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Astros pitcher Justin Verlander had the biggest decline in Box-Toppers points from 2019 to 2020.
Verlander, who earned 27.5 Box-Toppers points in 2019 (second among all players), earned 1.0 point in 2020. His decline of 26.5 points was ahead of Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole, whose 7.4 points in 2020 represented a 24.8-point drop from the 32.2 points he earned to lead all players in 2019.
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The New York Yankees are the top-ranked team in Box-Toppers’ 2020 preseason rankings, rising from fifth place at the end of the 2019 season.
The 2019 World Series-champion Washington Nationals, ranked second at the end of 2019, maintain second place in the 2020 preseason rankings.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Blue Jays made the biggest offseason improvement in players’ accumulated Box-Toppers points, while the Houston Astros—2019’s top-ranked team and American League champion—had the biggest decline.
Read MoreThe Tampa Bay Rays visit the Oakland Athletics in the American League one-game Wild Card playoff game Wednesday.
Starting pitchers are:
Rays—Charlie Morton, 18.8 Box-Toppers points in 2019, fifth among all players and third among American League pitchers. Morton is also the top Rays player in 2019’s Box-Toppers season player rankings.
Athletics—Sean Manaea, 3.7 Box-Toppers points in 2019, 265th among all players and 66th among AL pitchers.
Read MoreAthletics pitcher Homer Bailey is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Astros pitcher Gerrit Cole increased his lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Cole now has 29.2 Box-Toppers points for the season, the eighth-highest single-season total since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.
Read MoreCubs pitcher Yu Darvish is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Darvish struck out 14 over six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks, in the 4-1 win over the Padres.
Read MoreDodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Meanwhile, Albert Pujols of the Angels regains sixth place on Box-Toppers “all-time” career points list after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
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The Los Angeles Dodgers maintain the lead in Box-Toppers team rankings for the fourth week.
Meanwhile, the Houston Astros regain the lead among American League teams and the Oakland Athletics are the week’s hottest team since the All-Star break.
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The Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox have the most players—six each—among the top 100 in Box-Toppers’ 2019 player rankings at the All-Star break.
The Dodgers also are Box-Toppers’ top-ranked team going into the All-Star break, with its players accumulating 72.6 Box-Toppers points this season. The defending World Series champion Red Sox, while they have as many representatives among the top 100 players, rank lower—in 13th place overall, with 55.9 Box-Toppers points.
Read MoreDiamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fourth place in season player rankings.
Also Thursday, Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
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Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| 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 |
Bailey struck out 11 over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 7-4 win over the Brewers.
American League Player of the Day—Jonathan Lucroy of the Rangers hit two home runs and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 8-5 win over the Tigers.
Lucroy earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 5.7 for the season, most among the 15 who earned Player of the Game honors Friday. Lucroy ranks 110th among all players, 20th among AL batters and third among AL catchers (behind Russell Martin of the Blue Jays and Matt Wieters of the Orioles, both of whom have 7.0 Box-Toppers points).
National League Batter of the Day—Matt Szczur of the Cubs hit two homers, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring four times and driving in three runs, in the 13-2 win over the Cardinals.
This was Szczur’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Szczur made his Major League debut Aug. 17, 2014, and was playing in his 156th career game. He is the 3,704th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Friday because the overall AL Player of the Day was batter Jonathan Lucroy.
Notable—Four batters Friday had Box-Toppers game scores of +6.0—Lucroy, Szczur, Hanley Ramirez of the Red Sox and Ryan Schimpf of the Padres.
Lucroy and Szczur ranked ahead of Ramirez and Schmipf because they both had three hits, while the other two had two hits. And Lucroy ranked ahead of Szczur because he had more RBIs—five vs. three.
Debut—Astros pitcher Joe Musgrove made his Box-Toppers debut Friday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Musgrove (7IP 6H 2R BB 7K W in the 5-3 win over the Blue Jays) made his Major League debut Aug. 2 and was playing in his third career game. He is the 3,705th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
A-Rod—Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees played in the apparent final game of his career Friday, a 6-3 win over the Rays.
Rodriguez doubled and went 1-for-4, driving in a run, giving him a Box-Toppers game score of −2.0. Player of the Game for the Yankees was closer Delin Betances (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 3K Sv).
