Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw and Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez rose into Box-Toppers’ overall top 10 players list during 2016.
Box-Toppers points leaders for 1995-2016
| OVERALL LEADERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 1 | Johnson, randy | pi sp | Retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Martinez, Pedro J. | pi sp | Retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | schilling, curt | pi sp | Retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Rodriguez, Alex | 3b | Released | 187.0 |
| 5 | Sabathia, C.C. 1492 | pi sp | nyy al | 185.0 |
| 6 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 183.7 |
| 7 | Pujols, Albert 1438 | dh 1b | ana al | 182.3 |
| 8 | Halladay, Roy 1178 | pi sp | Retired | 170.7 |
| 9 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 168.7 |
| 10 | Ramirez, manny | lf | Retired | 167.2 |
| PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 1 | Johnson, randy | pi sp | Retired | 278.8 |
| 2 | Martinez, Pedro J. | pi sp | Retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | schilling, curt | pi sp | Retired | 194.1 |
| 4 | Sabathia, C.C. 1492 | pi sp | nyy al | 185.0 |
| 5 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 183.7 |
| 6 | Halladay, Roy 1178 | pi sp | Retired | 170.7 |
| 7 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 168.7 |
| 8 | Santana, Johan 1448 | pi sp | Free agent | 166.6 |
| 9 | clemens, roger | pi sp | Retired | 164.8 |
| 10 | smoltz, john | pi sp | Retired | 160.9 |
| BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |
| 1 | Rodriguez, Alex | 3b | Released | 187.0 |
| 2 | Pujols, Albert 1438 | dh 1b | ana al | 182.3 |
| 3 | Ramirez, manny | lf | Retired | 167.2 |
| 4 | bonds, barry | lf | Retired | 153.2 |
| 5 | jones, chipper | 3b | Retired | 149.0 |
| 6 | thome, jim | 1b dh | Retired | 146.7 |
| 7 | Ortiz, David | dh | bos al | 145.9 |
| 8 | Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 144.9 |
| 9 | giambi, jason | 1b | Retired | 133.4 |
| 10 | Guerrero, Vladimir | rf | Retired | 128.3 |
What are those numbers after players' names?
Also, Box-Toppers’ “all-time” top batter, Alex Rodriguez, was released by the Yankees in 2016, apparently ending his career. He had been the top active player in career Box-Toppers rankings. Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia became the active leader in career Box-Toppers points. Albert Pujols of the Angels became the active leader among batters in career points.
Pitcher Randy Johnson remains the all-time Box-Toppers points leader with 278.8 at the end of the 2016 season. Rodriguez, fourth place overall, is the all-time leader among batters with 187.0 Box-Toppers points.
Box-Toppers record keeping, tracking the top player in each and every regular season game played, began at the start of the 1995 and after 22 seasons, there’s not a lot of movement among the overall top 10 or the top 10 among pitchers and batters from season to season.
However, two new players joined the all-time top 10 list in 2016:
- Kershaw rose from 13th to sixth place since 1995 with 183.7 career Box-Toppers points. Kershaw earned 24.4 Box-Toppers points in 2016, second among all players, and also rose on the “all-time” pitchers list from 10th at the end of 2015 to fifth at the end of 2016. Kershaw narrowly trails Sabathia (185.0 points) by only 1.3 Box-Toppers points for the lead among all active pitchers and all active players. (Sabathia earned 6.0 points in 2016.)
- Hernandez rose from 11th to ninth place since 1995 with 168.7 career Box-Toppers points. Hernandez earned 6.0 Box-Toppers points in 2016, his fewest in his 12 seasons, and also rose on the “all-time” pitchers list from eighth at the end of 2015 to seventh at the end of 2016.
With the rise of Kershaw and Hernandez on the overall top 10 list, two players on the list at the end of 2015 were pushed off—pitchers Johan Santana (166.6 points, now in 11th place) and Roger Clemens (164.8 points, now in 12th place). Santana, 37, is officially listed as a free agent, though he hasn’t pitched since 2012. Clemens retired in 2007. (If Clemens’ entire career from 1984 were tracked, Box-Toppers projects he would have roughly 320 points.) Both still rank among the top 10 pitchers in career points since 1995—Santana in eighth place, Clemens in ninth.
The only other active player to rise in Box-Toppers career top 10 rankings is Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, who rose from ninth to eighth place among the top 10 “all-time” batters.
In 2016, Cabrera earned 12.0 Box-Toppers points, fourth among AL batters, giving him 144.9 for his career. He moves past Jason Giambi into eighth place on the list of career points among batters since 1995.
Three other batters on the list active during 2016 kept their spots on the top 10 list:
- Rodriguez remained at number one, though was released by the Yankees in August.
- Albert Pujols of the Angels remains in second with 182.3. However, Pujols moved down one spot from sixth to seventh on the overall players list, after he was passed by Kershaw. However, Pujols trails Kershaw by only 0.4 points and trails Sabathia, the overall active leader, by just 2.7 points. Pujols earned 8.0 Box-Toppers points during the season, 16th among AL batters.
- David Ortiz of the Red Sox remains in seventh with 145.9. Ortiz earned 8.0 Box-Toppers points in 2016, 18th among AL batters. His retirement at the end of 2016 means there will only be two players on the list—Pujols and Cabrera—active during the 2017 season.
There are six players on the lists who were active at the close of 2016 and with Ortiz’s retirement, only five who plan to be active at the start of 2017.
The highest-ranking active pitcher not on the list is Zack Greinke of the Diamondbacks, who is 15th overall and 12th among pitchers. Greinke has 156.1 career Box-Toppers points and would need 4.8 to join the list of top 10 pitchers and 11.1 to join the list over overall top 10 players. Greinke earned 9.7 points in 2016.
The highest-ranking active batter not on the list is Adrian Beltre of the Rangers, who is 53rd overall and 16th among batters. Beltre has 111.3 career Box-Toppers points and would need 17.0 to join the list of top 10 batters. He had 9.5 in 2016.
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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Related: Top 100 players for 1995-2016