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Christian Yelich of the Brewers, who led National League batters in Box-Toppers points in 2018 with 11.5, was voted NL Most Valuable Player Thursday.
And Mookie Betts of the Red Sox, who ranked second among American League batters in Box-Toppers points with 10.9, was voted AL Most Valuable Player. Teammate J.D. Martinez, who led AL batters with 12.5 Box-Toppers points, finished fourth in AL MVP voting.
Read MorePhillies pitcher Jake Arrieta is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Thursday, Astros pitcher Charlie Morton rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning American League Player of the Day honors.
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The Cleveland Indians are the top-ranked team in Box-Toppers’ 2018 preseason rankings, the same position where they finished the 2017 season.
The Nationals top NL teams and the World Series-champion Astros fall to 8th.
Meanwhile, the New York Mets made the biggest offseason improvement in players’ accumulated Box-Toppers points, while the Tampa Bay Rays and the Kansas City Royals had the biggest declines.
Read MoreYankees pitcher Luis Severino is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fifth place in season player rankings.
Meanwhile, Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale had the chance to take the lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings, but did not earn Player of the Game honors Sunday and remains ranked third.
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Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to eighth place in season player rankings.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 14.4 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 12.0 |
| 3 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 11.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 5 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 8.0 |
| 6 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 7 | McCullers, Lance 3488 | pi sp | hou al | 7.7 |
| 8 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 7.5 |
| 9 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 7.4 |
| 10 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 7.4 |
Martinez pitched a complete-game, four-hit shutout, striking out 11 and walking one, in the 7-0 win over the Phillies.
Martinez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 7.5 for the season, rising to eighth place in season player rankings, fifth among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Astros pitcher Mike Fiers struck out eight over 7 1/3 innings, allowing one run, two hits and two walks, in the 3-1 win over the Angels.
American League Batter of the Day—Lorenzo Cain of the Royals hit two home runs, including a grand slam, in the 12-6 win over the Padres. Cain went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in five runs.
National League Batter of the Day—T.J. Rivera of the Mets hit a two-run, eighth-inning, pinch-hit home run, in the 8-1 win over the Braves.
Scoring—Martinez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Fiers earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Cain and Rivera each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’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.
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| 6/10 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 15.0 | STL 7, PHI 0 | Carlos Martinez (W,5-5) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| AL | 10.1 | HOU 3, LAA 1 | Mike Fiers (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| 9.0 | NYY 16, BAL 3 | Luis Severino (W,5-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 7.1 | COL 9, CHC 1 | Jeff Hoffman (W,4-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | KC 12, SD 6 | Lorenzo Cain, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | TEX 6, WSH 3 (F/11) | Keone Kela (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 5.2 | NYM 6, ATL 1 | Robert Gsellman (W,5-3) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 5.0 | CHW 5, CLE 3 | David Robertson (S,10) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 4.1 | PIT 7, MIA 6 | Felipe Rivero (S,1) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 11, DET 3 | Mitch Moreland, 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | TOR 4, SEA 2 | Marcus Stroman (W,7-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 3.2 | ARI 3, MIL 2 | Zack Godley (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | NYM 8, ATL 1 | T.J. Rivera, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | TB 6, OAK 5 (F/10) | Steven Souza Jr., DH | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | MIN 3, SF 2 | Brandon Kintzler (S,17) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | LAD 5, CIN 4 | Kenley Jansen (W,4-0) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | OAK 7, TB 2 | Yonder Alonso, 1B | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 7.5 | 19.9 | 34.6 | 34.6 | -4.9 |
| Severino, Luis 3567 | pi sp | nyy al | 6.7 | 8.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 | 4.7 |
| Godley, Zack 3538 | pi sp | ari nl | 5.0 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 9.7 | 4.0 |
| Kintzler, Brandon 3150 | pi cp | min al | 5.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 5.0 |
| Hoffman, Jeff 3806 | pi sp | col nl | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| Jansen, Kenley 2871 | pi cp mr | lad nl | 3.0 | 9.0 | 34.7 | 39.4 | -3.0 |
| Souza, Steven Jr. 3461 | rf dh | tb al | 3.0 | 8.7 | 14.2 | 14.2 | -2.7 |
| Robertson, David 2774 | pi cp | chi al | 3.0 | 8.0 | 25.0 | 29.0 | -2.0 |
| Moreland, Mitch 2799 | 1b ph | bos al | 3.0 | 6.5 | 19.7 | 21.7 | -0.5 |
| Cain, Lorenzo 3171 | cf | kc al | 2.5 | 9.0 | 23.2 | 23.2 | -4.0 |
| Rivera, T.J. 3710 | 1b ph | nym nl | 2.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1.5 |
| Stroman, Marcus 3327 | pi sp | tor al | 2.0 | 8.7 | 25.1 | 25.1 | -4.7 |
| Alonso, Yonder 2945 | 1b | oak al | 2.0 | 4.0 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 0.0 |
| Gsellman, Robert 3748 | pi sp | nym nl | 2.0 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 0.3 |
| Kela, Keone 3789 | pi cp | tex al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Fiers, Michael 3029 | pi sp | hou al | 1.7 | 6.7 | 27.8 | 27.8 | -3.3 |
| Rivero, Felipe 3579 | pi cp | pit nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 |
