Cubs pitcher Jeff Samardzija was Player of the Day for Monday's opening day. Samardzija pitched eight innings and struck out nine in Chicago's win over Pittsburgh and earned 2 Box-Toppers points. Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez was American League Player of the Day, leading Seattle to a 2-0 victory over Oakland, and receives 1.7 Box-Toppers points. Mets outfielder Collin Cowgill, who hit a grand slam homer and doubled in New York's 11-2 win over San Diego, was National League Batter of the Day, earning 1.5 Box-Toppers points. And Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who doubled, walked three times and scored two runs in Boston's 8-2 win over the Yankees, was American League Batter of the Day, receiving 1.5 Box-Toppers points.
Top pitching was on display as teams brought out their number-one starters for opening day. Some of Box-Toppers top scoring pitchers from 2012 earned Player of the Game honors Monday, including:
- Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who had more Box-Toppers points than any other NL pitcher in 2012, with 20.8.
- Mariners pitcher Hernandez, who had the second-most Box-Toppers points among AL pitchers in 2012, with 18.7.
- Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, who had the second-most Box-Toppers points among NL pitchers in 2012, with 20.4.
- Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander, who led all Box-Toppers rankings in 2012, with 24.8 points.
Here are Monday's Players of the Games:
| 401 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 14.0 | Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jeff Samardzija (W, 1-0) | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 12.0 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Clayton Kershaw (W, 1-0) | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |||
| AL | 11.2 | Mariners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Felix Hernandez (W, 1-0) | 7.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 7.0 | Nationals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Stephen Strasburg (W, 1-0) | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |||
| 7.0 | Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Justin Verlander (W, 1-0) | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |||
| 6.2 | White Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chris Sale (W, 1-0) | 7.2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |||
| 5.0 | Diamondbacks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Ian Kennedy (W, 1-0) | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | |||
| 4.0 | Angels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Mark Lowe (W, 1-0) | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Mets | Collin Cowgill CF, LF | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Braves | Freddie Freeman 1B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | `Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Alfredo Figaro | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| BAT | 1.0 | Red Sox | Jarrod Saltalamacchia C | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |