A look at Box-Toppers All-Stars at the season's halfway point

Here are Box-Toppers points leaders by position and by league for the current season (2016) and for this season and last season (2015-16) as of June 30. The top three outfielders and top four starting pitchers (SP) in each league over both time periods are shown. Also shown is closing pitcher (CP) with the most Box-Toppers points in each league over both time periods.  

2016 leaders 2015-16 leaders
Pos AL players Team BTP AL players Team BTP
1B Davis, Chris 2478 bal al 7.5 Davis, Chris 2478 bal al 18.5
2B Altuve, Jose 3007 hou al 8.5 Altuve, Jose 3007 hou al 15.5
SS Machado, Manny 3087 bal al 8.7 Machado, Manny 3087 bal al 16.2
3B Donaldson, Josh 3144 tor al 7.2 Donaldson, Josh 3144 tor al 17.1
CA Martin, Russell 2202 tor al 7.0 Martin, Russell 2202 tor al 12.0
OF Trout, Mike 2949 ana al 6.5 Trout, Mike 2949 ana al 18.5
OF Cain, Lorenzo 3171 kc al 6.5 Cain, Lorenzo 3171 kc al 14.7
OF Trumbo, Mark 2851 bal al 6.2 Upton, Justin 2411 det al 12.0
DH Encarnacion, Edwin 2098 tor al 6.0 Encarnacion, Edwin 2098 tor al 16.4
SP Kluber, Corey 3200 cle al 10.8 Sale, Chris 2806 chi al 29.5
SP Sale, Chris 2806 chi al 10.7 Price, David 2593 bos al 27.8
SP Salazar, Danny 3223 cle al 10.5 Hamels, Cole 2135 tex al 25.8
SP Hamels, Cole 2135 tex al 10.4 Carrasco, Carlos 2885 cle al 24.7
CP Robertson, David 2774 chi al 4.0 Robertson, David 2774 chi al 12.0
NL players Team BTP NL players Team BTP
1B Carter, Chris 2828 mil nl 6.0 Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 ari nl 11.7
2B Carpenter, Matt 2987 stl nl 7.5 Carpenter, Matt 2987 stl nl 13.0
SS Diaz, Aledmys 3612 stl nl 4.5 Galvis, Freddy 3202 phi nl 7.0
3B Suarez, Eugenio 3355 cin nl 7.0 Arenado, Nolan 3306 col nl 13.0
CA Realmuto, J.T. 3491 fla nl 2.5 Realmuto, J.T. 3491 fla nl 7.5
OF Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 nym nl 6.0 Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 nym nl 16.9
OF Holliday, Matt 1836 stl nl 6.0 Gonzalez, Carlos 2460 col nl 15.0
OF Bryant, Kris 3465 chi nl 5.5 Bryant, Kris 3465 chi nl 14.0
SP Kershaw, Clayton 2494 lad nl 20.0 Kershaw, Clayton 2494 lad nl 45.7
SP Fernandez, Jose 3147 fla nl 13.4 Arrieta, Jake 2738 chi nl 39.8
SP Scherzer, Max 2588 dc nl 12.0 Scherzer, Max 2588 dc nl 33.0
SP Cueto, Johnny 2400 sf nl 11.7 Greinke, Zack 1871 ari nl 30.4
CP Familia, Jeurys 3446 nym nl 3.0 Familia, Jeurys 3446 nym nl 11.0
What are those numbers after players' names?

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw remains the top player in Box-Toppers All-Star teams.

Kershaw leads all players in Box-Toppers points for the 2016 season with 20.0. He also leads all players over the combined 2015 and 2016 seasons with 45.7 Box-Toppers points. 

The chart shows the leaders in Box-Toppers points by position over two different time periods—the 2016 season and the combined 2015 and 2016 seasons.

Why two time periods? It could be argued that the 2016 season so far is not a large enough sample size to determine a true All-Star. While it may determine who is currently on a hot streak, it may not demonstrate lasting All-Star value the way viewing a player’s performance over a longer period can. So that’s why a player’s performance over 2015 and 2016 is also examined.

The National League team has 13 positions—the customary five infield spots, three for outfield, four for starting pitchers plus one spot for closing pitcher. The American League team has 14 spots with the addition of the designated hitter.

There are 11 AL players who occupy All-Star spots at his position for both 2016 and 2015-16:

  • 1B—Chris Davis, Orioles
  • 2B—Jose Altuve, Astros
  • SS—Manny Machado, Orioles
  • 3B—Josh Donaldson, Blue Jays
  • CA—Russell Martin, Blue Jays
  • OF—Mike Trout, Angels and Lorenzo Cain, Royals
  • DH—Edwin Encarnacion, Blue Jays
  • SP—Chris Sale, White Sox and Cole Hamels, Rangers
  • CP—David Robertson, White Sox

There are seven NL players who who occupy All-Star spots at his position for both 2016 and 2015-16:

  • 2B—Matt Carpenter, Cardinals
  • CA—J.T. Realmuto, Marlins
  • OF—Yoenis Cespedes, Mets and Kris Bryant, Cubs
  • SP—Kershaw and Max Scherzer, Nationals
  • CP—Jeurys Familia, Mets

Among the changes from last week’s All-Star teams on the American League team for the 2016 season:

  • 1B—Chris Davis, Orioles (7.5) displaces Dae-Ho Lee, Mariners (6.7)
  • DH—Edwin Encarnacion, Blue Jays (6.0) displaces Victor Martinez, Tigers (5.0)

Among the changes from last week’s All-Star teams on the National League team for the 2016 season:

  • 1B—Chris Carter, Brewers (6.0) displaces Matt Holliday, Cardinals (6.0).
  • OF—Kris Bryant, Cubs (5.5) displaces Jay Bruce, Reds (5.0).
  • SP—Max Scherzer, Nationals (12.0) displaces Jake Arrieta, Cubs (10.7).

There were no changes from last week’s All-Star teams on the American League team for the combined 2015-16 seasons.

Among the changes from last week’s All-Star teams on the National League team for the combined 2015-16 seasons:

  • 2B—Matt Carpenter, Cardinals (13.0) displaces DJ LeMahieu, Rockies (11.5).

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.

Last week’s All-Star teams