Indians pitcher Corey Kluber had the biggest decline in Box-Toppers points from 2018 to 2019.
Big dippers
Here are players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from 2018 to 2019. Players are listed in order of their Box-Toppers point decline. Their Box-Toppers points (BTP) for 2019, if any, are also shown.| Player | Pos | Team | Dip | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | -21.7 | |
| 2 | Snell, Blake 3688 | pi sp | tb al | -17.2 | 10.0 |
| 3 | Severino, Luis 3567 | pi sp | nyy al | -15.7 | 2.0 |
| 4 | Chacin, Jhoulys 2711 | pi sp | bos al | -13.7 | |
| 5 | Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | pit nl | -12.4 | |
| 6 | Freeland, Kyle 3763 | pi sp | col nl | -11.4 | 1.0 |
| 7 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | -11.4 | 7.7 |
| 8 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | -11.4 | 9.7 |
| 9 | McCullers, Lance 3488 | pi sp | hou al | -10.7 | |
| 10 | Godley, Zack 3538 | pi mr sp | free agent | -9.7 | 1.0 |
| 11 | Pivetta, Nick 3825 | pi sp mr | phi nl | -9.7 | 2.0 |
| 12 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | -9.7 | 15.4 |
| 13 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | -9.1 | 11.0 |
| 14 | Davidson, Matt 3292 | 3b dh 1b | tex al | -8.7 | |
| 15 | Urena, Jose 3492 | pi sp | fla nl | -8.7 | 2.0 |
| 16 | Newcomb, Sean 3831 | pi mr sp | atl nl | -8.7 | 2.7 |
| 17 | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | pi sp | stl nl | -8.7 | 3.0 |
| 18 | Foltynewicz, Mike 3455 | pi sp | atl nl | -8.7 | 5.0 |
| 19 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | bos al | -8.7 | 5.7 |
| 20 | Lindor, Francisco 3586 | ss | cle al | -8.6 | 1.0 |
| 21 | Stratton, Chris 3883 | pi sp | pit nl | -8.4 | |
| 22 | Anderson, Tyler 3656 | pi sp | col nl | -8.0 | |
| 23 | Cahill, Trevor 2658 | pi sp | ana al | -8.0 | 1.0 |
| 24 | Suarez, Andrew 3963 | pi sp | sf nl | -7.7 | |
| 25 | Eovaldi, Nathan 2928 | pi sp | bos al | -7.7 | 1.0 |
BTP: Box-Toppers points
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Kluber, who earned 21.7 Box-Toppers points in 2018 (fourth among all players), earned no points in 2019. His decline of 21.7 points was ahead of Rays pitcher Blake Snell, whose 10.0 points in 2019 represented a 17.2-point drop from the 27.2 points he earned to lead all players in 2018.
Kluber was limited to just seven starts in 2019 and did not earn Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors in any of them. During his seventh appearance on May 1, his right arm (his pitching arm) was fractured when he was hit by a line drive. While preparing to return in August, his rehab progress was halted by abdominal tightness and he sat out the remainder of the season.
Kluber earned 0.0 Box-Toppers points in 2019 after having earned 20 or more for three straight seasons and four out of the past five seasons:
2014—25.8, second overall, first among American League pitchers.
2015—13.4, 10th among AL pitchers.
2016—21.2, fifth overall, first among AL pitchers.
2017—22.0, fifth overall, second among AL pitchers.
2018—21.7, fourth overall, third among AL pitchers.
In 2014, Kluber had the biggest increase in Box-Toppers points among all players from the previous season, rising 20.8 points to 25.8 from the 5.0 points he had in 2013. In 2015, he had the fifth-largest decline in Box-Toppers points, falling 12.4 from 25.8 in 2014 to 13.4 in 2015.
Despite earning no points in 2019, Kluber still ranked second among AL pitchers in Box-Toppers points over the past six seasons, earning 104.1 from 2014 to 2019. Only one AL pitcher has more points over that period—Chris Sale of the Red Sox and he has just 1.7 more—105.8.
