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David Ortiz is the only player inducted into internet baseball writers’ Hall of Fame for 2022.
None of the nine candidates Box-Toppers voted for Hall induction received the necessary 75 percent support. And Box-Toppers also did not vote for Ortiz.
Read MoreBox-Toppers is voting for nine players to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in the 2022 Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) ballot.
Of the nine players, three are in their first year on the ballot—Tim Lincecum, Jake Peavy and Mark Teixeira. The other six all return after not receiving the necessary votes to make the hall last year, including Curt Schilling, who is on the ballot for his 10th and final year.
Read MoreRandy Johnson leads all players in career Box-Toppers points and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
The most likely rival to Johnson’s throne at the moment is Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw who has 214.8 career Box-Toppers points, third among all players since 1995 and most among active players.
Read MoreMiguel Cabrera of the Tigers has the most Box-Toppers points of any first basemen since tracking began in 1995, passing previous leader Jim Thome.
Cabrera has 146.9 career Box-Toppers points and in 2017 passed former player and newly elected Hall of Famer Thome, who has 146.7 points. Other leaders at first base include Anthony Rizzo, Edwin Encarnacion and Paul Goldschmidt.
Read MoreRandy Johnson leads Box-Toppers "all-time" career top 100 list, since record-keeping began in 1995. Clayton Kershaw, ranked third overall, leads all active players. And Box-Toppers 2017 Player of the Year Chris Sale makes the biggest jump up the top 100 chart.
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During the 2017 season, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has taken the lead among active players in career Box-Toppers points, rising to third place on Box-Toppers’ “all-time” top 100 players list.
Kershaw has 205.8 career Box-Toppers points, third-most among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. Kershaw leads all players with 22.1 points in 2017.
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Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to lead all players in season Box-Toppers points.
Syndergaard struck out nine over seven innings, allowing two runs and five hits, in the 5-2 win over the Marlins.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 2 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 2.7 |
| 3 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 2.0 |
| 4 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 2.0 |
| 5 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 2.0 |
| 6 | Finnegan, Brandon 3535 | pi sp | cin nl | 2.0 |
| 7 | Mazara, Nomar 3614 | rf | tex al | 2.0 |
| 8 | Chacin, Jhoulys 2711 | pi mr sp | sd nl | 2.0 |
| 9 | Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 2.0 |
| 10 | Puig, Yasiel 3193 | rf | lad nl | 2.0 |
Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, passing previous leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (2.0).
American League Player of the Day—Twins pitcher Ervin Santana pitched six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out four, in the 4-1 win over the White Sox.
Santana earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season and rising to second place in season Box-Toppers rankings.
Santana also becomes the 75th player since Box-Toppers inception in 1995 to reach 100 career Box-Toppers points. With his points Sunday, he has exactly 100.0 and ranks 75th among all players since 1995. He passes five players on the “all-time” list—Ryan Howard of the Braves (98.7), Jim Edmonds (98.8), White Sox pitcher James Shields (99.4), Giants pitcher Matt Cain (99.7) and Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto (99.8). Santana now trails 74th-ranked player Larry Walker (100.1).
American League Batter of the Day—Joey Gallo of the Rangers homered and went 2-for-4, driving in five runs, in the 8-1 win over the Athletics.
National League Batter of the Day—Starling Marte of the Pirates hit a walk-off 10th-inning home run in the 6-5 win over the Braves. Marte also went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs.
Notable—Two other players who earned Player of the Game honors Sunday are among the top 10 players in season Box-Toppers rankings:
Currently, 12 players have 2.0 Box-Toppers points on the season. Ties are broken among those players based on how many Box-Toppers points the players had in 2016. For example, Kershaw ranks highest among those 13 players because he had 24.4 Box-Toppers points in 2016, while Arrieta, who ranks third, had 15.7.
