3 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 MoreYankees' Chad Green tops players for Monday, Aug. 15; Mariners' Hernandez rises to 10th on career Box-Toppers points list
Yankees pitcher Chad Green is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of Aug. 15:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 18.7 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 16.2 |
| 5 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 14.1 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.1 |
| 8 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 13.4 |
| 9 | Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 12.7 |
| 10 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 12.5 |
Also Monday, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to 10th place in career Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors. Hernandez passes Johan Santana who had been among Box-Toppers “all-time” top 10 players for more than six years.
Player of the Day—Green pitched six scoreless innings, striking out 11 and allowing two hits and no walks, in the 1-0 win over the Blue Jays.
National League Player of the Day—Marlins pitcher David Phelps struck out eight over 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs, four hits and one walk, in the 6-3 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Adrian Beltre of the Rangers hit a grand slam, going 1-for-2, in the 5-2 win over the Athletics.
Beltre earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 109.8 for his career, rising to 53rd place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Monday, Beltre passes three players on the “all-time” list—Billy Wagner (108.7), Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (109.0) and Jeff Kent (109.7). Beltre now trails 52nd-ranked player Tom Glavine (110.6).
Beltre also has 8.0 Box-Toppers points for the season, rising to seventh place among AL batters.
National League Batter of the Day—Wellington Castillo of the Diamondbacks hit two doubles and went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 10-6 win over the Mets.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | released | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 182.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 181.3 |
| 7 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 179.3 |
| 8 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 10 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 166.7 |
| 11 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 12 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 156.1 |
| 16 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 17 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 18 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 19 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 20 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
Hernandez—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rises to 10th place in career Box-Toppers points (since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began) after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.
Hernandez (6.2IP 4H 2R 4BB 8K W in the 3-2 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 166.7 for his career. He passes Johan Santana (166.6) on the “all-time” list. Santana has been in the top 10 since July 23, 2010, when he reached 151.9 career Box-Toppers points, passing Greg Maddux (151.7). Hernandez now trails ninth-place player Manny Ramirez (167.2).
Hernandez has 4.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, 15.4 points below his 2015 total of 19.4, when he ranked eighth among all players.
Notable—Red Sox pitcher Drew Pomeranz has the highest Box-Toppers season point total of the 10 who earned Player of the Game honors Monday.
Pomeranz (7.2IP 5H 2R 2BB 6K W in the 3-2 win over the Indians) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.4 for the season, rising to 15th place among all players and fourth among AL pitchers. It is the first point he has earned since being traded from the Padres to the Red Sox July 15.
Scherzer—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer had the chance to take the season Box-Toppers points lead Monday, but did not earn Player of the Game honors in his team’s 5-4 win over the Rockies.
Scherzer (4IP 7H 4R 2BB 3K ND) had a Box-Toppers game score of −10, uncharacteristically low for him. Player of the Game was Jayson Werth (HR 2-4 R 2BI) with a Box-Toppers game score of +1.0.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has led Box-Toppers season player rankings since May 7 and continues to lead even after being on the disabled list for six weeks. Kershaw has 20.0 Box-Toppers points, Scherzer has 18.7. Had Scherzer won overall Player of the Day or NL Player of the Day honors, he would have passed Kershaw for the lead. Kershaw could return to pitch as soon as late August.
Scoring—Green earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Phelps earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Beltre and Castillo each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 8/15 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 15.0 | NYY 1, TOR 0 | Chad Green (W,2-2) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 6.0 | TB 8, SD 2 | Drew Smyly (W,5-11) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| NL | 4.1 | MIA 6, CIN 3 | David Phelps (W,6-6) | - | - | - | - | 5.1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | |
| BAT | 4.0 | TEX 5, OAK 2 | Adrian Beltre, 3B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.2 | KC 3, DET 1 | Ian Kennedy (W,7-9) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | ARI 10, NYM 6 | Welington Castillo, C | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | PIT 8, SF 5 | Gregory Polanco, RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.2 | BOS 3, CLE 2 | Drew Pomeranz (W,9-9) | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2.2 | SEA 3, LAA 2 | Felix Hernandez (W,7-4) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 1.0 | WSH 5, COL 4 | Jayson Werth, LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Pomeranz, Drew 3061 | pi sp | bos al | 11.4 | 14.4 | 22.4 | 22.4 | 8.4 |
| Beltre, Adrian 1141 | 3b | tex al | 8.0 | 20.5 | 46.4 | 109.8 | -4.5 |
| Kennedy, Ian 2723 | pi sp | kc al | 8.0 | 14.7 | 58.5 | 64.5 | 1.3 |
| Smyly, Drew 3009 | pi sp | tb al | 7.4 | 13.4 | 35.5 | 35.5 | 1.4 |
| Phelps, David 2994 | pi mr sp | fla nl | 5.7 | 9.1 | 22.5 | 22.5 | 2.3 |
| Polanco, Gregory 3361 | rf | pit nl | 5.5 | 8.5 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 2.5 |
| Werth, Jayson 1664 | lf | dc nl | 4.5 | 7.5 | 21.5 | 48.7 | 1.5 |
| Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 4.0 | 23.4 | 89.4 | 166.7 | -15.4 |
| Castillo, Wellington 3251 | ca | ari nl | 3.0 | 6.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | -0.5 |
| Green, Chad 3675 | pi sp | nyy al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
Athletics' Scott Kazmir (8IP 0R H 6K) tops players for Thursday, June 11
Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Kazmir pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out six, in the 7-0 win over the Rangers.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of June 11.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 12.4 |
| 2 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 11.0 |
| 3 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 11.0 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.4 |
| 5 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 |
| 6 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 9.7 |
| 7 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 9.0 |
| 8 | Heston, Chris 3437 | pi sp | sf nl | 8.7 |
| 9 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 8.1 |
| 10 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 7.7 |
Kazmir is the top-ranked player among the nine who earned Player of the Game honors Thursday. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.7 for the season and ranks 23rd among all players, eighth among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Marlins pitcher David Phelps pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out six, in the 6-0 win over the Rockies.
