Carlos Beltran ties Jason Giambi in 2017 for most consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points (19)

In 2017, Carlos Beltran tied Box-Toppers’ record for the longest consecutive season streak in which a player has earned Player of the Game honors.

Box-Toppers season streaks

Here are the players who have earned Box-Toppers points in the most consecutive seasons. Carlos Beltran has tied Jason Giambi for the longest streak—19 straight seasons. Beltran has earned points each season from 1999 to 2017; Giambi earned points each season from 1995 to 2013. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.) Players are listed by length of their streak. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total.
 
Streak
Player
Pos
Duration		 Career
BTP
1 19 Jason Giambi 1b 1995‑2013 133.4
1 19 Carlos Beltran** rf 1999‑2017 108.6
3 18 Jim Thome 1b dh 1995‑2012 146.7
3 18 Chipper Jones 3b 1995‑2012 149.0
3 18 Johnny Damon lf 1995‑2012 63.0
3 18 Alex Rodriguez 3b 1996‑2013 187.0
7 17 Mariano Rivera pi cp 1995‑2011 126.4
7 17 Derek Jeter ss 1996‑2012 76.4
7 17 Paul Konerko 1b 1998‑2014 100.7
7 17 Tim Hudson pi sp 1999‑2015 157.0
7 17 Torii Hunter cf 1999‑2015 115.9
7 17 David Ortiz dh 2000‑2016 145.9
7 17 CC Sabathia* pi sp 2001‑2017 192.7
7 17 Albert Pujols* dh 1b 2001‑2017 187.8
15 16 Manny Ramirez lf 1995‑2010 167.2
15 16 Andy Pettitte pi sp 1995‑2010 138.5
15 16 Jamie Moyer pi sp 1995‑2010 104.0
15 16 Scott Rolen 3b 1996‑2011 97.6
15 16 Kevin Millwood pi sp 1997‑2012 108.3
15 16 Derek Lowe pi sp 1998‑2013 91.5
15 16 Aramis Ramirez 3b 2000‑2015 105.8
15 16 Mark Buehrle pi sp 2000‑2015 116.7
15 16 Ichiro Suzuki rf 2001‑2016 53.7
24 15 Randy Johnson pi sp 1995‑2009 278.8
24 15 Garret Anderson lf 1995‑2009 86.5
24 15 Ivan Rodriguez ca 1995‑2009 79.0
24 15 Tony Clark 1b 1995‑2009 63.8
24 15 Gary Sheffield lf 1995‑2009 124.1
24 15 Jason Kendall ca 1996‑2010 40.9
24 15 Vladimir Guerrero rf 1997‑2011 128.3
24 15 Bobby Abreu rf 1997‑2011 95.5
24 15 Mike Cameron cf 1997‑2011 70.3
24 15 Miguel Tejada ss 1997‑2011 102.3
24 15 Jorge Posada ca 1997‑2011 79.5
24 15 Livan Hernandez pi sp 1997‑2011 76.7
24 15 Kyle Lohse pi sp 2001‑2015 89.0
24 15 Jake Peavy pi sp 2002‑2016 141.8
24 15 Miguel Cabrera* 1b 2003‑2017 146.9
BTP: Box-Toppers points
* Active streak of a player who plans to be active in 2018.
** Active streak of a player who announced his retirement at the end of 2017.

On May 9, Beltran of the Astros earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors, marking the 19th straight season in which he earned Box-Toppers points (1999 to 2017). That ties the record of Jason Giambi, who earned Box-Toppers points for 19 straight seasons from 1995 to 2013. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995, the same year Giambi began his Major League career.)

But since Beltran, 40, retired at the end of 2017 (after his Astros won the World Series), he will not get the chance to break Giambi’s record with 20 straight seasons. Plus, he relinquishes his season streak lead among active players to two players with 17-season streaks of earning at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point:

  • CC Sabathia of the Yankees
  • Albert Pujols of the Angels

Both players are in an eight-way tie for seventh place on Box-Toppers’ “all-time” longest season streaks. Both have earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point each season from 2001 to 2017.

The top chart shows the 38 players who have streaks of 15 or more consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points since tracking began in 1995. The list is an indication of baseball’s most durable, consistent and injury-free players over the past 23 seasons. The bottom chart shows the 27 players who plan to be active in 2018 who have streaks of 12 or more consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points.

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.

