Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings and climbing to fifth place on Box-Toppers “all-time” career points list, passing Astros pitcher Justin Verlander.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2021. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Friday, May 14.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 9.0 |
| 2 | Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | pi sp | tb al | 8.7 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.7 |
| 4 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.4 |
| 5 | Woodruff, Brandon 3868 | pi sp | mil nl | 6.4 |
| 6 | Martinez, J.D. 2922 | dh | bos al | 6.2 |
| 7 | Means, John 4115 | pi sp | bal al | 6.0 |
| 8 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | ari nl | 6.0 |
| 9 | Rogers, Trevor 4311 | pi sp | fla nl | 6.0 |
| 10 | Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | sd nl | 5.7 |
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Also Friday, Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow maintains his second-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning American League Player of the Day honors.
Player of the Day—Scherzer struck out seven over five scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 17-2 win over the Diamondbacks.
Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.7 for the season, rising to third place in season player rankings, behind Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole (9.0) and Glasnow (8.7). Scherzer also rises to first place among National League pitchers, passing previous leader Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (6.4).
Scherzer now has 207.9 career Box-Toppers points, fifth-most among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his 2.0 points Friday, he passes Verlander (206.6) on the “all-time” list. (Verlander is currently on the injured list, recovering from Tommy John surgery, expected to miss all or much of the 2021 season.) Scherzer now trails fourth-ranked player Astros pitcher Zack Greinke (211.8). Passing Verlander, Scherzer now ranks third among active players in career Box-Toppers points, behind Kershaw (241.6) and Greinke (211.8).
American League Player of the Day—Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow struck out 10 over eight innings, allowing two runs, five hits and one walk, in the 3-2 win over the Mets. Glasnow did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the Rays did not lead when he exited.
All-time leaders
Here are Box-Toppers top 10 players since record keeping began in 1995:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | retired | 282.5 |
| 2 | Pedro Martinez | pi sp | retired | 244.8 |
| 3 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | lad nl | 241.6 |
| 4 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | hou al | 211.8 |
| 5 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | dc nl | 207.9 |
| 6 | Justin Verlander | pi sp | hou al | 206.6 |
| 7 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | retired | 203.4 |
| 8 | Albert Pujols | 1b dh | released | 202.8 |
| 9 | Curt Schilling | pi sp | retired | 194.1 |
| 10 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | retired | 187.0 |
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Glasnow earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 8.7 for the season, maintaining his second-place spot in season player rankings, behind Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole (9.0), who took over the lead Wednesday, after Glasnow held the lead for a month. Glasnow also ranks second among AL pitchers behind Cole.
American League Batter of the Day—Jarred Kelenic of the Mariners homered and hit two doubles in the 7-3 win over the Indians. Kelenic went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs.
This was Kelenic’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Kelenic made his Major League debut May 13 and was playing in his second career game.
National League Batter of the Day—Yonathan Daza of the Rockies doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 9-6 win over the Reds.
This was Daza’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Daza made his Major League debut April 9, 2019, and was playing in his 77th career game.
Debut—In addition to Kelenic and Daza, a third player also made his Box-Toppers debut Friday: Pirates pitcher Miguel Yajure also earned his first career Player of the Game honor.
Yajure (5IP H 0R BB 4K ND in the 3-2, 11-inning win over the Giants) made his Major League debut Aug. 31, 2020, and was playing in his fifth career game.
Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Glasnow earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Kelenic and Daza each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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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Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners
Here is the top player from each of the day’s games listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (BTG).| 5/14 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +9.0 | WSH 17, ARI 2 | Max Scherzer, (W 3‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| AL | +8.0 | `TB 3, NYM 2 | Tyler Glasnow | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | |
| +7.0 | `PIT 3, SF 2 (F/11) | Miguel Yajure | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +5.0 | `BOS 4, LAA 3 | Nick Pivetta | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | ||
| +4.2 | `PHI 5, TOR 1 | Vince Velasquez | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | ||
| BAT | +4.0 | SEA 7, CLE 3 | Jarred Kelenic, LF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +4.0 | NYY 5, BAL 4 | Gio Urshela, PH‑SS | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | CHC 4, DET 2 | Craig Kimbrel, (S 7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | COL 9, CIN 6 | Yonathan Daza, LF‑RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | HOU 10, TEX 4 | Martin Maldonado, C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | ATL 6, MIL 3 | Drew Smyly, (W 2‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +3.0 | OAK 6, MIN 1 | Frankie Montas, (W 5‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +3.0 | LAD 9, MIA 6 | Kenley Jansen, (S 7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | `CHW 3, KC 1 (F/7) | Michael Kopech | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ||
| +2.0 | KC 6, CHW 2 (F/7) | Salvador Perez, DH | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | SD 5, STL 4 | Manny Machado, 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
AL—Overall American League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
NL—Overall National League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
BAT—Top AL or NL Batter of the Day, worth 1.5 total Box-Toppers points.
All other players listed here earn Player of the Game honors, worth 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
` Pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s Player of the Game winners
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Player of the Game winners. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’21). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’20-21), the period 2016-2021 (’16-21) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2021 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2020 total (+/-).| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’21 | ’20‑21 | ’16‑21 | Career | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | pi sp | tb al | 8.7 | 16.7 | 32.4 | 32.4 | +0.7 |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.7 | 10.7 | 101.9 | 207.9 | +2.7 |
| Kopech, Michael 4385 | pi sp | chi al | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | +4.7 |
| Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | chi nl | 3.7 | 4.7 | 29.4 | 80.1 | +2.7 |
| Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp mr | phi nl | 2.7 | 3.7 | 24.1 | 24.1 | +1.7 |
| Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b | sd nl | 2.5 | 5.5 | 30.9 | 41.9 | ‑0.5 |
| Montas, Frankie 3803 | pi sp | oak al | 2.0 | 8.0 | 20.4 | 20.4 | ‑4.0 |
| Jansen, Kenley 2871 | pi cp | lad nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 23.0 | 53.4 | +1.0 |
| Pivetta, Nick 3825 | pi sp mr | bos al | 2.0 | 3.0 | 24.7 | 24.7 | +1.0 |
| Urshela, Gio 4135 | 3b ss ph | nyy al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 9.5 | 9.5 | +2.0 |
| Smyly, Drew 3009 | pi sp | atl nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 13.4 | 41.5 | +2.0 |
| Daza, Yonathan 4409 | lf rf | col nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | +1.5 |
| Kelenic, Jarred 4408 | lf | sea al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | +1.5 |
| Maldonado, Martin 3082 | ca | hou al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.5 | 16.0 | +1.0 |
| Perez, Salvador 2972 | dh ca | kc al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 15.5 | 33.2 | +1.0 |
| Yajure, Miguel 4407 | pi sp | pit nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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Box-Toppers
Tracking who most helps their teams win the most games, based on box score stats. A method to measure & compare baseball's top players.
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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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.