Kluber was traded in the offseason to the Texas Rangers.
Many players on the list of Box-Toppers’ “big dippers” also spent time on the injured list in 2019, which was why their performance did not measure up to their 2018 success. Nine of the top 10 players on the “big dippers” list spent time on the injured list in 2019. Of those 10, only Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola did not miss a start, appearing 34 times. However, he only earned 9.7 Box-Toppers points in 2019, compared to the 21.1 points he earned in 33 appearances in 2018, an 11.4-point decline, the eighth-largest.
Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr., who had the ninth-biggest decline in Box-Toppers points (-10.7, earning no points in 2019 after earning 10.7 in 2018), spent the entire season on the disabled list recovering from Tommy John surgery. He is expected to return for 2020. Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon, who had the fifth-biggest decline in points (-12.4, earning no points in 2019 after earning 12.4 in 2018), was limited to seven appearances in 2019 and also underwent Tommy John surgery and is slated to miss all of 2020.
Rays pitcher Blake Snell, who was Box-Toppers’ 2018 Player of the Year, leading all players that season with 27.2 Box-Toppers points, had the second-biggest decline among all players in 2019. He fell 17.2 points, earning 10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2019. He missed two starts after breaking his toe in April (a non-baseball injury) and was out nearly two months from July to September after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to remove loose bodies from his left elbow. He made 23 appearances in 2019 compared to the 31 he made in 2018. Despite the decline, his 10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2019 still ranked 19th among AL pitchers.
Snell was Box-Toppers’ 2018 most-improved player—his 27.2 points in 2018 was an increase of 22.2 from this 5.0 points in 2017. It was not only the largest increase from 2017 to 2018, but the largest increase in points from one season to the next in Box-Toppers tracking history, which began in 1995.
Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco had the seventh-biggest decline of 11.4 Box-Toppers points, earning 7.7 in 2019 after earning 19.1 in 2018 (seventh among all players). Carrasco announced he was diagnosed with leukemia and missed half the season—all of June, July and August. From March to May, Carrasco made 12 starts and on May 16, he had 5.7 Box-Toppers points, which was fourth-most among AL pitchers. Remarkably, he returned in September and made 11 relief appearances, earning 2.0 more Box-Toppers points.
Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer had the 12th-biggest decline, falling 9.7 points with 15.4 in 2019 after earning 25.1 in 2018, second among all players. Scherzer’s 15.4 is the most 2019 points of any of the 25 players on the “big dipper” list and ranked 15th among all players, ninth among NL pitchers. Scherzer had earned 20 or more points per season for five straight years (2014-2018), including leading all players in 2016 (25.7) and leading NL pitchers for three straight seasons (2016—25.7, 2017—25.0 and 2018—25.1).
Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale had the 13th-biggest decline, falling 9.1 points with 11.0 in 2019 (15th among AL pitchers) after earning 20.1 in 2018 (sixth among all players, fourth among AL pitchers). Sale led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2017 with 25.1.
Matt Davidson of the Rangers had the biggest decline among all batters, falling 8.7 points from 8.7 in 2018 with the White Sox (fourth among AL batters) to 0.0 in 2019. The 8.7-point drop was the 14th-biggest among all players. Davidson played for the Rangers’ AAA minor league affiliate in Nashville and did not play in the Major Leagues in 2019.
Francisco Lindor of the Indians had the second-biggest decline among all batters, falling 8.6 points from 9.6 in 2018 (third among AL batters) to 1.0 in 2019. It was the biggest drop among batters who played in the Majors in 2019—Lindor appeared in 143 games in 2019 compared to 158 in 2018. The 8.6-point drop was the 20th-biggest among all players.