How streak leaders Giambi and Beltran fared in Box-Toppers points

While Giambi and Beltran both earned Box-Toppers points in 19 consecutive seasons, Giambi has more career Box-Toppers points (133.4 vs. 108.6) and led his league’s batters in Box-Toppers points once (17.0 in 2002 with the Yankees, leading American League batters), while Beltran never did (his best year was 2003 with the Royals, when he had 13.9 Box-Toppers points, second among AL batters).

Giambi ranks ninth among all batters in career Box-Toppers points since 1995 with 133.4. Beltran ranks 18th among batters “all-time” with 108.6, including the 3.7 he earned in 2017, his final year. 

And while Giambi had seven seasons with 7.5 or more Box-Toppers points, he also had seasons in which he barely kept the streak alive. He earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors only once in each of the 2011 and 2012 seasons—he had 1.5 Box-Toppers points in 2011 and 1.0 point in 2012.

Beltran meanwhile had five seasons with 7.5 or more Box-Toppers points and two seasons in which he barely kept the streak alive, 2010 (with the Mets) and 2014 (with the Yankees), in which he earned only 1.0 Box-Toppers point each year.

Beltran earned Box-Toppers points in all but his first season in his Major League career. However, in 1998, he played in just 14 games and in 1999, his first full season with the Royals, was named AL Rookie of the Year. Giambi earned Box-Toppers points in all but his final season in his Major League career. In 2014, with the Indians, Giambi played in just 26 games.

Many players on the list began their consecutive seasons streak in 1995. Several of those players could likely have had longer streaks if Box-Toppers tracking extended earlier than 1995. For example, Jim Thome ranks second with a streak of 18 straight seasons, but he began his career in 1991. Jamie Moyer (16 straight seasons) and Randy Johnson (15 straight seasons) both began their careers in the late 1980s and would also likely have longer streaks.

Active season streaks

Here are players who plan to be active at the start of the 2018 season who have earned Box-Toppers points in the most consecutive seasons. Players are listed by the length of their streak and with their current team status (as of January 7, 2018). Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total.
 

 Streak Player Pos Team Duration Career
BTP
1 17 CC Sabathia pi sp Yankees 2001‑2017 192.7
1 17 Albert Pujols dh 1b Angels 2001‑2017 187.8
3 15 Miguel Cabrera 1b Tigers 2003‑2017 146.9
4 14 Matt Holliday dh 1b lf Free agent 2004‑2017 100.8
4 14 Joe Mauer 1b Twins 2004‑2017 77.1
6 13 Felix Hernandez pi sp Mariners 2005‑2017 171.4
6 13 Ervin Santana pi sp Twins 2005‑2017 113.4
6 13 Robinson Cano 2b Mariners 2005‑2017 79.4
6 13 Edwin Encarnacion dh 1b Indians 2005‑2017 79.2
10 12 Justin Verlander pi sp Astros 2006‑2017 154.0
10 12 Jon Lester pi sp Cubs 2006‑2017 153.9
10 12 Cole Hamels pi sp Rangers 2006‑2017 153.4
10 12 James Shields pi sp White Sox 2006‑2017 101.4
10 12 Edinson Volquez pi sp Free agent 2006‑2017 68.2
10 12 Brandon Phillips 2b 3b Free agent 2006‑2017 66.6
10 12 Jose Bautista rf Free agent 2006‑2017 65.4
10 12 Matt Kemp lf Dodgers 2006‑2017 63.6
10 12 Ian Kinsler 2b Angels 2006‑2017 63.6
10 12 Ryan Zimmerman 1b Nationals 2006‑2017 63.5
10 12 Brian McCann ca Astros 2006‑2017 62.4
10 12 Adam Lind 1b ph Free agent 2006‑2017 61.5
10 12 Mike Napoli dh 1b Free agent 2006‑2017 60.7
10 12 Jason Hammel pi sp Royals 2006‑2017 60.2
10 12 Nelson Cruz dh Mariners 2006‑2017 59.2
10 12 Russell Martin ca Blue Jays 2006‑2017 55.0
10 12 Nick Markakis rf Braves 2006‑2017 49.6
10 12 Howie Kendrick 2b lf 1b Free agent 2006‑2017 35.5
BTP: Box-Toppers points

Sabathia and Pujols have the longest active streaks

Going into 2018, Sabathia and Pujols are tied for the longest active streaks of 17 straight seasons earning at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point, in an eight-way tie for the seventh-longest streak. Both have earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2001 to 2017 and in 2018, could extend their streaks to 18 seasons (which would move them into a tie for third place with four others).