If that truly is the end for Rodriguez, 41, he exits with 187.0 career Box-Toppers points, which as of Friday, was the highest total for any active player, the most points earned by any batter since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began) and the fourth-highest total of any player since 1995.
However, Rodriguez did not earn any Box-Toppers points in 2016. He earned 7.7 points in 2015, the year after he returned from a 2014 yearlong suspension for violating baseball’s performance enhancing drug policy. More on Rodriguez’s career through a Box-Toppers perspective here.
Scoring—Bailey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lucroy earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Szczur earns 1.5 points for being NL Batter of the Day. All of Friday’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
| 8/12 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | CIN 7, MIL 4 | Homer Bailey (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| AL | 6.0 | TEX 8, DET 5 | Jonathan Lucroy, C | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 6.0 | CHC 13, STL 2 | Matt Szczur, CF | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | BOS 9, ARI 4 | Hanley Ramirez, 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 6.0 | SD 8, NYM 6 | Ryan Schimpf, 2B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | PHI 10, COL 6 | Ryan Howard, 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | CLE 13, LAA 3 | Brandon Guyer, LF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | ATL 8, WSH 5 | Freddie Freeman, 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | KC 7, MIN 3 | Yordano Ventura (W,8-9) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 4.0 | NYY 6, TB 3 | Dellin Betances (S,4) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.1 | `CHW 4, MIA 2 | Nate Jones (H,23) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | HOU 5, TOR 3 | Joe Musgrove (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | BAL 5, SF 2 | Zach Britton (S,36) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | OAK 6, SEA 3 | Marcus Semien, SS | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | PIT 5, LAD 1 | Andrew McCutchen, CF | 4 | 2 | 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 | +/- |
| Lucroy, Jonathan 2744 | ca | tex al | 5.7 | 7.4 | 26.3 | 27.3 | 4.0 |
| Ventura, Yordano 3294 | pi sp | kc al | 5.0 | 16.7 | 26.4 | 26.4 | -6.7 |
| Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | atl nl | 5.0 | 8.0 | 36.2 | 36.2 | 2.0 |
| Ramirez, Hanley 2119 | 1b | bos al | 5.0 | 5.0 | 27.7 | 55.6 | 5.0 |
| Semien, Marcus 3302 | ss | oak al | 4.5 | 4.5 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 4.5 |
| Britton, Zach 2835 | pi cp | bal al | 4.0 | 12.7 | 32.1 | 32.1 | -4.7 |
| Jones, Nate 3125 | pi mr | chi al | 4.0 | 5.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 3.0 |
| McCutchen, Andrew 2637 | cf | pit nl | 3.5 | 14.0 | 44.7 | 50.4 | -7.0 |
| Schimpf, Ryan 3686 | 3b 2b | sd nl | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
| Howard, Ryan 2040 | 1b | phi nl | 2.0 | 7.5 | 32.4 | 98.7 | -3.5 |
| Betances, Dellin 3333 | pi mr cp | nyy al | 2.0 | 6.0 | 10.7 | 10.7 | -2.0 |
| Bailey, Homer 2324 | pi sp | cin nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 36.4 | 47.1 | 2.0 |
| Szczur, Matt 3704 | cf | chi nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Guyer, Brandon 3363 | lf | cle al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0.0 |
| Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | hou al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Athletics pitcher Jon Lester is Thursday’s Player of the Day, earning his first Box-Toppers points since being traded from the Red Sox.
Lester pitched a complete game shutout and struck out eight in the 3-0 win over the Twins. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.0 for the season and moving into 16th place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He ranks 10th among American League pitchers.
Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is National League Player of the Day. Bailey pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out eight in the 4-0 win over the Indians.
Javier Baez of the Cubs is NL Batter of the Day. Baez homered twice and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 6-2 win over the Rockies. This was Baez’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,395th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut Aug. 5 and was playing in his third game.
Dustin Ackley of the Mariners is AL Batter of the Day. Ackley homered and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 13-3 win over the White Sox.
Lester receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Bailey receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Baez and Ackley 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 watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Thursday, click here.