11 AL players and seven NL players are leaders in Box-Toppers points for their position for both 2016 and 2015-16.
Read MoreA look at Box-Toppers points leaders by position and by league for the 2016 season and for the combined 2015-16 seasons.
Read MoreA look at the All-Star rosters based on Box-Toppers points. Which players were worthy but unchosen? Which players made it but probably shouldn't have?
Read MoreBox-Toppers points leaders by position and league in both the 2016 season the combined 2015-16 seasons.
Read MoreEight AL players and five NL players occupy All-Star spots at their position in both the 2016 season and the combined 2015-16 seasons.
Read MoreA look at leaders in Box-Toppers points by position and league over both 2016 and 2015-16.
Read MoreA look at Box-Toppers points leaders by position over the 2016 season so far and the combined 2015 and 2016 seasons.
Read MoreKershaw passes Jake Arrieta of the Cubs as Box-Toppers points leader over both 2015-2016, 39.7-37.8. Kershaw also leads players for 2016.
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Brewers pitcher Zach Davies is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 14.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 9.7 |
| 3 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 9.0 |
| 4 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 8.7 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 8.7 |
| 6 | Machado, Manny 3087 | ss 3b | bal al | 8.7 |
| 7 | Matz, Steven 3516 | pi sp | nym nl | 8.7 |
| 8 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 8.4 |
| 9 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc al | 7.0 |
| 10 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 7.0 |
Also Wednesday, Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Davies pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out nine, in the 3-1 win over the Cardinals.
American League Player of the Day—Tigers pitcher Michael Fulmer pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out eight, in the 3-0 win over the Angels.
National League Batter of the Day—Alexei Ramirez of the Padres hit two homers and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in five runs, in the 14-6 win over the Mariners.
American League Batter of the Day—Lorenzo Cain of the Royals went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 6-3 win over the Rays. Cain earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 6.5 for the season ranking second among AL batters, behind Manny Machado of the Orioles (8.7).
Rankings—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Scherzer (8IP 5H 2R 11K W in the 7-2 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.0 for the season. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.
Scherzer also now has 113.0 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 50th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes Kevin Brown (112.8) on the “all-time” list and now trails 49th-ranked player Sammy Sosa (113.2).
Notable—Cubs pitcher Jon Lester now has 126.1 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Lester (CG 4H R 10K W in the 2-1 win over the Dodgers) maintains his rank of 35th place among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 34th-ranked player Mariano Rivera (126.4). Lester has 5.0 Box-Toppers points for the season.
Also notable—Matt Albers of the White Sox became the fourth pitcher this season to earn Player of the Game honors for batting. He is the first AL pitcher to earn Player of the Game honors for batting in nearly seven years.
Albers (2B 1-1 R in the 2-1, 13-inning win over the Mets) had a Box-Toppers game score of +1.0 for batting and a score of 0.0 for pitching (2IPH 0R 2BB K W).
The last time an AL pitcher won Player of the Game honors for batting was June 12, 2009, by Rick Porcello of the Tigers.