Scoring—Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Santana earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Gallo and Marte 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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| 4/9 | Score | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | NYM 5, MIA 2 | Noah Syndergaard (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| 7.0 | CIN 8, STL 0 | Scott Feldman (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | CHC 7, MIL 4 | Jake Arrieta (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | ||
| AL | 6.0 | MIN 4, CHW 1 | Ervin Santana (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | |
| 6.0 | HOU 5, KC 4 (F/12) | Chris Devenski (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 5.0 | `PHI 4, WSH 3 | Jeremy Hellickson | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | TEX 8, OAK 1 | Joey Gallo, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | TB 7, TOR 2 | Steven Souza, RF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 7, DET 5 | Matt Barnes (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | PIT 6, ATL 5 (F/10) | Starling Marte, CF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | ARI 3, CLE 2 | Patrick Corbin (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | NYY 7, BAL 3 | Dellin Betances (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | LAD 10, COL 6 | Corey Seager, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | SF 5, SD 3 | Buster Posey, C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | LAA 10, SEA 9 | Jefry Marte, PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 | 19.7 | 30.1 | 30.1 | -13.7 |
| Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 2.7 | 6.7 | 39.5 | 100.0 | -1.3 |
| Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 2.0 | 17.7 | 72.5 | 77.5 | -13.7 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 2.0 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.7 | -1.7 |
| Marte, Starling 3122 | lf | pit nl | 1.5 | 4.0 | 13.5 | 13.5 | -1.0 |
| Gallo, Joey 3485 | 3b | tex al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.5 |
| Hellickson, Jeremy 2778 | pi sp | phi nl | 1.0 | 14.1 | 35.1 | 45.8 | -12.1 |
| Souza, Steven Jr. 3461 | rf | tb al | 1.0 | 6.7 | 12.2 | 12.2 | -4.7 |
| Betances, Dellin 3333 | pi mr | nyy al | 1.0 | 5.0 | 13.7 | 13.7 | -3.0 |
| Seager, Corey 3587 | ss | lad nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | -3.0 |
| Corbin, Patrick 3027 | pi sp cp | ari nl | 1.0 | 4.7 | 33.5 | 33.5 | -2.7 |
| Posey, Buster 2745 | ca 1b | sf nl | 1.0 | 4.5 | 29.5 | 34.0 | -2.5 |
| Marte, Jefry 3529 | 1b ph | ana al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Feldman, Scott 2632 | pi sp | cin nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 17.7 | 25.7 | 1.0 |
| Barnes, Matt 3466 | pi mr | bos al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 |
Albert Pujols leads all first basemen in career Box-Toppers points since 1995. Miguel Cabrera leads first basemen over past season and past six seasons.
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Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma is Wednesday’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 | 14.5 |
| 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 | 12.4 |
| 9 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
| 10 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 11.0 |
Also Wednesday, Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer, ranked second among players in Box-Toppers points this season, got within striking distance of overall leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, after earning National League Player of the Day honors.
Player of the Day—Iwakuma pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out seven and allowing five hits and no walks, in the 3-1 win over the Red Sox.
National League Player of the Day—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer struck out 11 over eight innings, allowing three runs, four hits and one walk, in the 8-3 win over the Diamondbacks.
Scherzer earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 18.7 for the season, maintaining second place in Box-Toppers season player rankings. With his points Wednesday, he now has the chance to pass overall leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (20.0 Box-Toppers points) on his next start.
Scherzer’s 1.3-point gap behind Kershaw is the closest any player has been to the leader since May 22, when Kershaw had 10.0 Box-Toppers points and Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta trailed him in second place with 8.7 (Arrieta now has 10.7 points, 11th among all players). Kershaw has led all players since May 7, but last earned Box-Toppers points on June 20 before going on the disabled list June 27. On Wednesday, he was retroactively placed on the 60-day disabled list, eligible to return Aug. 27.
Scherzer also now has 124.7 career Box-Toppers points, ranked 37th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Wednesday, he passes Gary Sheffield (124.1) on the “all-time” list and now trails 36th-ranked player, Angels pitcher Jered Weaver (125.1).
American League Batter of the Day—Joe Mauer of the Twins hit two doubles and tripled, going 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 13-5 win over the Indians.
This was Mauer’s first Player of the Game honor in 2016 and he has now earned Box-Toppers points in 13 straight seasons, all with the Twins. He earned his first points in 2004 and has 70.6 career points, 11th among active AL batters. His best season was 2008 when he had 9.5 Box-Toppers points, eighth among AL batters. In 2015, he had 2.5 points.
National League Batter of the Day—Yangervis Solarte of the Padres homered, doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring four times and driving in three runs, in the 12-3 win over the Brewers.
Notable—Besides Scherzer, two other players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday:
Streak—Ryan Howard has now earned Box-Toppers points in 12 straight seasons—all with the Phillies—after earning his first Player of the Game honor of the season Wednesday.
Howard (HR 3-4 R BI in the 5-4, 12-inning win over the Giants) earned his first points in 2005 and has 97.7 career points, second among active NL batters, trailing Matt Holliday of the Cardinals (97.8) by 0.1 point. Howard’s best season was 2009 when he had 15.4 points, third among NL batters. In 2015, he had 5.5 points.