National League Batter of the Day—Miguel Montero of the Cubs hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-3 in the 6-3 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Adam Jones of the Orioles homered, doubled and scored twice in the 6-5 win over the Red Sox.
Scoring—Kazmir earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Phelps earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Montero and Jones each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 6/11 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | Athletics | Scott Kazmir (W, 3-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | |
| 10.0 | Indians | Shaun Marcum (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| NL | 9.0 | Marlins | David Phelps (W, 3-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | |
| 5.0 | Angels | Garrett Richards (W, 6-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Cubs | Miguel Montero C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Padres | Craig Kimbrel (S, 15) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Orioles | Adam Jones CF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1.0 | Brewers | Gerardo Parra CF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Mets | Curtis Granderson RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Blue Jays' Hutchison, Marlins' Phelps top players for Thursday, April 23
Blue Jays pitcher Drew Hutchison is Thursday’s Player of the Day.
Hutchison struck out seven over eight innings and allowed two runs in the 7-6 win over the Orioles.
National League Player of the Day—Marlins pitcher David Phelps pitched seven shutout innings and struck out five in the 9-1 win over the Phillies. Phelps tied Hutchison for the day’s top Box-Toppers game score of +7, but Hutchison won overall Player of the Day on a tiebreaker—he had more innings pitched than Phelps (eight vs. seven).
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of April 23.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 4.0 |
| 2 | Kazmir, Scott 1947 | pi sp | oak al | 3.7 |
| 3 | DeSclafani, Anthony 3441 | pi sp | cin nl | 3.7 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | cin nl | 3.4 |
| 5 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 3.0 |
| 6 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 3.0 |
| 7 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 |
| 8 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 3.0 |
| 9 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 3.0 |
| 10 | Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 |
National League Batter of the Day—Daniel Murphy of the Mets drove in four runs and went 2-for-3 with a double, in the 6-3 win over the Braves.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no AL Batter of the Day Thursday because no AL batter earned Player of the Game honors.
Streak—Brewers pitcher Kyle Lohse has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 15 straight seasons. Lohse was Player of the Game in Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Reds (7IP 3H 2R 4K W) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season. Lohse earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2001 with the Twins. His best season was 2011 with the Cardinals when he had 12.0 Box-Toppers points. In 2014, his second-best season, he had 11.1 points with the Brewers, ranking 17th among NL pitchers. He has 86.0 career Box-Toppers points, ranking him 17th among active pitchers currently in the NL.
The record for most consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point is 19, held by Jason Giambi (1995-2013). (Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995.) Three active players had Box-Toppers points in 16 straight seasons as of 2014, the longest current streaks—Tim Hudson of the Giants, Carlos Beltran of the Yankees and Torii Hunter of the Tigers. None of them has yet earned Box-Toppers points in 2015.
Debut—Angels pitcher Nick Tropeano made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Tropeano (6IP 5H 0R 5K W in the 2-0 win over the Athletics) made his Major League debut Sept. 10, 2014, and was playing in his fifth career game. He is the 3,451st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Notables—Three other notable facts from Thursday:
- Corey Dickerson of the Rockies earned Player of the Game honors for the second straight day Thursday (HR 2-3 in the 2-1 win over the Padres).
- Pirates pitcher Radhames Liz earned his first Box-Toppers point in more than five years. Liz (2IP H 0R 2K W in the 5-4 win over the Cubs) last earned Player of the Game honors Sept. 14, 2008 as a starting pitcher with the Orioles. It is the only other time he has earned Player of the Game honors.
- Thursday marks the first day of the season there are no changes in Box-Toppers top 10 player rankings list. Hutchison is the highest-ranked player from Thursday’s list of Players of the Games. He has 2.0 Box-Toppers points for the season, ranked 23rd among all players.
Scoring—Hutchison earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Phelps earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Murphy earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 4/23 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 7.0 | Blue Jays | Drew Hutchison (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | |
| NL | 7.0 | Marlins | David Phelps (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | |
| 5.1 | `Yankees | Masahiro Tanaka | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | `Royals | Yordano Ventura | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 5.0 | Angels | Nick Tropeano (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 4.0 | Cardinals | Michael Wacha (W, 3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Mets | Daniel Murphy 2B | 3 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Brewers | Kyle Lohse (W, 1-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | `Giants | Ryan Vogelsong | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 3.0 | Pirates | Radhames Liz (W, 1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Rockies | Corey Dickerson LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Rays | Brad Boxberger (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Washington Nationals top Box-Toppers' 2015 preseason team rankings
Nationals' 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 MoreNats' Stephen Strasburg (6.2IP 12K) tops players for Thursday, April 10
Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg is Thursday’s Player of the Day. Strasburg struck out 12 over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 7-1 win over the Marlins.
Yankees closing pitcher David Phelps is American League Player of the Day. Phelps struck out three over 2 1/3 innings, picking up the save, in the 4-1 win over the Red Sox.
Daniel Murphy of the Mets is National League Batter of the Day. Murphy went 3-4 and drove in three runs in the 6-4 win over the Braves.
Jose Abreu of the White Sox is AL Batter of the Day. Abreu homered twice and drove in three runs in the 7-3 win over the Indians. This was Abreu’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,308th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Notable: Ryan Braun of the Brewers, top player in the 6-2 win over the Phillies, earns Player of the Game honors for the second time in three days and now has 3.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, rising to fifth place among all players.
Strasburg receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Phelps receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Murphy and Abreu each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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. 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score