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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 807 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 12.0 | Athletics | Jon Lester (W, 12-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| NL | 10.0 | Reds | Homer Bailey (W, 9-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| 10.0 | Pirates | Edinson Volquez (W, 9-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 8.0 | Dodgers | Hyun-Jin Ryu (W, 13-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 5.2 | Brewers | Wily Peralta (W, 14-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Cubs | Javier Baez 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Yankees | Shane Greene (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | ||
| 4.0 | Cardinals | Kolten Wong 2B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Mariners | Dustin Ackley LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Nationals | Ian Desmond SS | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Phillies | Ryan Howard 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Royals | Jeremy Guthrie (W, 8-9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2.0 | Orioles | Miguel Gonzalez (W, 6-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is Sunday's Player of the Day. Bumgarner struck out nine over six scoreless innings in the 3-2, 11-inning win over the Diamondbacks.
Bumgarner did not earn a win-loss decision in the game because the Diamondbacks tied the score 2-2 in the eighth inning after he left the game with the lead in the sixth inning.
Bumgarner rises to 13th place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 14.7 for the season.
Blue Jays pitcher Esmil Rogers is American League Player of the Day. Rogers pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings in the 2-0 win over the Twins.
Eric Hosmer of the Royals is AL Batter of the Day. Hosmer hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4 in the 5-2 win over the Tigers.
Nick Hundley of the Padres is National League Batter of the Day. Hundley hit a pinch-hit three-run double to beat the Rockies, 5-2.
Notables: Three of Sunday's Players of the Games are among the top 40 in the Box-Toppers player rankings for the season:
Bumgarner receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Rogers receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Hosmer and Hundley each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Sunday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 908 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 11.0 | `Giants | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Madison Bumgarner | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 9.0 | Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Cole Hamels (W, 7-13) | 8.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | |||
| AL | 7.2 | Blue Jays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Esmil Rogers (W, 5-7) | 7.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 7.0 | Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Yovani Gallardo (W, 11-9) | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |||
| 6.0 | `Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 | |||
| 5.0 | Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Michael Wacha (W, 3-0) | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 5.0 | Athletics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Bartolo Colon (W, 15-6) | 6.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |||
| 3.2 | `Mets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Daisuke Matsuzaka | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Royals | Eric Hosmer 1B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Padres | Nick Hundley PH, C | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Fernando Rodney (S, 33) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 2.2 | White Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Andre Rienzo (W, 2-1) | 6.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |||
| 2.0 | Nationals | Wilson Ramos C | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Yankees | Robinson Cano 2B | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Rangers | Alex Rios RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is Tuesday's Player of the Day. Bailey pitched seven shutout innings, giving up only two hits and striking out eight, in the 1-0 win over the Cardinals.
Bailey rises to 23rd place in Box-Toppers player standings for the season. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.0 for the season.
Rays pitcher Roberto Hernandez is American League Player of the Day. Hernandez pitched the final 3 2/3 innings of the game, striking out seven and earning the save in the 7-1 win over the Angels.
Wilson Ramos of the Nationals is National League Batter of the Day. Ramos hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs in the 9-6 win over the Phillies.
Edwin Encarnacion of the Blue Jays is AL Batter of the Day. Encarnacion homered and went 3-for-3 in the 10-4 win over the Diamondbacks.
Notables: Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester rises to 32nd place in Box-Toppers player rankings and Royals closing pitcher Greg Holland rises to 40th place after both earned Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Bailey receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Hernandez receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Ramos and Encarnacion each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Tuesday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 903 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 12.0 | Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey (W, 10-10) | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| AL | 10.2 | Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Roberto Hernandez (S, 1) | 3.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 7.0 | Braves | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Kris Medlen (W, 12-12) | 7.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |||
| 6.0 | Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jon Lester (W, 13-8) | 7.0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |||
| BAT | 4.0 | Nationals | Wilson Ramos C | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4.0 | Indians | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Ubaldo Jimenez (W, 10-9) | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | |||
| 4.0 | Twins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Caleb Thielbar (W, 3-2) | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 3.0 | Marlins | Donovan Solano 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Blue Jays | Edwin Encarnacion 1B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Padres | Nick Hundley C | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Mariano Rivera (S, 40) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 3.0 | Royals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Greg Holland (S, 38) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 2.0 | Pirates | Andrew McCutchen CF | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Rangers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Martin Perez (W, 9-3) | 7.0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | |||
| 1.1 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chris Withrow (S, 1) | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Dodgers pitcher Ricky Nolasco is Wednesday's Player of the Day. Nolasco pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out 11 in the 4-0 win over the Cubs.