Scoring—Iwakuma earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Scherzer earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Mauer and Solarte 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
| 8/3 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 9.1 | SEA 3, BOS 1 | Hisashi Iwakuma (W,12-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| NL | 8.0 | WSH 8, ARI 3 | Max Scherzer (W,12-6) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 11 | |
| 8.0 | TOR 3, HOU 1 | Marco Estrada (W,7-4) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 8.0 | TB 12, KC 0 | Jake Odorizzi (W,6-5) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 6.1 | NYY 9, NYM 5 | Luis Severino (W,1-6) | - | - | - | - | 4.1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | MIN 13, CLE 5 | Joe Mauer, 1B | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| BAT | 5.0 | SD 12, MIL 3 | Yangervis Solarte, 3B | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | COL 12, LAD 2 | Nolan Arenado, 3B | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.1 | DET 2, CHW 1 | Shane Greene (W,2-2) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | LAA 8, OAK 6 | Albert Pujols, DH | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | ATL 8, PIT 4 | Ender Inciarte, CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | BAL 3, TEX 2 | Kevin Gausman (W,3-8) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 2.0 | `CHC 5, MIA 4 | John Lackey | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 1.0 | PHI 5, SF 4 (12) | Ryan Howard, 1B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | STL 5, CIN 4 | Brandon Moss, 1B | 4 | 1 | 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 | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 18.7 | 39.7 | 104.3 | 124.7 | -2.3 |
| Lackey, John 1640 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.4 | 20.1 | 39.8 | 118.2 | 0.7 |
| Estrada, Marco 2847 | pi sp | tor al | 7.0 | 15.0 | 39.1 | 39.1 | -1.0 |
| Pujols, Albert 1438 | dh 1b | ana al | 7.0 | 14.0 | 44.0 | 181.3 | 0.0 |
| Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | col nl | 6.5 | 15.0 | 16.5 | 16.5 | -2.0 |
| Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | bal al | 5.4 | 11.1 | 18.8 | 18.8 | -0.3 |
| Odorizzi, Jake 3291 | pi sp | tb al | 4.7 | 13.4 | 24.4 | 24.4 | -4.0 |
| Iwakuma, Hisashi 3048 | pi sp | sea al | 4.0 | 17.1 | 52.2 | 52.2 | -9.1 |
| Solarte, Yangervis 3304 | 3b | sd nl | 3.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | -2.0 |
| Greene, Shane 3381 | pi sp | det al | 3.0 | 6.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 0.0 |
| Moss, Brandon 2520 | rf lf 1b | stl nl | 2.5 | 7.5 | 23.5 | 25.5 | -2.5 |
| Mauer, Joe 1869 | 1b | min al | 1.5 | 4.0 | 26.0 | 70.6 | -1.0 |
| Howard, Ryan 2040 | 1b | phi nl | 1.0 | 6.5 | 31.4 | 97.7 | -4.5 |
| Inciarte, Ender 3360 | cf | atl nl | 1.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | -2.0 |
| Severino, Luis 3567 | pi mr sp | nyy al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -2.0 |
Dodgers pitcher Kershaw has earned more Box-Toppers points in past year (36.7) than the 33.7 Randy Johnson earned in his record breaking single seasons (2000 and 2002).
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Twins pitcher Kyle Gibson is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 13.4 |
| 3 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.7 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 10.8 |
| 5 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.7 |
| 6 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.7 |
| 7 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 10.4 |
| 8 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 10.0 |
| 9 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 10.0 |
| 10 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 9.7 |
Also Tuesday, Indians pitcher Corey Kluber rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings (first among American League pitchers) and Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels rises to seventh place. Plus, Matt Carpenter took the lead Tuesday in season Box-Toppers points among National League batters.
Player of the Day—Gibson pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out seven and allowing five hits and one walk, in the 4-0 win over the White Sox.
National League Player of the Day—Cubs pitcher Jon Lester allowed one run over 7 2/3 innings, allowing three hits and one walk, striking out four, in the 7-2, 15-inning win over the Reds. Lester did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because even though the Cubs led when he exited, the Indians later tied the game before the Cubs went ahead with the winning runs in the 15th inning.
Lester earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 130.8 for his career, rising to 29th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Tuesday, he passes Trevor Hoffman (129.4) on the “all-time” list. He now trails 28th-ranked player Jason Giambi (133.4). Lester has 9.7 Box-Toppers points for the season, 11th among all players and eighth among NL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day—Carlos Correa of the Astros hit a three-run homer and a double and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five total runs, in the 7-1 win over the Angels.
