Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman is Monday’s Player of the Day, while Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw keeps his chances alive to break Box-Toppers’ single-season points record.
Most BTP single season
Randy Johnson is the all-time leader in Box-Toppers points in a single season—he scored 33.7 twice, in 2000 and 2002. Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers rose into a tie for seventh place on the "all-time" list Monday (he now has 28.8). And with two or three likely starts remaining, he has a chance to break Randy Johnson's record for most Box-Toppers points in a season.| Rank | Player | Team | Pos | Year | BTP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Randy Johnson | Dbacks | pi sp | 2000 | 33.7 |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | Dbacks | pi sp | 2002 | 33.7 |
| 3 | Pedro Martinez | Red Sox | pi sp | 2000 | 33.5 |
| 4 | Randy Johnson | Dbacks | pi sp | 1999 | 31.5 |
| 5 | Pedro Martinez | Red Sox | pi sp | 1999 | 31.4 |
| 6 | Randy Johnson | Dbacks | pi sp | 2001 | 29.4 |
| 7 | Pedro Martinez | Red Sox | pi sp | 2002 | 28.8 |
| 7 | *Clayton Kershaw | Dodgers | pi sp | 2014 | 28.8 |
| 9 | Curt Schilling | Dbacks | pi sp | 2002 | 28.4 |
| 10 | Roger Clemens | Blue Jays | pi sp | 1997 | 27.4 |
* Current season
BTP: Box-Toppers points
Stroman pitched a three-hit, complete game shutout, striking out eight, in the 8-0 win over the Cubs. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.7 for the season. He ranks 20th among all players and 12th among American League pitchers.
Kershaw meanwhile solidified his dominant lead among all players in Box-Toppers points (see the updated top 10 player list on the home page) and now has the seventh-best single-season Box-Toppers points total of “all-time,” after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Kershaw (8IP 8K W in the 9-4 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 28.8 for the season.
Kershaw is now 4.9 Box-Toppers points behind the all-time single-season record of 33.7 points set twice by Randy Johnson of the Diamondbacks—in 2000 and 2002.
With less than three weeks remaining in the season, Kershaw likely has two or three starts remaining. If he only starts two more games, the most he can earn is 4.0 Box-Toppers points (by being overall Player of the Day twice) and would end 0.9 points short of the record. But if he has three starts remaining, he has a chance to break the record if he is Player of the Day twice and at least Player of the Game once. In his 24 starts this season, he has failed to earn Box-Toppers points in only six starts.
While Kershaw’s 28.8 Box-Toppers points is now tied with the 28.8 points earned by Pedro Martinez of the Red Sox in 2002, there are now only two different names ahead of Kershaw on the “all-time” single-season list—Martinez and Johnson. Between 1999 and 2002, the two pitchers produced the seven highest single-season Box-Toppers point totals of “all-time”—Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995.
If Kershaw earns 1.2 more Box-Toppers points, it will only be the sixth time a player has reached 30.0 Box-Toppers points in a season.
Pirates pitcher Jeff Locke is National League Player of the Day. Locke struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-4 win over the Phillies.
Albert Pujols of the Angels is AL Batter of the Day. Pujols hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 12-3 win over the Indians. This is the second time in three days Pujols has earned AL Batter of the Day honors. Earning 1.5 Box-Toppers points, Pujols now has 7.5 points for the season and ranks 10th among AL batters, moving ahead of teammate Mike Trout. Trout also has 7.5 points this season, but Pujols edges him out on the AL batter top 10 list because he has more points over the past two seasons—11.5 vs. 11.0.
There is no NL Batter of the Day Monday because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors.
Notables: Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez maintained his sixth-place spot in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Hernandez (6IP 0R 8K ND in the 4-1 win over the Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 17.8 for the season. He also maintains his third-place spot among AL pitchers.
Nationals pitcher Doug Fister rises to 23rd in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Fister (7IP 0R W in the 2-1 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.4 for the season. He ranks eighth among NL pitchers.
Stroman receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Locke receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Pujols receives 1.5 for being AL Batter of the Day,
All of Monday’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, 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 908 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 14.0 | Blue Jays | Marcus Stroman (W, 10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| NL | 11.0 | Pirates | Jeff Locke (W, 7-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| 8.0 | Cardinals | Shelby Miller (W, 9-9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 7.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W, 18-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 5.0 | Nationals | Doug Fister (W, 13-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 5.0 | `Mariners | Felix Hernandez | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Angels | Albert Pujols DH | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | White Sox | Tyler Flowers C | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.2 | `Mets | Jon Niese | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 2.0 | Tigers | Nick Castellanos 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Marlins | Steve Cishek (S, 33) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.1 | Orioles | Miguel Gonzalez (W, 9-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.