Blog
Box-Toppers choices for major postseason awards: AL MVP—Shohei Ohtani, Angels; NL MVP—Pete Alonso, Mets; AL Cy Young—Chris Bassitt, Blue Jays; NL Cy Young—Spencer Strider, Braves; AL Rookie of the Year—Gunnar Henderson, Orioles; NL Rookie of the Year—James Outman, Dodgers.
You’re going to hate Box-Toppers’ choices for postseason player honors.
That’s the impression I get from listening to and reading baseball commentators who by August were already declaring players as not even de facto but actual “don’t-argue-with-me-because-I’m-right-and-there’s-clearly-no-dispute” award winners.
Read MoreShohei Ohtani of the Angels, favorite for American League Most Valuable Player, is also Box-Toppers’ choice for the award. But Box-Toppers’ choice for NL MVP, Pete Alonso of the Mets, is not among the finalists for the award, expected to go to Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves, who is second on Box-Toppers’ NL MVP ballot.
Read MoreNick Castellanos of the Phillies is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Thursday’s National League Division Series win over the Braves.
Castellanos hit two solo home runs and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs.
Read More
Source: MLB.com
Both National League Division Series begin Saturday.
The Philadelphia Phillies face the Atlanta Braves in one best-of-five game series and the Arizona Diamondbacks face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the other. The top two NL seeds, the Braves (first) and the Dodgers (second) received byes from the first round of playoffs and face the winners of the best-of-three Wild Card series played this week.
Read More
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider is 2023 Box-Toppers Player of the Year, holding the season lead in Box-Toppers points since Sept. 13.
Meanwhile, Chris Bassitt of the Blue Jays rises to lead American League pitchers and Pete Alonso of the Mets rises to lead National League batters in the season’s final player rankings report. While Shohei Ohtani of the Angels loses the lead among AL pitchers, he still retains the top spot among AL batters.
Read More
The Texas Rangers finish 2023 atop Box-Toppers team rankings even though they only qualified for the postseason as the second-seeded American League Wild Card team.
Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves maintain their lead among National League teams, finishing second overall. Plus, the San Diego Padres, who fell out of playoff contention, finish the season as the hottest team over the final days of the season.
Read MoreRed Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Pivetta struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 3-0 win over the Orioles.
Read MoreYankees pitcher Gerrit Cole is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to seventh place in season player rankings.
Also Wednesday, Pete Alonso of the Mets rises to first place among National League batters in 2023 Box-Toppers points after earning NL Batter of the Day honors, passing previous leader Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves.
Read More
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider extends his lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings this week.
Meanwhile, Shohei Ohtani of the Angels continues to lead both American League pitcher and batters in Box-Toppers points, despite being out for the remainder of the season. Plus, Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves continues to lead NL batters.
Read More
It doesn’t seem possible or correct, but the Texas Rangers persist in leading Box-Toppers team rankings for the eighth straight week.
Teams that could challenge the Rangers for top spot in rankings simply have not been gaining ground on the team that is struggling to cling to a final American League Wild Card playoff spot.
Read More
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider rises to lead Box-Toppers season player rankings this week, passing previous leader Shohei Ohtani of the Angels.
Strider continues to lead National League pitchers, while Ohtani continues to lead both American League batters and pitchers. Also, Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves continues to lead NL batters in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Read More
The Texas Rangers maintain the lead in Box-Toppers team rankings, slightly improving their position from last week, but the top ranking continues to seem undeserved.
Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves continue to lead all National League teams and the Milwaukee Brewers are the week’s hottest team.
Read MoreYankees pitcher Gerrit Cole is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to 10th in season player rankings.
Cole struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 4-3, 13-inning win over the Brewers. Cole did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.
Read More
Shohei Ohtani leads Box-Toppers season player rankings for the 12th straight week, though he hasn’t earned Box-Toppers points in nearly two weeks and hasn’t played since Sunday.
Meanwhile, Braves pitcher Spencer Strider continues to lead National League pitchers in Box-Toppers team rankings and Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves continues to lead NL batters.
Read More
The Texas Rangers still lead Box-Toppers team rankings this week, despite falling outside the dozen teams that would currently qualify for a playoff spot.
Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves continue to gain on the Rangers, leading all National League teams. Plus, the Chicago Cubs are the week’s hottest team.
Read MoreRays pitcher Tyler Glasnow is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning National League Player of the Day honors.
Read MoreMitch Garver of the Rangers is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Garver hit two home runs, including a three-run shot, in the 6-5 win over the Twins. Garver went 4-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs.
Read More
Shohei Ohtani leads Box-Toppers season player rankings for the 11th straight week, though he briefly lost the lead this week before regaining it.
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider, who continues his lead among National League players, led rankings for one day before Ohtani rebounded with a 0.3-point lead.
Read More
The Texas Rangers still hold a narrowing lead in Box-Toppers team rankings this week, despite a terrible two-week stretch that has them falling to third place in the American League West Division.
Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves continue to gain on the Rangers, leading all National League teams. Plus, the Cincinnati Reds, in part on the strength of waiver deadline acquisitions, are the week’s hottest team.
Read MoreTigers pitcher Matt Manning is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Thursday, Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves extends his 2023 Box-Toppers points lead among National League batters after earning NL Batter of the Day 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.