National League Batter of the Day—Adrian Gonzalez doubled and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 6-5 win over the Brewers.
Gonzalez has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning his first Player of the Game honor of the 2016 season Tuesday. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Padres and has 67.6 career points, third among active NL first basemen (behind Matt Holliday of the Cardinals, 97.8 and Ryan Howard of the Phillies, 96.7). Gonzalez’s best season was 2010 with the Padres when he had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, ninth among NL batters. He had 4.0 Box-Toppers points in 2015 with the Dodgers.
Rankings—Two players rise in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday, becoming the eighth and ninth players this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points:
Notable—Matt Carpenter of the Cardinals took the season lead in Box-Toppers points among NL batters after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Carpenter (HR 2-3 2R 2BI n the 8-4 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.5 for the season. He passes Eugenio Suarez of the Reds (7.0) for the lead among NL batters. Carpenter ranks 23rd among all players.
Debut—Hyun Soo Kim of the Orioles made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.
Kim (HR 2B 2-3 2R 3BI in the 11-7 win over the Padres) made his Major League debut April 10 and was playing in his 37th career game. He is the 3,671st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Gibson earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lester earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Correa and Gonzalez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’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
| 6/28 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | MIN 4/CHW 0 | Kyle Gibson (W,1-5) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| 7.0 | CLE 5/ATL 3 | Corey Kluber (W,8-7) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 7.0 | TEX 7/NYY 1 | Cole Hamels (W,9-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| NL | 5.2 | `CHC 7/CIN 2 | Jon Lester | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| BAT | 5.0 | HOU 7/LAA 1 | Carlos Correa, SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | BOS 8/TB 2 | Travis Shaw, 3B | 5 | 1 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BAL 11/SD 7 | Hyun Soo Kim, LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | OAK 13/SF 11 | Stephen Vogt, C-1B | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | LAD 6/MIL 5 | Adrian Gonzalez, 1B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | STL 8/KC 4 | Matt Carpenter, 2B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | TOR 14/COL 9 | Russell Martin, C | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | DET 7/MIA 5 | Nick Castellanos, 3B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | SEA 5/PIT 2 | Robinson Cano, 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | DC 5/NYM 0 | Bryce Harper, RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | PHI 4/ARI 3 | Andres Blanco, 2B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `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 | +/- |
| Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 10.8 | 24.2 | 55.0 | 55.0 | -2.6 |
| Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 10.4 | 25.8 | 77.4 | 136.6 | -5.0 |
| Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 9.7 | 21.7 | 67.9 | 130.8 | -2.3 |
| Carpenter, Matt 2987 | 3b 1b 2b | stl nl | 7.5 | 13.0 | 27.5 | 27.5 | 2.0 |
| Martin, Russell 2202 | ca | tor al | 7.0 | 12.0 | 28.5 | 49.5 | 2.0 |
| Correa, Carlos 3506 | ss | hou al | 6.7 | 13.9 | 13.9 | 13.9 | -0.5 |
| Cano, Robinson 2092 | 2b | sea al | 5.5 | 12.0 | 41.0 | 72.9 | -1.0 |
| Castellanos, Nick 3349 | 3b | det al | 4.0 | 10.2 | 12.2 | 12.2 | -2.2 |
| Shaw, Travis 3544 | 1b 3b | bos al | 3.5 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 | -0.7 |
| Harper, Bryce 3011 | rf | dc nl | 3.0 | 12.0 | 27.4 | 27.4 | -6.0 |
| Blanco, Andres 2980 | ss 3b 2b | phi nl | 3.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 |
| Gibson, Kyle 3312 | pi sp | min al | 2.0 | 10.0 | 16.0 | 16.0 | -6.0 |
| Gonzalez, Adrian 2193 | 1b | lad nl | 1.5 | 5.5 | 32.2 | 68.1 | -2.5 |
| Vogt, Stephen 3503 | ca 1b | oak al | 1.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | -1.5 |
| Kim, Hyun Soo 3671 | lf | bal al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
White Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.0 |
| 2 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 3.4 |
| 3 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 3.0 |
| 4 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 2.7 |
| 5 | Bettis, Chad 3481 | pi sp | col nl | 2.7 |
| 6 | Ross, Joe 3499 | pi sp | dc nl | 2.7 |
| 7 | Latos, Mat 2644 | pi sp | chi al | 2.7 |
| 8 | Davis, Chris 2478 | 1b | bal al | 2.5 |
| 9 | Brown, Trevor 3610 | ca | sf nl | 2.5 |
| 10 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 2.0 |
Sale pitched a two-hit shutout, allowing no walks and striking out nine, in the 1-0 win over the Rays. Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first of the season, and now ranks 10th in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
National League Player of the Day—Nationals pitcher Joe Ross pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out five, in the 9-1 win over the Phillies. Ross earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season and rises to sixth in season player rankings.
