Only two of baseball’s top 10 leaders in runs batted in were among their league’s top 10 batters in Box-Toppers points in 2016.

Last year, by contrast, seven of the top 10 RBI leaders were among their league’s top 10 batters in Box-Toppers rankings.

Runs batted in leaders’ Box-Toppers points
Here is how 2016 runs batted in (RBI) leaders fared in Box-Toppers points. Players are ranked by RBIs. Also shown are their 2016 Box-Toppers points (BTP) and their rank in Box-Toppers points among all players.







  
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    

    Player
    Team
    RBI
    BTP
    Rank
  

    1
    Nolan Arenado
    Rockies
    133
    10.7
    42
  

    2
    Edwin Encarnacion
    Blue Jays
    127
    8.0
    80
  

    2
    David Ortiz
    Red Sox
    127
    8.0
    90
  

    4
    Albert Pujols
    Angels
    119
    8.0
    84
  

    5
    Mookie Betts
    Red Sox
    113
    6.2
    151
  

    6
    Hanley Ramirez
    Red Sox
    111
    7.0
    120
  

    7
    Anthony Rizzo
    Cubs
    109
    3.0
    306
  

    8
    Miguel Cabrera
    Tigers
    108
    12.0
    33
  

    8
    Mark Trumbo
    Orioles
    108
    8.2
    77
  

    8
    Matt Kemp
    Braves*
    108
    7.5
    101
  

BTP: Box-Toppers points

* Matt Kemp was traded from the Padres to the Braves July 30. He had 4.0 Box-Toppers points with the Padres and 3.5 points with the Braves.

Overall RBI leader Nolan Arenado of the Rockies (133) ranked first among National League batters in Box-Toppers points with 10.7, 42nd among all players. (Arenado also led all players in RBIs in 2015 with 130. He had 8.5 Box-Toppers points in 2015, 10th among NL batters and 65th among all players.)

The only other RBI leader to rank among his league’s top 10 batters is Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, who had 108 RBIs, tied for eighth. Cabrera had 12.0 Box-Toppers points, fourth among American League batters and 33rd among all players. Cabrera had the most Box-Toppers points among the 10 RBI leaders for 2016.

The AL RBI leaders, Edwin Encarnacion of the Blue Jays and David Ortiz of the Red Sox, each had 127 RBIs, tied for second overall behind Arenado. They also each had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, but Encarnacion is higher in Box-Toppers rankings because he had more 2015 Box-Toppers points than Ortiz (10.4 vs. 4.5). Encarnacion ranks 15th among AL batters and 80th among all players, while Ortiz ranks 18th among AL batters and 90th among all players.

The overall Box-Toppers points leader among AL batters, Manny Machado of the Orioles, is tied for 31st in RBIs with 96. Machado has 12.7 Box-Toppers points, 21st among all players.

The AL and NL Most Valuable Players also are not among the top 10 in RBIs. NL MVP Kris Bryant of the Cubs is tied for 17th in RBIs with 102. He had 10.5 Box-Toppers points, second among NL batters and 46th among all players. AL MVP Mike Trout of the Angels is tied for 20th in RBIs with 100. He had 12.5 Box-Toppers points, second among AL batters and 25th among all players.

While only two of the top 10 RBI leaders rank among their league’s top 10 batters in Box-Toppers points, six of the 10 rank among the overall top 100 players. In addition to Arenado, Encarnacion, Ortiz and Cabrera (mentioned previously), the other two are:

Albert Pujols of the Angels, ranked fourth in RBIs with 119, has 8.0 Box-Toppers points, 84th among all players and 16th among AL batters.
Mark Trumbo of the Orioles, tied for eighth in RBIs with 108, has 8.2 Box-Toppers points, 77th among all players and 14th among AL batters.

The four RBI leaders who don’t rank among Box-Toppers top 100 players are:

Mookie Betts of the Red Sox, ranks fifth in RBIs with 113, but ranks 151st among all players in Box-Toppers points with 6.2, 37th among AL batters.
Hanley Ramirez of the Red Sox, ranks sixth in RBIs with 111, but ranks 120th among all players in Box-Toppers points with 7.0, 25th among AL batters.
Anthony Rizzo of the Cubs, ranks seventh in RBIs with 109, but ranks 306th among all players in Box-Toppers points with 3.0, 71st among NL batters. (Why so few points for Rizzo? While Rizzo had a great statistical season—32 HR, 109 RBI, .292 AVG.—he played on a team with dominant pitching—four of the top 10 NL pitchers in Box-Toppers points are Cubs—and the NL MVP Bryant. Only player one can earn Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors in any win and Rizzo competed against his formidable Cubs teammates.)
Matt Kemp of the Braves, tied for eighth in RBIs with 108, but ranks 101st in Box-Toppers points with 7.5, 13th among NL batters. (Kemp also played for the Padres in 2016 before being traded to the Braves.)

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.

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RBI leaders for 2015

RBI leaders for 2014