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These five players were 2021 Silver Slugger Award winners and also led their league’s position in Box-Toppers points for the season: Xander Bogaerts of the Red Sox, Aaron Judge of the Yankees, Ozzie Albies of the Braves, Fernando Tatis Jr. of the Padres and Nick Castellanos of the Reds.
Only five of the 17 batters winning Silver Slugger Awards Thursday also were among the leaders at their positions in 2021 Box-Toppers point totals.
The awards are given to the top batter in each position in both leagues, voted on by Major League Baseball coaches and managers.
Read MoreThe Braves who won the 2021 World Series seem very different from the last Braves team that won the World Series in 1995. Comparing how each team fared in Box-Toppers points and rankings in their respective seasons.
Read MoreMarwin Gonzalez of the Astros is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Sunday’s World Series Game 5.
The Houston Astros win 9-5, holding off the Atlanta Braves, who still lead the best-of-seven game series, 3-2.
Read MoreAstros starting pitcher Jose Urquidy is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Wednesday’s World Series Game 2.
The Houston Astros win 7-2 to tie the best-of-seven game series with the Atlanta Braves at 1-1.
Read MoreBraves relief pitcher A.J. Minter is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Tuesday’s World Series Game 1.
The Atlanta Braves win 6-2 to take a 1-0 lead over the Houston Astros in the best-of-seven games series.
Read MoreChris Taylor of the Dodgers is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Thursday’s National League Championship Series Game 5.
Taylor hit three home runs and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in six runs, in the 11-2 win over the Braves. The Dodgers trail the Braves in the best-of-seven game series, 3-2.
Taylor had a Box-Toppers game score Thursday of +8.0, best among Dodgers players. In the 2021 regular season, there were only eight instances of batters earning Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors with a higher game score, led by the +11.0 achieved by Lourdes Gurriel Jr. of the Blue Jays on Sept. 12 (2HR 2-3 5R 7BI).
Dodgers starting pitcher Joe Kelly had a Box-Toppers game score of -5.8 (0.2IP 2H 2R 0BB 0K ND). AJ Pollock of the Dodgers had a Box-Toppers game score of +5.0 (2HR 3-5 3R 4BI).
Braves starting pitcher Max Fried had a game score of -12.8 (4.2IP 8H 5R 2BB 3K L). Freddie Freeman of the Braves had a game score of 0.0 (HR 1-4 R 2BI).
Taylor earned 4.7 Box-Toppers points in the 2021 regular season, 203rd among all players and 34th among NL batters.
The series resumes with Game 6 in Atlanta on Saturday.
| BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| +8.0 | LAD 11, ATL 2 | Chris Taylor, 3B | 5 | 3 | 4 | 6 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
Coming Friday:
The pitching matchup:
Red Sox—Nathan Eovaldi, 14.1 Box-Toppers points, 16th among all players, sixth among AL pitchers.
This is Eovaldi’s fifth appearance of the 2021 postseason. He was Player of the Game Oct. 5 in the AL Wild Card Game win over the Yankees. He also started Oct. 10 in the AL Division Series Game 3 win over the Rays, started Oct. 16 in the AL Championship Series win over the Astros and served as closer Oct. 19 in the ALCS loss to the Astros.
Astros—Luis Garcia, 10.0 Box-Toppers points, 49th among all players, 18th among AL pitchers.
This is Garcia’s third appearance of the 2021 postseason. He started Oct. 10 in the AL Division Series Game 3 loss to the White Sox and Oct. 16 in the AL Championship Series loss to the Red Sox.
Box-Toppers preview of the ALCS from Oct. 14
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.
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Astros pitcher Framber Valdez and Eddie Rosario of the Braves are Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners in Wednesday’s two league championship series games.
Read MoreRafael Devers of the Red Sox and Austin Riley of the Braves are Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners in Saturday’s two league championship series games.
Read MoreJose Altuve of the Astros is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Friday’s American League Championship Series Game 1.
Altuve homered and went 1-for-3, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 5-4 win over the Red Sox. The Astros take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven game series.
Read MoreEven though the Los Angeles Dodgers are Box-Toppers’ most dominant team in 2021, the Atlanta Braves should be a competitive match for them in the upcoming National League Championship Series.
The Dodgers are far and away Box-Toppers’ top-ranked team in 2021, with its players accumulating 146.7 Box-Toppers points during the regular season. The Braves ranked fifth overall with 122.4 points.
Read MoreBraves pitcher Max Fried and Dodgers pitcher Julio Urias are Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners in Saturday’s pair of National League Division Series games.
Read MoreIn four league division series playoff games Friday, these are Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners: Giants pitcher Logan Webb, Brewers pitcher Corbin Burnes, Red Sox pitcher Tanner Houck and Kyle Tucker of the Astros.
Read MoreBoth National League Division Series begin Friday.
The NL East champion Atlanta Braves face the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers in one best-of-five game series and the NL Wild Card champion Los Angeles Dodgers take on the San Francisco Giants, champions of the NL West in the other series.
Read MoreGiants pitcher Alex Wood is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, two pitchers with the most Box-Toppers points in 2021 both failed to earn Player of the Game honors. Max Scherzer of the Dodgers (ranked first with 25.1 Box-Toppers points) and Gerrit Cole of the Yankees (ranked second with 22.4 points) both started but did not add to their Box-Toppers point total. With four days remaining in the regular season, it is now extremely unlikely Cole can catch Scherzer, who he trails by 2.7 points, making it extremely likely that Scherzer will be Box-Toppers’ 2021 Player of the Year.
Read MoreWhite Sox pitcher Dylan Cease is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Friday, 2021 Box-Toppers points leader Dodgers pitcher Max Scherzer moved closer to securing Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors after second-place player, Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole did not earn Box-Toppers points in his start. Cole trails Scherzer by 2.7 Box-Toppers points with a week left in the season.
Read MoreAthletics pitcher Frankie Montas is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Sunday, Jose Ramirez of the Indians rises to first place among American League batters after earning AL Batter of the Day honors, passing previous leader J.D. Martinez of the Red Sox.
Read MoreWhite Sox pitcher Dylan Cease is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Cease struck out 11 over six scoreless innings, allowing one hit and two walks, in the 7-1 win over the Royals.
Read MoreWhite Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Saturday, Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole maintains his second-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Plus, Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff rises to third place after he also earns Player of the Game honors.
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.