National League Batter of the Day—Matt Holliday of the Cardinals hit two home runs, going 2-for-2 and driving in four runs, in the 4-3 win over the Reds.
Holliday has now earned Box-Toppers points in 13 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2004 with the Rockies and has 93.3 career points, ranked 88th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began) and second among active NL batters (behind Ryan Howard of the Phillies who has 96.7). Holliday’s best season was 2007 with the Rockies when he had 16.2 Box-Toppers points to lead NL batters. In 2015, he had 1.5 points with the Cardinals.
American League Batter of the Day—Mark Trumbo of the Orioles hit two seventh-inning home runs, going 2-for-4 and driving in five runs, in the 11-5 win over the Rangers.
| 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 | nyy al | 187.0 |
| 5 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | nyy al | 179.0 |
| 6 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | ana al | 174.3 |
| 7 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | retired | 170.7 |
| 8 | Manny Ramirez | lf dh | retired | 167.2 |
| 9 | Johan Santana | pi sp | free agent | 166.6 |
| 10 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | retired | 164.8 |
| 11 | Felix Hernandez | pi sp | sea al | 162.7 |
| 12 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 162.3 |
| 13 | John Smoltz | pi sp | retired | 160.9 |
| 14 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | retired | 157.0 |
| 15 | Mike Mussina | pi sp | retired | 155.6 |
| 16 | Barry Bonds | lf | retired | 153.2 |
| 17 | Greg Maddux | pi sp | retired | 151.7 |
| 18 | Chipper Jones | 3b | retired | 149.0 |
| 19 | Javier Vazquez | pi sp | retired | 148.3 |
| 20 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | ari nl | 147.4 |
Notable—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rises to 20th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. He also extended his streak of consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points to 10.
Greinke (7.1IP 6H 2R 5K ND in the 3-2 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 147.4 for his career, rising to 20th among all players since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began. Greinke passes Jim Thome (146.7) and now trails 19th-place player Javier Vazquez (148.3).
Greinke has now earned Box-Toppers points in 10 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2004 with the Royals but his current 10-year streak did not begin until 2007, when he was also with the Royals (he earned no points in 2006). His best year was 2009 with the Royals when he had 21.5 points to lead NL pitchers. In 2015, he had 20.7 points with the Dodgers, fifth among NL pitchers.
Streak—Ryan Braun of the Brewers has now earned Box-Toppers points in 10 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Braun (2HR 3-5 2R 4BI in the 8-4 win over the Pirates) earned his first points in 2007 with the Brewers and has 78.7 career points, third among active NL batters. His best year was 2012 with the Brewers when he had 12.5 Box-Toppers points to lead NL batters. He had 5.0 points in 2015.
Debut—Adonis Garcia of the Braves made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Garcia (2B 2-4 3BI in the 6-3 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut May 19, 2015, and was playing in his 68th career game. He is the 3,613th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Rankings—Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis rose to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Bettis (6IP 3H 0R 4 W in the 6-1 win over the Cubs) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.7 for the season.
Scoring—Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Ross earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Holliday and Trumbo each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s 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
| 4/15 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 16.0 | White Sox | Chris Sale (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |
| NL | 7.2 | Nationals | Joe Ross (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | Cardinals | Matt Holliday, 1B | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Astros | Dallas Keuchel (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 5.1 | Red Sox | Rick Porcello (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Orioles | Mark Trumbo, DH | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Brewers | Ryan Braun, LF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Dodgers | Enrique Hernandez, LF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Mariners | Chris Iannetta, C | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Rockies | Chad Bettis (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Twins | Eduardo Nunez, 2B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Royals | Wade Davis (S,5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.1 | `Dbacks | Zack Greinke | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 1.0 | Mets | Yoenis Cespedes, DH | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Braves | Adonis Garcia, 3B | 4 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
White Sox pitcher John Danks is Box-Toppers spring training Player of the Day for Friday.
