Five of the top 10 players in batting average for 2017 are among Box-Toppers’ top 100 players.

Batting average leaders’ Box-Toppers points
Here is how 2017 batting average leaders fared in Box-Toppers points. Players are listed from highest batting average. Also shown are their 2017 Box-Toppers points (BTP) and their rank in Box-Toppers tops among all players.



 



  
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    

    Player
    Team
    Avg.
    BTP
    Rank
  

    1
    Jose Altuve
    Astros
    .346
    2.5
    387
  

    2
    Charlie Blackmon
    Rockies
    .331
    5.7
    159
  

    3
    Avisail Garcia
    White Sox
    .330
    6.7
    113
  

    4
    Daniel Murphy
    Nationals
    .322
    7.5
    85
  

    5
    Justin Turner
    Dodgers
    .322
    2.5
    393
  

    6
    Joey Votto
    Reds
    .320
    4.0
    238
  

    7
    Buster Posey
    Giants
    .320
    9.5
    46
  

    8
    Eric Hosmer
    Royals
    .318
    9.5
    45
  

    9
    Jose Ramirez
    Indians
    .318
    10.0
    38
  

    10
    Josh Reddick
    Astros
    .314
    8.0
    75
  

BTP: Box-Toppers points

But two of the top 10 on the list were not even among the top half of players in 2017, including the overall batting average leader, Jose Altuve of the Astros, who ranked 387th among players in 2017 with just 2.5 Box-Toppers points.

Altuve was voted 2017 American League Most Valuable Player and led all players with a .346 batting average. However, he only earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors twice during the season, picking up 2.5 Box-Toppers points. Compare that to 2016, when Altuve ranked third in batting average (.338) but had 12.5 Box-Toppers points and ranked 26th among all players.

With a similar batting average why were Box-Toppers points so different from 2016 to 2017?

Box-Toppers looks at games one by one. And it seeks the one player who most helped their team win each game. 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.

In 2017, Altuve only earned Player of the Game honors twice. In the Astros’ 99 other wins in 2017, one of Altuve’s teammates had a higher Box-Toppers game score and beat him out for Player of the Game. Here is a longer explanation of why Altuve fared so poorly in Box-Toppers points in 2017.

With Altuve ranking 387th in Box-Toppers rankings for 2017, he is not even among the top half of the 763 players who earned Player of the Game honors at least once in 2017. The only player among the top 10 in batting average who ranks lower than Altuve is Justin Turner of the Dodgers, who ranks fifth in batting average with .322 but ranks 393rd in Box-Toppers points with 2.5. (While Altuve and Turner both have the same Box-Toppers point totals, Altuve ranks higher because he had more 2016 Box-Toppers points—12.5 vs. 2.5. In fact, of the 23 players tied with 2.5 points in 2017, Altuve leads that list because he had the most 2016 points.)

Having a high batting average does not always translate into a high Box-Toppers point total. Players who lead in Box-Toppers points are more frequently players who hit for more power and come from teams that win a lot of games.

Jose Ramirez of the Indians has the most Box-Toppers points of any player in the top 10 in batting average for 2017. Ramirez earned 10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2017, 38th among all players, fifth among AL batters. Ramirez batted .318, ninth among all players.

Four other players in the top 10 in batting average for 2017 were also among the top 100 in Box-Toppers points:

Eric Hosmer of the Royals ranked eighth in batting average (.318) and 45th in Box-Toppers points (9.5).
Buster Posey of the Giants ranked seventh in batting average (.320) and 46th in Box-Toppers points (9.5).
Josh Reddick of the Astros ranked 10th in batting average (.314) and 75th in Box-Toppers points (8.0). Reddick also led all Astros batters in Box-Toppers points, ahead of Altuve.
Daniel Murphy of the Nationals ranked fourth in batting average (.322) and 85th in Box-Toppers points (7.5).

Charlie Blackmon of the Rockies led National League batters in batting average (.331, which ranked second overall behind Altuve). Blackmon earned 5.7 points in 2017, 159th among all players.

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.

Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.

Batting average leaders for 2016

Batting average leaders for 2015

Batting average leaders for 2014