There are six players on the Box-Toppers 2019’s top 25 big dippers list who were also among the top 25 top risers in 2018. In other words, these are players who had what seem to be one-year spikes in Box-Toppers points:
Snell, as previously mentioned, was Box-Toppers’ most-improved player in 2018, rising 22.2 points to 27.2. In 2019, he ranked second on the big dippers list, falling 17.2 points to 10.0.
Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas, fourth among 2018’s risers (+11.7 from 0.0 in 2017 to 11.7 in 2018) and 17th among 2019’s dippers (-8.7 to 3.0 in 2019).
Red Sox pitcher David Price, eighth among 2018’s risers (+9.7 from 4.7 in 2017 to 14.4 in 2018) and 19th among 2019’s dippers (-8.7 to 5.7 in 2019).
Braves pitcher Mike Foltynewicz, ninth among 2018’s risers (+9.7 from 4.0 in 2017 to 13.7 in 2018) and 18th among 2019’s dippers (-8.7 to 5.0 in 2019).
Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, 18th among 2018’s risers (+8.7 from 0.0 in 2017 to 8.7 in 2018) and 25th among 2019’s dippers (-7.7 to 1.0 in 2019).
Braves pitcher Sean Newcomb, 21st among 2018’s risers (+8.4 from 3.0 in 2017 to 11.4 in 2018) and 16th among 2019’s dippers (-8.7 to 2.7 in 2019).
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The Boston Red Sox had the most players among the top 25 on Box-Toppers’ 2019 big dippers list—four:
Pitcher Jhoulys Chacin, ranked fourth with a 13.7-point decline from 13.7 in 2018 to 0.0 in 2019.
Pitcher Chris Sale, ranked 13th with an 11.0-point decline from 20.1 in 2018 to 11.0 in 2019.
Pitcher David Price, ranked 19th with an 8.7 point decline from 14.4 in 2018 to 5.7 in 2019.
Pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, ranked 25th with a 7.7-point decline from 8.7 in 2018 to 1.0 in 2019.
The Red Sox also experienced decline as a team from 2018 to 2019. In 2018, they led Box-Toppers’ team rankings with 143.6 Box-Toppers points accumulated by all players on the season-closing roster. They were also the 2018 World Series champions. But in 2019, they ranked just 13th among all teams with 105.0 Box-Toppers points among all players. They also failed to qualify for the postseason.
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There are only two batters among the 25 on Box-Toppers’ big dippers list. That is relatively low. In 2018, batters held nine of the 25 spots. In 2017, they had seven of the 25 spots. It is an indication of batters receiving overall fewer Box-Toppers points and a much lower share of points compared to pitchers. Batters can’t decline as far as pitchers in Box-Toppers points simply because they are earning so few to begin with. Here are the 10 batters who declined most in Box-Toppers points from 2018 to 2019. Only two are on the overall top 25 list (Davidson in 14th and Lindor in 20th).
Matt Davidson, third base, Rangers, -8.7 (8.7 in 2018, 0.0 in 2019)
Francisco Lindor, shortstop, Indians, -8.6 (9.6 in 2018, 1.0 in 2019)
Mark Reynolds, infield, released by Rockies, -7.5 (7.5, 0.0)
Ryon Healy, first base, Mariners, -7.0 (7.0, 0.0)
Mitch Haniger, right field, Mariners, -6.5 (6.5, 0.0)
Travis Shaw, third base, Brewers, -6.5 (6.5, 0.0)
Scooter Gennett, second base, released by Giants, -6.0 (6.0, 0.0)
Javier Baez, shortstop, Cubs, -6.0 (10.0, 4.0)
Manny Machado, shortstop, Padres, -5.7 (5.7, 0.0)
Curtis Granderson, designated hitter/outfield, Marlins, -5.7 (8.2, 2.5)
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
Past Box-Toppers top 25 big dippers lists: 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015
To see lists of Box-Toppers top 10 big dippers season-by-season from 1995 onward, see the Details leaders page. Scroll down near the bottom of the charts to find the top 10 “dippers” per season, just above the top 10 “risers” per season