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Astros pitcher Justin Verlander maintains the lead in Box-Toppers weekly team rankings report for the sixth straight week.
Also this week, there is a new leader in Box-Toppers points among American League batters as Eloy Jimenez of the White Sox passes previous leader Joey Gallo of the Rangers.
Read MoreMarlins pitcher Pablo Lopez is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, three players rise in Box-Toppers season player rankings top 10 after earning Player of the Game honors—Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu rises to third place, Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks rises to fifth place and Reds pitcher Luis Castillo rises to sixth place.
Read MoreNationals pitcher Anibal Sanchez is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Read MoreCubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to fourth place in season player rankings.
Also Tuesday, Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers rises to second place in Box-Toppers season player rankings—first place among National League players—after earning Player of the Game honors.
Read MoreRed Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Sale struck out 14 over eight innings, allowing one run, three hits and no walks, in the 2-1, 12-inning win over the Orioles. Sale did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision because the game was tied, 1-1, when he exited.
Read MoreRays pitcher Tyler Glasnow is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to take the lead in season player rankings.
Also Friday, two other players rise in Box-Toppers season player rankings top 10 list after earning Player of the Game honors—Brewers pitcher Josh Hader rises to fifth place and Ketel Marte of the Diamondbacks rises to ninth place.
Read MoreBlue Jays pitcher Ryan Borucki is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Borucki struck out seven over eight scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 5-0 win over the Orioles.
Read MoreCubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Sunday, Rays pitcher Blake Snell maintains his fourth-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning American League Player of the Day honors.
Read MoreCubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Hendricks pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, no walks and striking out five, in the 1-0 win over the Brewers.
Read MoreSadly, Jose Fernandez leads the list of players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from 2016 to 2017. The 22.4-point decline is 8.0 points more than the next biggest decline which was the highest among players active in 2017—that belongs to Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto, whose 2017 point total dipped 14.4 points, from 16.4 in 2016 to 2.0 in 2017.
Read MoreDodgers pitcher Yu Darvish and Aaron Judge of the Yankees are Box-Toppers Players of the Game in Tuesday’s League Championship Series games.
Read MoreTodd Frazier of the Yankees is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Game in the American League Championship Series Game 3.
The Astros lead the best-of-seven series 2-1.
Read MoreThe 2017 National League Championship Series is a rematch of the 2016 series between the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers. But this year, the tables are turned.
Last year, the Cubs were kings, leading Box-Toppers team rankings in 2016 almost wire-to-wire, and coming into their NLCS matchup against the Dodgers holding practically every advantage. This year, they’ve scraped together their success with a pitching staff that is little more than half as good as it was when it led them to a World Series title in 2016.
Read MoreAddison Russell of the Cubs is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Game in National League Division Series Game 5, as the Cubs eliminate the Nationals.
Read MoreNationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg and Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman are Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Players of the Day in two League Division Series games.
Read MoreCubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks is Box-Toppers top player in Friday’s four league division series playoff games.
The other three Players of the Game Friday:
Trevor Bauer of the Indians and Jose Altuve of the Astros are Box-Toppers Players of the Game in Thursday’s pair of American League Division Series openers.
Bauer struck out eight over 6 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 4-0 win over the Yankees. The Indians now lead the Yankees 1-0 in the best-of-five series.
Read MoreIndians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fifth place in season player rankings.
Carrasco struck out 14 over 8 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing six hits and one walk, in the 5-2 win over the Twins.
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 MoreSeven leaders of key statistical categories are among Box-Toppers' overall top 100-ranked players, but only one of the seven is among Box-Toppers' top 10 players for 2016.
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.