Scoring—Davies earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Fulmer earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Ramirez and Cain each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’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
| 6/1 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | MIL 3/STL 1 | Zach Davies (W,3-3) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |
| 13.0 | CHC 2/LAD 1 | Jon Lester (W,6-3) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 | ||
| AL | 11.2 | DET 3/LAA 0 | Michael Fulmer (W,5-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| 10.0 | `MIA 3/PIT 2 | Adam Conley | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | ||
| 8.0 | DC 7/PHI 2 | Max Scherzer (W,6-4) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | SD 14/SEA 6 | Alexei Ramirez, SS | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | HOU 5/ARI 4 | Michael Feliz (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | OAK 5/MIN 1 | Sean Manaea (W,2-3) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | ||
| 3.2 | TOR 7/NYY 0 | Aaron Sanchez (W,5-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 5/SF 4 | Chris Withrow (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | KC 6/TB 3 | Lorenzo Cain, CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | BAL 13/BOS 9 | Matt Wieters, C | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | `CLE 5/TEX 4 | Dan Otero | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | CIN 7/COL 2 | Billy Hamilton, CF | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | CHW 2/NYM 1 | Matt Albers, P | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `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 | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 7.0 | 28.0 | 92.6 | 113.0 | -14.0 |
| Cain, Lorenzo 3171 | cf | kc al | 6.5 | 14.7 | 20.7 | 20.7 | -1.7 |
| Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 5.0 | 17.0 | 63.2 | 126.1 | -7.0 |
| Sanchez, Aaron 3392 | pi sp | tor al | 4.7 | 6.7 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 2.7 |
| Fulmer, Michael 3640 | pi sp | det al | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| Wieters, Matt 2643 | ca | bal al | 3.5 | 4.5 | 22.5 | 28.2 | 2.5 |
| Conley, Adam 3594 | pi sp | fla nl | 3.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 0.0 |
| Davies, Zach 3581 | pi sp | mil nl | 3.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 0.0 |
| Feliz, Michael 3632 | pi cp | hou al | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Manaea, Sean 3637 | pi sp | oak al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Ramirez, Alexei 2537 | ss | sd nl | 1.5 | 3.5 | 22.0 | 34.0 | -0.5 |
| Hamilton, Billy 3287 | cf | cin nl | 1.0 | 3.0 | 7.5 | 7.5 | -1.0 |
| Otero, Dan 3365 | pi mr | cle al | 1.0 | 2.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | -0.7 |
| Albers, Matt 2274 | pi cp | chi al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 0.0 |
| Withrow, Chris 3273 | pi cp | atl nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 |
Who are the top players by position in Box-Toppers points for 2016 and the combined 2015-16 seasons?
Read MoreBox-Toppers' top pitchers Jake Arrieta of the Cubs and Dallas Keuchel of the Astros are Cy Young Award finalists. But Box-Toppers' top batters Adrian Beltre of the Rangers and Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies are not MVP finalists.
Read MoreJake Arrieta of the Cubs tops Box-Toppers player rankings in 2015. The World Champion Kansas City Royals have the most representatives among the top 100 players—seven.
Read More
Jacob deGrom struck out seven over seven innings, allowing two runs and four hits to lead the Mets to a win Tuesday in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series.
deGrom is Box-Toppers Player of the Day for Tuesday, while Alcides Escobar was Player of the Game in the Royals Game 4 win over the Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series.
deGrom had a Box-Toppers game score of +5.0 to lead all Mets players, as the Mets took a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. Yoenis Cespedes had the highest Box-Toppers game score among Mets batters of +1.0 (2B 3-5 R 2BI).
During the regular season, deGrom had 22.4 Box-Toppers points, third among all players and third among NL pitchers.
It is the second time this postseason deGrom has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors. He was also Player of the Game in the NL Division Series Game 1 win over the Dodgers.
The series resumes Wednesday with Game 4 in Chicago (more details below).
Alcides Escobar went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in four runs, as the Royals took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven game series.
Escobar had a Box-Toppers game score of +4.0, highest among Royals players. Lorenzo Cain had the second-highest score of +3.0 (2-3 R 3BI).
During the regular season, Escobar had 3.5 Box-Toppers points, ranked 283rd among all players, 60th among AL batters and fifth among AL shortstops.
The series resumes Wednesday with Game 5 in Toronto (more details below).
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
| 10/20 | Score | Team | Players | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| POG | 5.0 | Mets | Jacob deGrom (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | |
| POG | 4.0 | Royals | Alcides Escobar, SS | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Coming Wednesday:
The pitching match-up Wednesday:
Royals—Edinson Volquez, 7.0 Box-Toppers points, 105th among all players, 39th among AL pitchers. Volquez was Player of the Game in the ALCS Game 1 win over the Blue Jays.
Blue Jays—Marco Estrada, 8.0 Box-Toppers points, 85th among all players, 34th among AL pitchers.
See Box-Toppers ALCS series preview with player-by-player match ups.
The pitching match-up Wednesday:
Mets—Steven Matz, 3.5 Box-Toppers points, 298th among all players, 76th among NL pitchers.
Cubs—Jason Hammel, 9.7 Box-Toppers points, 52nd among all players, 22nd among NL pitchers.
Oct. 21, 2015 is the day in the “Back to the Future” movies in which the Cubs are predicted to win the World Series in a sweep over Miami, a city without a Major League team in the 1980s when the movies were made. It could actually be the day in which the Cubs are swept in the NLCS.
See Box-Toppers NLCS series preview with player-by-player match ups.
Royals, with hot week, rise to led team rankings. Cardinals regain NL team lead. Pirates fall to third.
Read MorePirates top team rankings for third week. Royals top AL teams. Mets were the hottest team of the week.
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.