Danks pitched five scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out seven in the 3-2 win over the Cubs. Danks had 5.7 Box-Toppers points in 2015 with the White Sox. His best season was 2010 with the White Sox when he had 15.1 points, fifth among American League pitchers.
Danks had a Box-Toppers game score of +9.0, tied with Tigers pitcher Matt Boyd, who was Player of the Game in the 2-0 win over the Cardinals. While Danks and Boyd both had the same innings pitched (5.0) and same number of strikeouts (7), Danks won overall Player of the Day on a tiebreaker because he allowed fewer hits (1 vs. 2).
National League Player of the Day—Ryan Howard of the Phillies hit a grand slam and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 15-12 win over the Pirates. Howard had 5.5 Box-Toppers points with the Phillies in 2015. His 96.7 career Box-Toppers points ranks 75th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers tracking began), 30th among all batters in that span, fourth among active first basemen and first among active NL first basemen.
American League Batter of the Day—Manny Machado of the Orioles doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring once and driving in four runs, in the 11-2 win over the Yankees. Machado had 7.5 Box-Toppers points with the Orioles in 2015, 18th among AL batters and fourth among AL third basemen.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Friday because the NL Player of the Day was a batter, Ryan Howard.
Scoring—No Box-Toppers points are awarded in spring training games, but if it were the regular season, Danks would earn 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Howard would earn 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day and Machado would earn 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) would earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Note—Seventeen spring training games were scheduled for Friday—16 are listed below. One game is not included because it ended in a tie (Rockies vs. Angels).
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
| 3/18 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 9.0 | White Sox | John Danks (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |
| 9.0 | Tigers | Matt Boyd (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| NL | 6.0 | Phillies | Ryan Howard 1B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Giants | Buster Posey C | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Orioles | Manny Machado 3B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Dbacks | Welington Castillo C | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.2 | Mariners | Nathan Karns (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 3.2 | Blue Jays | Aarón Sánchez (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 3.0 | Nationals | Michael A. Taylor CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Reds | Adam Duvall 3B | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Rangers | Lewis Brinson PR-CF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Twins | Buck Britton 2B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Frank Schwindel 1B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Indians | Joey Butler LF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Rays | Granden Goetzman PH-DH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Braves | Héctor Olivera PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Andrew McCutchen replaces Ryan Braun as leader among NL batters in six-year rolling Box-Toppers totals (2011-2016 vs. 2010-2015).
Read MoreBox-Toppers' high players by team does not include AL MVP Donaldson, who ranked 3rd among Blue Jays batters.
Read More
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fourth in season player rankings.
Also Saturday, Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel rises to sixth in Box-Toppers player rankings and Ryan Howard of the Phillies earns Player of the Game honors for the second straight day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 16.4 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 |
| 3 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 15.4 |
| 4 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 15.0 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 14.4 |
| 6 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 13.7 |
| 7 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | tor al | 13.1 |
| 8 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 13.1 |
| 9 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 13.0 |
| 10 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 13.0 |
Player of the Day—Kershaw pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out seven, in the 3-1 win over the Angels.
Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 15.0 for the season, rising to fourth place among all players and third among National League pitchers, behind overall leader Jacob deGrom of the Mets (16.4) and Max Scherzer of the Nationals (16.0). Kershaw led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2014 with 31.5.
Kershaw also rises to 18th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995, when record keeping began. Kershaw has 148.6 career Box-Toppers points and with his points Saturday passes two players on the “all-time” list—Jim Thome (146.7) and Javier Vazquez (148.3). He trails 17th-place player, Chipper Jones (149.0).
American League Player of the Day—Travis Shaw of the Red Sox hit two home runs, doubled and went 4-for-4, scoring five times and driving in three runs, in the 11-7 win over the Rays.
This was Shaw’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut May 8 and was playing in his 10th career game. He is the 3,544th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—Lucas Duda of the Mets homered twice, doubled and went 3-for-3, driving in three runs, in the 3-2 win over the Nationals.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day Saturday because the overall AL Player of the Day is a batter (Travis Shaw).
Rankings—Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel rose to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. Keuchel (6IP 2H 2R 8K W in the 9-2 win over the Diamondbacks) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.7 for the season. He ranks third among AL pitchers.
Notable—Ryan Howard of the Phillies earned Player of the Game honors for the second straight day Saturday. Howard (2B 3-4 2R BI in the 12-2 win over the Braves) was also NL Batter of the Day Friday. Howard has 4.5 Box-Toppers points for the season, 17th among NL batters. He has 95.7 for his career, 74th among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began) and first among active NL first basemen.
