Box-Toppers top shortstops by time frame (after 2017)

Here are the top shortstops in Box-Toppers points (BTP) over the past season (2017), the past two seasons (2016-17), the past six seasons (2012-17) and “all-time”—the past 23 seasons (since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began). For the most recent seasons, the top five shortstops in each league are shown. For the “all-time” rankings, the top five overall shortstops (including retired players) are shown at left and the top five active shortstops in career Box-Toppers points are shown at right. Some players played more than one position, but even if their primary position was not shortstop, they are listed here.
 

 American League National League
’17 Player Pos Team BTP Player Pos Team BTP
1 Andrus, Elvis 2582 ss tex al 11.0 Seager, Corey 3587 ss lad nl 7.0
2 Iglesias, Jose 3532 ss det al 8.0 Valaika, Patrick 3793 ss 3b 2b ph col nl 5.2
3 Correa, Carlos 3506 ss hou al 7.0 Dejong, Paul 3827 ss stl nl 4.5
4 Bogaerts, Xander 3383 ss bos al 5.5 Russell, Addison 3559 ss chi nl 3.5
5 Goins, Ryan 3478 ss tor al 5.0 Cozart, Zack 3012 ss ph cin nl 3.5
American League National League
’16‑17 Player Pos Team BTP Player Pos Team BTP
1 Andrus, Elvis 2582 ss tex al 20.2 Seager, Corey 3587 ss lad nl 11.0
2 Correa, Carlos 3506 ss hou al 14.7 Story, Trevor 3607 ss col nl 9.0
3 Lindor, Francisco 3586 ss cle al 10.5 Russell, Addison 3559 ss chi nl 7.0
4 Semien, Marcus 3302 ss oak al 8.5 Diaz, Aledmys 3612 ss lf stl nl 6.5
5 Iglesias, Jose 3532 ss det al 8.0 Mercer, Jordy 3206 ss pit nl 6.0
American League National League
’12‑17 Player Pos Team BTP Player Pos Team BTP
1 Tulowitzki, Troy 2308 ss tor al 27.6 Drew, Stephen 2210 ss 2b dc nl 17.5
2 Andrus, Elvis 2582 ss tex al 25.2 Crawford, Brandon 2878 ss sf nl 16.2
3 Hardy, J.J. 2071 ss bal al 23.1 Cozart, Zack 3012 ss ph cin nl 14.5
4 Correa, Carlos 3506 ss hou al 21.9 Reyes, Jose 1759 ss 3b nym nl 14.5
5 Escobar, Alcides 2663 ss kc al 21.0 Galvis, Freddy 3202 ss phi nl 13.0
All players (including retired) All active players
’95‑17 Player Pos Team BTP Player Pos Team BTP
1 Tejada, Miguel ss Retired 102.3 Tulowitzki, Troy 2308 ss tor al 59.8
2 Jeter, derek ss Retired 76.4 Hardy, J.J. 2071 ss bal al 54.8
3 Garciaparra, Nomar ss Retired 74.9 Rollins, Jimmy 1516 ss Released 50.4
4 Young, Michael 1498 ss Retired 73.1 Peralta, Jhonny 1815 3b ss Released 39.4
5 Renteria, Edgar ss Retired 67.0 Drew, Stephen 2210 ss 2b dc nl 37.5
What are those numbers after players' names?
Active players are shown on the team with whom they finished the 2017 season.

Miguel Tejada leads shortstops in Box-Toppers points since 1995, though 2nd-ranked Derek Jeter is widely seen as superior

Miguel Tejada has the most Box-Toppers points of any shortstop since tracking began in 1995.

Tejada, who played from 1997 to 2013 primarily for the Athletics and Orioles, but also for the Astros, Giants, Padres and Royals, earned 102.3 career Box-Toppers points.

That is 25.9 Box-Toppers points ahead of the second-place shortstop in career Box-Toppers points, Derek Jeter (76.4), who played for the Yankees from 1995 to 2014.