White Sox pitcher Chris Sale is American League Player of the Day. Sale struck out 12 over eight innings and gave up only one run in the 6-1 win over the Astros.
Sale moves up to 13th place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers point for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 14.4 for the season.
Brandon Moss of the Athletics is AL Batter of the Day. Moss hit two homers, drove in six runs and went 4-for-5 in the 14-4 win over the Tigers.
Josh Harrison of the Pirates is National League Batter of the Day. Harrison scored three runs and went 3-for-4 in the 7-1 win over the Brewers.
Notable: Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is in 33rd place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. Bailey (7.1IP 0R 7K W in the 10-0 win vs. Cardinals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.0 for the season.
Nolasco receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Sale receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Moss and Harrison each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Wednesday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 828 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 15.0 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Ricky Nolasco (W, 11-9) | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | ||
| AL | 12.0 | White Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chris Sale (W, 10-12) | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 | ||
| 12.0 | Rockies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jhoulys Chacin (W, 13-7) | 7.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 9 | |||
| 8.2 | Royals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Danny Duffy (W, 2-0) | 6.2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |||
| BAT | 8.0 | Athletics | Brandon Moss RF | 5 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 7.1 | Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey (W, 9-10) | 7.1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |||
| 5.0 | Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chris Archer (W, 8-5) | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Pirates | Josh Harrison 2B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Padres | Will Venable CF, RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | `Nationals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Stephen Strasburg | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |||
| 2.0 | Rangers | Leonys Martin CF, RF | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Braves | Jordan Schafer RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Koji Uehara (S, 14) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| 1.2 | Blue Jays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Todd Redmond (W, 2-2) | 5.2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | |||
| 1.0 | Phillies | Carlos Ruiz C | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Note: Box-Toppers is playing catch-up after time away. These are Box-Toppers results for Sunday, Aug. 18:
Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is Sunday's Player of the Day, while Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers player season standings.
Bailey struck out eight and allowed only one run over eight innings in the 9-1 win over the Brewers.
Cabrera moved from 10th to eighth place among players in Box-Toppers standings for the season after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. Cabrera (HR 3RBI 2-3 in the 6-3 win vs. the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.4 for the season. He maintains his lead among American League batters and is the only batter in the season top 10 player list.
Rays pitcher Chris Archer is AL Player of the Day. Archer gave up only one run over seven innings in the 2-1, 10-inning win over the Blue Jays. Archer left the game without the lead and earned no decision.
Matt Dominguez of the Astros is National League Batter of the Day. Dominguez hit a three-run home run and went 4-for-5 in the 7-5 win over the Angels.
Chris Davis of the Orioles is AL Batter of the Day. Davis homered and went 4-for-5 in the 7-2 win over the Rockies. Davis rises to 17th in Box-Toppers player season standings. He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 12.7 for the season.
Notables: Two other players, who earned Player of the Game honors Sunday, are among the Box-Toppers top 30 players in season standings:
Bailey receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Archer receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Dominguez and Davis each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Sunday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 818 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 10.0 | Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey (W, 8-10) | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 10.0 | Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Adam Wainwright (W, 14-7) | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | |||
| AL | 6.0 | `Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chris Archer | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Astros | Matt Dominguez 3B | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Orioles | Chris Davis 1B | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4.0 | White Sox | Alexei Ramirez SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 4.0 | `Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Cole Hamels | 7.0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | |||
| 4.0 | Diamondbacks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Brad Ziegler (W, 7-1) | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 3.0 | Yankees | Alex Rodriguez 3B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | Tigers | Miguel Cabrera 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | Braves | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Julio Teheran (W, 10-6) | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | |||
| 2.0 | Athletics | Alberto Callaspo 3B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Marlins | Jeff Mathis C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Mariners | Michael Saunders CF, RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Padres | Nick Hundley C | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Reds pitcher Homer Bailey, who pitched a no-hitter Tuesday, is Box-Toppers' Player of the Day.
Bailey gave up only one walk and struck out nine in the 3-0 win over the Giants to earn his second career no-hitter.