Debuts—In addition to Shaw, three other players made their Box-Toppers debut Saturday, earning their first career Player of the Game honors:
Scoring—Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Shaw earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Duda earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 8/1 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 12.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W,9-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| AL | 8.0 | Red Sox | Travis Shaw, 3B | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.1 | Athletics | Aaron Brooks (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Mets | Lucas Duda, 1B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Orioles | Kevin Gausman (W,2-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | Cubs | Kyle Hendricks (W,5-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | Astros | Dallas Keuchel (W,13-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | ||
| 4.2 | White Sox | John Danks (W,6-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | Royals | Ben Zobrist, LF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Hunter Strickland (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Phillies | Ryan Howard, 1B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Reds | Eugenio Suarez, SS | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Padres | Craig Kimbrel (S,31) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Twins | Trevor May (W,7-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Rockies | Ben Paulsen, 1B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Friday, Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Player of the Day—Walker pitched a complete-game one-hitter, allowing one home run and striking out 11, in the 6-1 win over the Twins.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 16.4 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 |
| 3 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 15.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 14.4 |
| 5 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | tor al | 13.1 |
| 6 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 13.1 |
| 7 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 13.0 |
| 8 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 13.0 |
| 9 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 13.0 |
| 10 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 13.0 |
National League Player of the Day—Mets pitcher Matt Harvey struck out nine over 7 2/3 innings, allowing one run and five hits, in the 2-1, 12-inning win over the Nationals. Harvey picked up a no-decision and did not earn the win because he exited the game with the score tied, 1-1.
Harvey earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 12.4 for the season. He ranks 13th among all players and seventh among NL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day—Mark Teixeira of the Yankees hit two home runs—a grand slam and a two-run homer—in the 13-6 win over the White Sox. Teixeira also doubled and went 3-for-4.
Teixeira earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 7.5 for the season and ranks fifth among AL batters.
National League Batter of the Day—Ryan Howard of the Phillies doubled and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 9-3 win over the Braves.
Rankings—Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rose to eighth in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Greinke (8IP 5H 2R 8K W in the 5-3 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.0 for the season. He ranks fourth among NL pitchers.
Greinke also rises to 21st place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Greinke now has 138.7 career points and passes one player on the “all-time” list—Andy Pettitte (138.5). Greinke trails 20th-place player and teammate, Clayton Kershaw (146.6).
Scoring—Walker earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Harvey earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Teixeira and Howard each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s 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
| 7/31 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 16.0 | Mariners | Taijuan Walker (W,8-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | |
| NL | 9.2 | `Mets | Matt Harvey | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| 9.0 | Indians | Danny Salazar (W,9-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 9.0 | Cardinals | Michael Wacha (W,12-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | Yankees | Mark Teixeira, 1B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Dodgers | Zack Greinke (W,10-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Phillies | Ryan Howard, 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Dbacks | Daniel Hudson (W,3-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | Blue Jays | Josh Donaldson, 3B | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Orioles | Manny Machado, 3B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Red Sox | Mike Napoli, 1B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Rangers | Adrian Beltre, 3B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Pirates | Jung Ho Kang, SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Padres | Jedd Gyorko, 2B | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Cubs | Anthony Rizzo, 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Angels pitcher Matt Shoemaker is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom rose to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings, Giants pitcher Chris Heston became the 16th player this season with 10 Box-Toppers points and Matt Holliday of the Cardinals earned Box-Toppers points for the 12th straight season.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 15.0 |
| 2 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 14.4 |
| 3 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 14.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 13.4 |
| 5 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 13.1 |
| 6 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 12.7 |
| 7 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 12.0 |
| 8 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 12.0 |
| 9 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 12.0 |
| 10 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 11.7 |
Player of the Day—Shoemaker pitched six scoreless innings, striking out 10 and allowing two hits, in the 7-0 win over the Twins.
National League Player of the Day—Giants pitcher Chris Heston pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out six, in the 9-3 win over the Padres.
Heston earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 10.4 for the season, rising to 15th place in Box-Toppers season player rankings, ninth among NL pitchers. He is the 16th player this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points.
American League Batter of the Day—Shin-Soo Choo of the Rangers hit for the cycle and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three, in the 9-0 win over the Rockies.
National League Batter of the Day—Matt Holliday of the Cardinals hit a grand slam and went 2-for-4, scoring two runs, in the 8-5 win over the White Sox.