The chart above shows the top five shortstops over several time frames. For the past season (2017), past two seasons (2016-17) and past six seasons (2012-17) the top five shortstops in each league are shown. The top five overall shortstops since 1995 (including those who have retired) are shown at the bottom left in the chart. The top five active shortstops in career Box-Toppers points are shown at the bottom right.

The top five shortstops leading career Box-Toppers points (Tejada, Jeter, Nomar Garciaparra, Michael Young and Edgar Renteria) all began playing in 1995 or after, so their entire careers were tracked by Box-Toppers. In addition, all five of those players are now retired—the active shortstop with the most career Box-Toppers points, Troy Tulowitzki of the Blue Jays (59.8 points), ranks sixth among shortstops in Box-Toppers points since 1995.

Comparing Tejada & Jeter

Here is a season-by-season breakdown of Box-Toppers points earned by Miguel Tejada and Derek Jeter over their careers.
 

 Miguel
Tejada		 Derek
Jeter
Year Team BTP Team BTP
1995 nyy al 0.0
1996 nyy al†† 4.5
1997 oak al 2.0 nyy al 2.0
1998 oak al 5.0 nyy al 10.0
1999 oak al 11.0 nyy al 2.0
2000 oak al 9.2 nyy al 2.5
2001 oak al 10.5 nyy al 5.0
2002 oak al† 10.5 nyy al 5.0
2003 oak al 10.2 nyy al 2.5
2004 bal al 10.7 nyy al 8.7
2005 bal al 5.7 nyy al 4.0
2006 bal al 6.5 nyy al 6.7
2007 bal al 2.0 nyy al 7.0
2008 hou nl 5.0 nyy al 3.0
2009 hou nl 4.5 nyy al 1.0
2010 bal al/sd nl 6.5 nyy al 5.0
2011 sf nl 3.0 nyy al 4.5
2012 Inactive 0.0 nyy al 3.0
2013 kc al 0.0 nyy al 0.0
2014 nyy al 0.0
Career 102.3 76.4
† Tejada won American League Most Valuable Player honors in 2002.
†† Jeter won American League Rookie of the Year honors in 1996.

While Jeter is widely considered to be the superior shortstop during the era in which he played (and a sure-fire, first-ballot Hall of Famer when he is eligible in 2020), his Box-Toppers point total is lower—and considerably lower—than Tejada’s for a couple of reasons. First, Jeter tended to hit for less power than Tejada, hitting home runs and runs batted in less often. Tejada hit 100 or more RBIs in six seasons (including leading the American League in RBIs in 2004 with 150), while Jeter hit 100 or more just once (in 1999, he hit 102). Tejada hit 30 or more home runs in four seasons; Jeter never hit more than 24 in a season.

Jeter also played for better teams (playing in 16 postseasons and winning five World Series titles) with high quality players and had to compete with those teammates for Player of the Game honors. Among players who were Jeter’s teammates from 1996 to 2012 (when they made the postseason every year except 2008) and who rank higher than Jeter in career Box-Toppers points are:

  • CC Sabathia, who has 192.7 career Box-Toppers points, ranked fifth among all players.
  • Alex Rodriguez, 187.0 points, ranked seventh.
  • Roger Clemens, 164.8 points, ranked 13th.
  • Mike Mussina, 155.6 points, ranked 17th.
  • Andy Pettitte, 138.5 points, ranked 30th.
  • Jason Giambi, 133.4 points, ranked 31st.
  • Mariano Rivera, 126.4 points, ranked 38th.
  • Gary Sheffield, 124.1 points, ranked 39th.
  • Mark Teixeira, 101.3 points, ranked 75th.
  • Bobby Abreu, 95.5 points, ranked 89th.
  • Bernie Williams, 93.8 points, ranked 94th.
  • David Wells, 87.5 points, ranked 107th.
  • Alfonso Soriano, 82.4 points, ranked 118th.
  • Tino Martinez, 81.4 points, ranked 121st.
  • Orlando Hernandez, 79.9 points, ranked 125th.
  • Jorge Posada, 79.5 points, ranked 127th.

Jeter may have had far more Box-Toppers points if he didn’t have to compete against these teammates for Player of the Game honors. Considering the talent on his team, it’s remarkable Jeter was able to earn as many Box-Toppers points as he did.

