pitchers. He also rises to 51st place among players in Box-Toppers points since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began) with 111.0 career points, moving past Tom Glavine (110.6) on the “all-time” list. Scherzer now trails 50th-ranked player, Cubs pitcher John Lackey (111.5).
American League Player of the Day—Astros pitcher Michael Feliz struck out five over three scoreless innings, allowing one hit and earning the save, in the 5-3, 16-inning win over the Indians.
This was Feliz’ Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Feliz made his Major League debut May 31, 2015, and was playing in his 11th career game. He is the 3,632nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
American League Batter of the Day—Jackie Bradley Jr. of the Red Sox hit a three-run homer, a two-run homer and a double in the 13-3 win over the Athletics. Bradley also went 3-for-6, driving in six total runs.
National League Batter of the Day—Charlie Blackmon of the Rockies homered and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 8-7 win over the Diamondbacks.
Notable—Noah Syndergaard of the Mets became the second pitcher this season to earn Player of the Game honors for batting.
Syndergaard (2HR 2-4 2R 4BI in the 4-3 win over the Dodgers) had a Box-Toppers game score of +4.0 for batting and a score of +3.0 for pitching (8IP 6H 2R BB K W). Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals is the other pitcher who earned Player of the Game honors for batting this season when he did it on May 2. In 2015, pitchers won Player of the Game honors for batting seven times.
Streak—Nelson Cruz of the Mariners has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Cruz (HR 1-3 2R 2BI in the 6-5 win over the Rays) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Rangers and has 48.2 career points, fifth among active AL outfielders and 10th among active AL designated hitters. His best season was 2014 with the Orioles when he had 8.5 Box-Toppers points, sixth among AL batters. He had 2.0 points in 2015 with the Mariners.
Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Feliz earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Bradley and Blackmon 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/11 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 19.0 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 20 | |
| 10.0 | Padres | Drew Pomeranz (W,4-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 8.0 | Braves | Williams Perez (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 8.0 | Cardinals | Jaime Garcia (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| AL | 7.0 | Astros | Michael Feliz (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |
| 6.1 | Marlins | Wei-Yin Chen (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 12 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | Red Sox | Jackie Bradley Jr., CF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Orioles | Chris Davis, 1B | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Rockies | Charlie Blackmon, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Mets | Noah Syndergaard, P | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.2 | `Giants | Madison Bumgarner | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 2.0 | Rangers | Ian Desmond, CF-LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Pirates | Jung Ho Kang, 3B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Padres | Brett Wallace, 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Mariners | Nelson Cruz, DH | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Royals | Lorenzo Cain, CF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 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 | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 5.0 | 26.0 | 90.6 | 111.0 | -16.0 |
| Davis, Chris 2478 | 1b | bal al | 4.5 | 15.5 | 46.4 | 54.9 | -6.5 |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 4.0 | 14.4 | 14.4 | 14.4 | -6.4 |
| Garcia, Jaime 2508 | pi sp | stl nl | 4.0 | 13.4 | 31.1 | 39.8 | -5.4 |
| Pomeranz, Drew 3061 | pi sp mr | sd nl | 4.0 | 7.0 | 15.0 | 15.0 | 1.0 |
| Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 3.0 | 20.0 | 90.0 | 95.7 | -14.0 |
| Bradley, Jackie Jr. 3293 | cf | bos al | 2.5 | 12.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | -7.0 |
| Cain, Lorenzo 3171 | cf | kc al | 2.0 | 10.2 | 16.2 | 16.2 | -6.2 |
| Desmond, Ian 2673 | lf cf ss | tex al | 2.0 | 3.0 | 18.7 | 25.2 | 1.0 |
| Feliz, Michael 3632 | pi cp | hou al | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| Blackmon, Charlie 2891 | cf | col nl | 1.5 | 4.0 | 9.5 | 9.5 | -1.0 |
| Chen, Wei-Yin 3026 | pi sp | fla nl | 1.0 | 6.7 | 26.1 | 26.1 | -4.7 |
| Perez, Williams 3476 | pi sp | atl nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | -3.0 |
| Kang, Jung-Ho 3464 | ss 3b | pit nl | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -2.0 |
| Cruz, Nelson 2224 | dh rf | sea al | 1.0 | 3.0 | 28.7 | 48.2 | -1.0 |
| Wallace, Brett 2837 | 3b | sd nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1.0 |
Here are the top Box-Toppers game scores of 2016. Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez had the highest score of +22.0 on April 14. Also shown are the Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned in the game by the player. Note that Jaime Garcia of the Cardinals earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point because he earned his Box-Toppers game score of +20 on April 14, the same day Velasquez bested him for Player of the Day with +22.0.
| Date | BTP | Score | Team | Player of the Game | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| 4/14 | 2.0 | 22.0 | Phillies | Vince Velasquez (W,2-0) | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 4/14 | 1.0 | 20.0 | Cardinals | Jaime Garcia (W,1-0) | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| 5/1 | 2.0 | 20.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W,3-1) | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| 5/11 | 2.0 | 19.0 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W,4-2) | 9.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 20 |
Chris Davis of the Orioles led players with 47 home runs and ranked fourth among AL batters in Box-Toppers points with 11.0.
Read MoreOnly 5 of 17 Silver Slugger Award winners also led their position in Box-Toppers points.
Read MoreSeattle Mariners have three players among the 2015 preseason All-Stars, most of any team.
Read MoreNationals' offseason net gain in Box-Toppers points pushes them to top of preseason team rankings. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Athletics plummet in rankings and the Cubs and Red Sox make big leaps upward.
Read MoreHow did baseball’s statistical leaders do in Box-Toppers points?
The leaders in pitching statistical categories in general did better than leaders in batting statistical categories.
Read MoreNelson Cruz of the Orioles led all players in home runs and was among American League batting leaders in Box-Toppers points. In general, home run hitters did very well in Box-Toppers points in 2014.
Read MoreDodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2014, was voted National League Most Valuable Player Thursday.
Center fielder Mike Trout of the Angels was the unanimous choice for American League Most Valuable Player, though Trout ranked seventh among AL batters in Box-Toppers points in 2014.
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.