Holliday earned 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, his first points of the season, and has now earned Box-Toppers points for 12 straight seasons. He earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2004 with the Rockies. His best season was 2007 with the Rockies when he had 16.2 points, first among NL batters and seventh among all players. In 2014, he had 7.5 points with the Cardinals, eighth among NL batters.
Holliday has 91.8 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 88th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Holliday ranks first among active NL outfielders in career Box-Toppers points and third among active NL batters, behind Aramis Ramirez of the Brewers (103.3) and Ryan Howard of the Phillies (93.2).
Rankings—Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom rose to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
deGrom (6IP 3H 2R 8K W in the 7-2 win over the Nationals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.4 for the season. He ranks second among NL pitchers behind overall leader Max Scherzer of the Nationals (15.0).
Debut—Kyle Schwarber of the Cubs made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Schwarber hit two home runs—a game-tying two-run homer in the ninth and a go-ahead homer in the 13th—in the 5-4 win over the Reds. Schwarber (4-7 2R 4BI) made his Major League debut June 16 and was playing in his 11th career game. He is the 3,536th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Shoemaker earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Heston earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Choo and Holliday each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’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
| 7/21 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | Angels | Matt Shoemaker (W,5-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | |
| NL | 10.1 | Giants | Chris Heston (W,10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | |
| 9.0 | Marlins | Mat Latos (W,4-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 7.0 | Mets | Jacob deGrom (W,10-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 6.2 | `Royals | Joe Blanton | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Rangers | Shin-Soo Choo, RF | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Mariners | Franklin Gutierrez, PH-LF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Cardinals | Matt Holliday, DH | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Rays | Nathan Karns (W,5-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Cubs | Kyle Schwarber, C | 7 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Brewers | Jean Segura, SS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Astros | Chris Carter, DH | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.1 | `Yankees | Dellin Betances (H,15) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Russell Martin, C | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Braves | Chris Johnson, 1B | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Tuesday’s Player of the Day and rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Carrasco struck out eight over five innings and allowed one run in the 6-2 win over the White Sox. Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season.
National League Player of the Day—Todd Frazier of the Reds hit a grand slam and went 2-for-3 with three runs, in the 16-10 win over the Brewers.
| 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 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 3.0 |
| 5 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 3.0 |
| 6 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 |
| 7 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 3.0 |
| 8 | Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 |
| 9 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 2.7 |
| 10 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 2.7 |
American League Batter of the Day—Johnny Giavotella of the Angels homered and went 2-for-3, scoring three times and driving in four, in the 14-1 win over the Athletics.
Streak—Ryan Howard of the Phillies has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 11 straight seasons. Howard was Player of the Game in Tuesday’s 7-3 win over the Marlins (HR 2-3 2R 2BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point. Howard, who has spent his entire career with the Phillies, earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2005. His best season was 2009 when he had 15.4 Box-Toppers points, third among NL batters. In 2014, he had 7.2 Box-Toppers points, ranking fifth among NL first basemen. He has 92.2 career Box-Toppers points, ranking him 83rd among all players since record keeping began in 1995, 35th among all batters in that time and first among active first basemen currently in the NL (second place is Justin Morneau of the Rockies with 71.3 Box-Toppers points).
Debut—Dalton Pompey of the Blue Jays made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Pompey (2-2B 3-4 3R in the 13-6 win over the Orioles) made his Major League debut Sept. 2, 2014, and was playing in his 31st career game. He is the 3,450th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Young and Young—Both Major League players named Chris Young earned Player of the Game honors Tuesday:
Scoring—Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Frazier earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Giavotella earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’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
| 4/21 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 7.0 | Indians | Carlos Carrasco (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | Angels | Johnny Giavotella 2B | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| NL | 5.0 | Reds | Todd Frazier 3B | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.1 | Rangers | Shawn Tolleson (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | Giants | Justin Maxwell RF | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Cubs | Starlin Castro SS | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Phillies | Ryan Howard 1B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Astros | Jake Marisnick CF | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Chris Young (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Mets | Curtis Granderson RF | 5 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Padres | Wil Myers CF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Dalton Pompey CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Yankees | Chris Young RF | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.2 | Red Sox | Wade Miley (W, 1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | ||
| 1.0 | Nationals | Aaron Barrett (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
In 2006, Lance Berkman of the Astros earned 20.8 Box-Toppers points, the most in a single season by a batter. But he did not win MVP that year. How did Box-Toppers' other 17-highest scoring batters do?
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.