Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma is Tuesday’s Player of the Day, while Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer extends his Box-Toppers points lead among American League pitchers.
Iwakuma pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out 11 in the 5-2 win over the Phillies. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.0 for the season. He is the 31st player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He ranks 23rd among all players and 13th among AL pitchers.
Scherzer bolstered his top spot among AL pitchers after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Scherzer (7IP 9K ND in the 8-6 win over the Rays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 21.1 for the season. He ranks second among all players, behind Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who has 22.1 Box-Toppers points. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Scherzer ranks first among AL pitchers, ahead of the current second-place AL pitcher, Corey Kluber of the Indians (17.4 Box-Toppers points).
Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers is National League Player of the Day. Fiers struck out six over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-1 win over the Blue Jays.
Carl Crawford of the Dodgers is NL Batter of the Day. Crawford homered and went 3-for-3, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 8-6 win over the Padres.
Omar Infante of the Royals is AL Batter of the Day. Infante hit three doubles, going 4-for-5, scoring a run and driving in four more, in the 7-4 win over the Rockies.
Notables: Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir rose to 12th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Kazmir (6IP R 6K W in the 6-2 win over the Mets) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.1 for the season. He ranks seventh among AL pitchers.
Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg rose to 14th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Strasburg (8IP R W in the 8-1 win over the Diamondbacks) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.7 for the season. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.
Iwakuma receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Fiers receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Crawford and Infante each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Tuesday’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
| 819 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 15.0 | Mariners | Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 12-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 11.0 | Orioles | Chris Tillman (W, 10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| NL | 8.0 | Brewers | Mike Fiers (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | Dodgers | Carl Crawford LF | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Nationals | Stephen Strasburg (W, 10-10) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Royals | Omar Infante 2B | 5 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Braves | Justin Upton LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Marlins | Sam Dyson (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Indians | Yan Gomes C | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | *Cubs | Anthony Rizzo 1B | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Athletics | Scott Kazmir (W, 14-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 2.2 | `Astros | Tony Sipp | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Cardinals | Jon Jay CF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Angels | Chris Iannetta C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | `Tigers | Max Scherzer | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 9 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
* UPDATE: Thursday, August 21, 2014: Rizzo was named Player of the Game in the game that was initially ruled a final, rain-shortened game. However, the Giants protested the game and Major League Baseball upheld the protest. The now-suspended game is to resume in the bottom of the fifth inning on Aug. 21. Rizzo's 1.0 Box-Toppers point earned Aug. 19 will be removed and the game's top player will now be included among Aug. 21's games. Rizzo has 5.5 Box-Toppers points for the season and ranks 15th among NL batters. Before the point was removed, his 6.5 Box-Toppers points put him at seventh place among NL batters.