  • Sabathia of the Yankees, who turns 38 on July 21, earned 7.7 Box-Toppers points in 2017, his best season since 2012, when he had 15.1. Sabathia barely kept the streak alive in 2014 when he earned only 1.0 Box-Toppers point. But Sabathia has earned more than 10.0 Box-Toppers points in nine seasons and led all players in 2008 with the Brewers when he had 26.7 Box-Toppers points. Sabathia’s 17-year streak earning Box-Toppers points is tied for the longest streak among pitchers “all-time,” with Mariano Rivera (1995-2011) and Tim Hudson (1999-2015). Sabathia has 192.7 career Box-Toppers points, fifth among all players since 1995, fourth among all pitchers and second among all active players.
  • Pujols of the Angels, who turns 37 on Jan. 16, earned 5.5 Box-Toppers points in 2017 to extend his consecutive seasons streak to 17. Pujols has never had fewer than 4.0 points in any season (he had 4.0 in 2013 with the Angels). He’s led his league’s batters in Box-Toppers points five times, most of any batter; he led National League batters in 2003 (16.5 Box-Toppers points), 2004 (15.9), 2008 (15.2), 2009 (16.7) and 2010 (15.4), all five times with the Cardinals. Pujols has 187.8 career Box-Toppers points, sixth among all players since 1995, first among all batters since 1995 and third among all active players.

Of the 38 players listed in the chart with streaks of 15 or more consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points, only three of those streaks are active and have the chance to be added to in 2018. Besides Sabathia and Pujols, the only other active streak on the list for 2018 is Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, who debuted on the list in 2017, earning Box-Toppers points for his 15th consecutive season, in a 15-way tie for the 24th-longest streak since 1995. In 2018, it is the third-longest active streak.

Cabrera has earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2003 to 2017 and has 146.9 career Box-Toppers points, 26th among all players since 1995, sixth among all batters since 1995, 11th among all active players and second among all active batters (behind Pujols). However, Cabrera, 34, barely kept his streak alive in 2017, earning just 2.0 Box-Toppers points, his lowest total in 15 seasons. Cabrera has 10 seasons with 7.5 or more points (including nine straight seasons from 2006 to 2014). Cabrera twice led AL batters in Box-Toppers points—in 2009 with 16.5 and in 2013 with 16.9.

Notable streaks that ended in 2017—Suzuki, Peavy, K-Rod and Morneau

Several notable long streaks that had the chance to continue in 2017 ended after 2016 when players did not earn Box-Toppers points last season:

  • Ichiro Suzuki, who played for the Marlins in 2017, had his streak of 16 straight seasons end after 2016 when he earned no Box-Toppers points in 2017. Suzuki, 44, played in a career-low 136 games in 2017. He had earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2001 to 2016, tied for the 15th-longest streak since 1995. However, despite the long streak, Suzuki has the fewest career Box-Toppers points (53.7) among the 23 players with streaks of 16 or more seasons. Suzuki is listed as a free agent for 2018.
  • Jake Peavy’s streak of 15 straight seasons ended after 2016 when he did not play in 2017. Peavy was listed as a free agent during 2017 as he dealt with personal matters and is still listed as a free agent for 2018, hoping for a comeback. Peavy, 36, earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2002 to 2016, tied for the 24th-longest streak since 1995. Peavy has 141.8 career Box-Toppers points, 29th among all players since 1995. He led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2007 with the Padres, when he had 23.4. In 2016, he had 5.0 Box-Toppers points with the Giants.
  • Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez, who played for the Tigers and Nationals in 2017, had his streak of 14 straight seasons end after 2016. Rodriguez earned no Box-Toppers points in 2017, after appearing in just 28 games, far below his average of 65 game appearances per season from 2003 to 2016. Rodriguez earned Box-Toppers points in each of those 14 seasons from 2003 to 2016, including earning 3.0 points with the Tigers in 2016. At the end of 2016, Rodriguez’s 14-season streak was tied for the sixth-longest active streak. Rodriguez, 36, is currently listed as a free agent. He has 63.4 career Box-Toppers points, second among active closing pitchers.
  • Justin Morneau’s streak of 13 straight seasons ended after 2016 when he remained unsigned and did not play in 2017, battling injuries. Morneau, 36, is still listed as a free agent. Morneau earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2004 to 2016, including 1.0 point in that final season with the White Sox. After the 2016 season, Morneau’s streak was tied for the eighth-longest active streak. Morneau has 74.3 career Box-Toppers points, 12th among active batters.

David Ortiz also had his streak of 17 consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points end after 2016, but that was expected since he announced his retirement after 2016. Ortiz, who earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2000 to 2016, ranks tied for seventh in longest streaks since 1995.

