Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw secured his spot as Box-Toppers 2013 Player of the Season Friday, while Braves pitcher Kris Medlen was Player of the Day.
Kershaw, who earned Player of the Game honors in Friday's 11-0 win against the Rockies, now has 21.7 Box-Toppers points. He has been atop Box-Toppers player rankings since Sept. 21 and with only two games left in the season, it is wildly unlikely any other player can catch him (see the updated top 10 list on the home page).
Kershaw now leads the second-place player, teammate Zack Greinke (19.4), by 2.3 Box-Toppers points, so even if Greinke earns Player of the Day honors in his final start Saturday against the Rockies, he can only earn 2.0 Box-Toppers points and would have 21.4—not enough to catch Kershaw.
This is the second time Kershaw has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Season honors. He was also top player in 2011, when he had 26.1 Box-Toppers points. He was top National League player in Box-Toppers points in 2012 with 20.8.
Kershaw (6IP 0R 8K W in win vs. Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, putting him at 21.7 for the season.
Medlen, Friday's top player, pitched eight shutout innings, gave up only two hits and struck out seven in the 1-0 win over the Phillies. Medlen earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.0 for the season, putting him in 42nd place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Royals pitcher James Shields is American League Player of the Day. Shields struck out 10 over seven innings in the 6-1 win over the White Sox.
Jayson Werth of the Nationals is NL Batter of the Day. Werth hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-2 with two walks in the 8-4 win over the Diamondbacks.
Jonny Gomes of the Red Sox is AL Batter of the Day. Gomes homered and went 3-for-4 in the 12-3 win over the Orioles.
Notables: Three other players who earned Player of the Game honors Friday are among the top 50 in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season:
- Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn rises to 11th place. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game (6IP 0R 9K W in 7-0 win vs. Cubs), giving him 16.1 for the season.
- Athletics pitcher Bartolo Colon rises to 25th place. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game (6IP 8K W in 8-2 win vs. Mariners), giving him 13.1 for the season.
- Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett rises to 49th place. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game (8IP 1R 6K W in 4-1 win vs. Reds), giving him 10.4 for the season.
Coming Saturday: Two pitchers in Box-Toppers player rankings top 10 are scheduled to start Saturday:
- Zack Greinke of Dodgers is scheduled to start against the Rockies. Greinke is ranked second in player rankings with 19.4 Box-Toppers points.
- Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals is scheduled to start against the Cubs. Wainwright is ranked third in player rankings with 19.2 Box-Toppers points.
Medlen receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Shields receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Werth and Gomes each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Friday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 927 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 11.0 | Braves | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Kris Medlen (W, 15-12) | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | ||
| 11.0 | Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Lance Lynn (W, 15-10) | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |||
| AL | 10.0 | Royals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | James Shields (W, 13-9) | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 10.0 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Clayton Kershaw (W, 16-9) | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |||
| 6.0 | Pirates | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A.J. Burnett (W, 10-11) | 8.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |||
| 6.0 | Athletics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Bartolo Colon (W, 18-6) | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | |||
| 6.0 | Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Adam Warren (W, 3-2) | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |||
| BAT | 5.0 | Nationals | Jayson Werth RF | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Juan Perez CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Red Sox | Jonny Gomes LF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Indians | Drew Stubbs CF | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | Rangers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Neal Cotts (W, 7-3) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Moises Sierra RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jim Henderson (S, 28) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| 2.0 | `Marlins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Chad Qualls (H, 15) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.