Tejada, by contrast, only played in the postseason four times with the Athletics from 2000 to 2003, losing each time in the AL Division Series, twice to Jeter’s Yankees and had fewer quality teammates to compete against to earn Player of the Game honors. Only three of his teammates from any of those seasons had more career Box-Toppers points than Tejada:

  • Tim Hudson, 157.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 15th.
  • Jason Giambi, 133.4 points, ranked 31st (who was later a teammate of Jeter’s).
  • Barry Zito, 117.4 points, ranked 43rd.

One other factor in Jeter’s favor and to Tejada’s detriment is that Tejada was associated with baseball’s performance enhancing drug scandal. Several times through his career he was linked to steroid use, including pleading guilty in 2009 of lying to Congress in 2005 about performance enhancing drug usage. In 2013, he was suspended 105 games for testing positive for amphetamines.

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Elvis Andrus of the Rangers leads all shortstops over the past season (11.0 Box-Toppers points in 2017) and over the past two seasons (20.2 points over 2016-17). Andrus also ranks second among American League shortstops over the past six seasons (27.6 from 2012-17). 

Troy Tulowitzki of the Blue Jays leads all active shortstops in career Box-Toppers points (59.8, which is sixth-most among all shortstops since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995). Tulowitzki also leads all shortstops over the past six seasons (27.6 points over 2012-17). However, Tulowitzki had no points in 2017; he played in just 66 games in an injury-shortened season.

Corey Seager of the Dodgers leads all National League shortstops over the past season (7.0 Box-Toppers points in 2017) and past two seasons (11.0 points over 2016-17).

Stephen Drew of the Nationals leads all NL shortstops over the past six seasons (17.5 Box-Toppers points from 2012-17). Drew also ranks fifth among active shortstops in career Box-Toppers points and he is the only one of the five on that list to earn Box-Toppers points in 2017. However, Drew only earned 1.5 Box-Toppers points in 2017.

Two of the five active shortstops in career Box-Toppers points finished the 2017 season without a team affiliation. Both Jimmy Rollins and Jhonny Peralta were listed as released. Rollins, 39, was signed by the Giants prior to the 2017 season and released before the season started and did not play in 2017. Peralta, 35, played 21 games for the Cardinals in 2017 before being released and was also signed and released by the Red Sox without playing a game in 2017. 

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: 

Related Box-Toppers High by Position posts showing Box-Toppers points leaders by position over several time frames—past season (2017), past two seasons (2016-17), past six seasons (2012-17) and “all-time” (since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began):

  • First base: Miguel Cabrera leads all-time (career Box-Toppers points since 1995). He also leads all active first basemen in career points and leads all first basemen over the past six seasons. Anthony Rizzo leads past season.
  • Second base: Jeff Kent leads all-time. Scooter Gennett leads past season.
  • Shortstop: Miguel Tejada leads all-time over Derek Jeter. Elvis Andrus leads past season (and also past two seasons).
  • Third base: Alex Rodriguez leads all-time. Jose Ramirez leads past season.
  • Catcher: Mike Piazza leads all-time. Buster Posey leads past season (and also past two and past six seasons).
  • Outfield: Manny Ramirez leads all-time. Giancarlo Stanton leads past season (and also past two seasons).
  • Designated hitter: Albert Pujols leads all-time (and also leads active DHs in career points). Edwin Encarnacion leads past season (and also past two seasons and past six seasons).
  • Pitcher: Randy Johnson leads all-time. Clayton Kershaw leads active pitchers in career points (and also leads over past six seasons). Chris Sale leads past season. Max Scherzer leads past two seasons.
  • Closing pitcher: Trevor Hoffman leads all-time over all-time saves leader Mariano Rivera. Craig Kimbrel leads active closers in career points (and also leads over past two seasons and past six seasons). Edwin Diaz leads over past six seasons.
  • Overall: Johnson leads all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995. Kershaw leads active players in career points and also leads all players over the past six seasons. Chris Sale led players in 2017. Max Scherzer leads players over the past two seasons.