Players with active streaks of at least 12 consecutive seasons

The second chart is limited to the players with longest active streaks who have either not announced retirement or have already made plans to play in 2018. The list includes active players already mentioned: Sabathia, Pujols and Cabrera, plus 24 others who have streaks of at least 12 seasons. (The list is intended to be a top-10 list, but there is a massive tie for 10th place as 18 players each have earned Box-Toppers points for 12 straight seasons.)

  • Two players enter 2018 with streaks of 14 straight seasons earning Box-Toppers points, tied for the fourth-longest active streak: Matt Holliday and Joe Mauer. Holliday played for the Yankees in 2017 and is currently listed as a free agent. He had 3.0 Box-Toppers points in 2017. Mauer of the Twins had 6.5 points in 2017. Both players have earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2004 to 2017.
  • Four players enter 2018 with streaks of 13 straight seasons earning Box-Toppers points, tied for the sixth-longest active streak: Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez, Twins pitcher Ervin Santana, Robinson Cano of the Mariners and Edwin Encarnacion of the Indians. All four have earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2005 to 2017. (Matt Cain of the Giants in 2017 extended his streak of earning Box-Toppers points to 13 straight seasons, but he retired after the season, so that streak is no longer active.)
  • And 18 other players enter 2018 with streaks of 12 straight seasons earning Box-Toppers points, tied for the 10th-longest active streak. They are listed in the chart “Active season streak” with their current team status and are listed from highest-to-lowest career Box-Toppers point totals. All 18 of those players have earned Box-Toppers points each season from 2006 to 2017.

Other notable facts about consecutive streaks

Other notable facts about players with lengthy consecutive seasons streaks earning Box-Toppers points:

  • Jason Kendall has the fewest career Box-Toppers points among the 38 players with the longest streaks since 1995. Kendall earned Box-Toppers points in 15 straight seasons from 1996 to 2010 (tied for the 24th-longest streak) but only has 40.9 career Box-Toppers points. His best year was 1998 with the Pirates when he had 10.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking 15th among NL batters. But Kendall had six seasons in which he had only 1.0 Box-Toppers point—2001 and 2002 with the Pirates, 2005 and 2006 with the Athletics, 2007 with the Athletics and Cubs and 2008 with the Brewers.
  • Pedro Martinez is the player with the most Box-Toppers points who doesn’t appear in the consecutive streak list. Martinez ranks second among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995 with 244.8. Martinez had a streak of 11 straight seasons with Box-Toppers points from 1995 to 2006. He missed earning points in 2007 and 2008 before earning 3.7 in 2009. Martinez started his career in 1992, before Box-Toppers tracking, and would likely have had a streak of 13 straight seasons (from 1993 onward) if those seasons were tracked.
  • Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers leads all active players in career Box-Toppers points with 206.8, third among all players since 1995. However, Kershaw does not appear on these consecutive streak lists because he has only played in 10 seasons, making his debut in 2008. Kershaw, who will be 30 at the start of 2018, has earned Box-Toppers points in each of his 10 seasons, including nine straight seasons with at least 10.0 Box-Toppers points, eight straight seasons with at least 15.0 points and seven straight seasons with at least 20.0 points, including earning 23.1 in 2017, third among all players. Kershaw has led all players in Box-Toppers points three times—in 2011 (26.1), 2013 (21.7) and 2014 (31.5).
  • For information on players who rank just behind Giambi and Beltran with streaks of 18 consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points, see last year’s post on season streaks. There’s information there about streaks by Jim Thome, Chipper Jones, Johnny Damon and Alex Rodriguez, who are each tied for third-longest streak.

Streak lists include more batters than pitchers, though pitchers tend to dominate in Box-Toppers points

Interestingly, the list of players with the most consecutive years earning Box-Toppers points is made up largely of batters (68.4 percent). Of the 38 players listed, 26 are batters and 12 are pitchers. Of the 27 longest active streaks, 66.6 percent are batters—18, while there are nine pitchers.

In most Box-Toppers categories comparing pitchers to batters, pitchers dominate as they win Player of the Game and Player of the Day honors more frequently. But spread out over the longer period of time, batters tend to gain a few advantages. Batters’ careers tend to be longer than pitchers and with fewer interruptions because of injury. That allows them to be more likely to rank high in a list like this that prizes both longevity and consistency.

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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From last year: Carlos Beltran could tie Jason Giambi in 2017 for most consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points (19)