Rays pitcher David Price is American League Player of the Day. Price struck out 10 and gave up no runs over seven innings in the 8-0 win over the Astros.
Kendrys Morales of the Mariners is AL Batter of the Day. Morales homered twice and drove in six runs in the 9-2 win over the Rangers.
Chris Johnson of the Braves is National League Batter of the Day. Johnson was 3-for-4 in the 11-3 win over the Marlins.
Standings update: Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers and Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers were both Players of the Game in their games. Both earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game. Cabrera maintains his spot in second place overall in player Box-Toppers points for the season, while Kershaw moves from sixth place to third place (see updated top 10 list on the home page).
Cabrera (HR 3RBI) was Player of the Game in the 7-6 win over the Blue Jays. He now has 13.4 Box-Toppers points and remains leader in points among AL batters.
Kershaw (CG 4H 0R 8K) was Player of the Game in the 8-0 win over the Rockies. He now has 11.7 Box-Toppers points and passes Patrick Corbin of the Diamondbacks for the lead among NL pitchers.
Bailey receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Price receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Morales and Johnson each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Tuesday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point:
| 702 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 17.0 | Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey (W, 5-6) | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| AL | 14.0 | Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | David Price (W, 2-4) | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 13.0 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Clayton Kershaw (W, 7-5) | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |||
| BAT | 6.0 | Mariners | Kendrys Morales DH | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 5.1 | `Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Wily Peralta | 5.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | |||
| 5.0 | Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | John Lackey (W, 6-5) | 8.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |||
| 5.0 | Mets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jeremy Hefner (W, 3-6) | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |||
| 4.0 | Athletics | Derek Norris C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 4.0 | Angels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jered Weaver (W, 2-4) | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | |||
| 3.2 | Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jonathan Pettibone (W, 4-3) | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Braves | Chris Johnson 3B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Yankees | Alberto Gonzalez SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | White Sox | Conor Gillaspie 3B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Tigers | Miguel Cabrera 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Indians | Carlos Santana C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Reds pitcher Homer Bailey is Wednesday's Player of the Day, even though he did not pitch on Wednesday and even though he did not pick up an official win in the 1-0 win over the Phillies.
On Tuesday, Bailey pitched eight innings, struck out 10 and gave up two hits, no runs and no walks in the game that was suspended at 0-0 in the ninth inning. Since the game was tied when Bailey left the mound, he was not eligible for the win. And since Box-Toppers stats are counted for the day the game concludes, Bailey (though he pitched Tuesday) is Wednesday's top player. The game took nine minutes to finish Wednesday, with Jay Bruce's RBI single.
Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer is American League Player of the Day. Scherzer struck out 12 over eight innings in the 2-1 win over the Mariners. Scherzer, like Bailey, was named Player of the Game even though he did pick not up an official win or save. When he left, the game was tied 1-1. The Tigers scored in the top of the 14th inning to win.
James Loney of the Rays is AL Batter of the Day. Loney went 3-for-3 in the 6-2 win over Baltimore.
Kurt Suzuki of the Nationals is NL Batter of the Day. Suzuki went 2-for-3 with a sacrifice fly and a homer in the 6-1 win over the Marlins.
Bailey receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being named Player of the Day. Scherzer receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Loney receives 1.5 points for AL Batter of the Day. Suzuki receives 1.5 points for NL Batter of the Day.
All of Wednesday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive one Box-Toppers point:
| 417 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 16.0 | `Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Homer Bailey | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 14.0 | Pirates | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A.J. Burnett (W, 1-2) | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |||
| AL | 11.0 | `Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Max Scherzer | 8.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 12 | ||
| 11.0 | Reds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Mike Leake (W, 1-0) | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |||
| 9.0 | Royals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Wade Davis (W, 2-0) | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |||
| 6.2 | White Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jose Quintana (W, 1-0) | 6.2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |||
| 6.0 | `Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Junichi Tazawa (H, 3) | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |||
| BAT | 4.0 | Rays | James Loney 1B | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Nationals | Kurt Suzuki C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Athletics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Bartolo Colon (W, 2-0) | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | |||
| 2.0 | Padres | Everth Cabrera SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Brewers | Yuniesky Betancourt 1B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Yankees | Travis Hafner PH, DH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
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.