Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners.
▪️ Box-Toppers points of the day’s top players.
▪️ Top 10 players in 2023 Box-Toppers points.
▪️ A B-T look at upcoming pitching matchups.
Tigers pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to seventh place in season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2023. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Wednesday, May 10.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 2 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | tex al | 7.7 |
| 3 | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | tor al | 7.0 |
| 4 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | 6.7 |
| 5 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.1 |
| 6 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 6.0 |
| 7 | Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 | pi sp | det al | 6.0 |
| 8 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp | ana al | 5.7 |
| 9 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | min al | 5.7 |
| 10 | Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | 5.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
Back to top
Also Wednesday, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning National League Player of the Day honors. Plus, Jarren Duran of the Red Sox rises to first place among American League batters in 2023 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Player of the Day—Rodriguez struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and two walks, in the 5-0 win over the Guardians.
Rodriguez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, seventh among all players and fifth among AL pitchers.
Rodriguez had a Box-Toppers game score Wednesday of +9.0, same as Astros pitcher Cristian Javier, who was Player of the Game in the 5-4 win over the Angels (6IP 3H 2R BB 11K W). But Rodriguez ranked higher, winning overall Player of the Day, because he had more innings pitched—seven vs. six.
National League Player of the Day—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw struck out eight over seven innings, allowing one run, five hits and no walks, in the 8-1 win over the Brewers.
Kershaw earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 6.1 for the season, fifth among all players and second among NL pitchers, behind Zac Gallen of the Diamondbacks (7.7).
Kershaw had a Box-Toppers game score Wednesday of +8.0, same as two other NL pitchers who won Player of the Game honors:
Justin Verlander of the Mets (7IP 2H R 2BB 7K W in the 2-1 win over the Reds).
Zack Wheeler of the Phillies (7IP 3H R BB 7K ND in the 2-1, 10-inning win over the Blue Jays).
But Kershaw won tiebreakers over both of them to win NL Player of the Day honors. Kershaw ranked higher than Wheeler because he earned the win, while Wheeler picked up a no-decision, Kershaw ranked higher than Verlander because he had more strikeouts—eight vs. seven.
Kershaw now has 265.4 career Box-Toppers points, second among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995, behind Randy Johnson (282.5). (It should be noted Johnson would have more Box-Toppers points if his entire career from 1988 were tracked—projections put his point total at about 385.) Kershaw leads active players in career points, ahead of second-place player, Mets pitcher Max Scherzer (237.3).
American League Batter of the Day—Nick Pratto of the Royals homered and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 9-1 win over the White Sox.
National League Batter of the Day—Stone Garrett of the Nationals went 2-for-4, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 11-6 win over the Giants.
Garrett earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, ninth among NL batters.
Notable—Mets pitcher Justin Verlander now has 233.6 career Box-Toppers points—fifth-most since 1995—after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Verlander (7IP 2H R 2BB 7K W in the 2-1 win over the Reds) now trails fourth-ranked player, teammate Max Scherzer (237.3) by 3.7 points. He ranks third among active players and third among active NL pitchers behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (265.4) and Scherzer (237.3).
This is Verlander’s first Player of the Game honor of 2023 and his first as a member of the Mets. Verlander led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2022 with 26.0, when he was with the Astros. (He also led players in 2012 with the Tigers, when he had 24.8 Box-Toppers points.)
Rankings—Jarren Duran of the Red Sox rises to first place among AL batters in 2023 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Duran (2B 2-3 2R BI in the 5-2 win over the Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.5 for the season, passing previous AL batting leader, Ryan Noda of the Athletics (4.0). Duran ranks 14th among all players.
Scoring—Rodriguez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Kershaw earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Pratto and Garrett each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Player of the Game winners (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.
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.
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).Back to top
| 5/10 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +9.0 | DET 5, CLE 0 | Eduardo Rodriguez, (W 4‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| +9.0 | HOU 5, LAA 4 | Cristian Javier, (W 3‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 11 | ||
| NL | +8.0 | LAD 8, MIL 1 | Clayton Kershaw, (W 6‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | |
| +8.0 | NYM 2, CIN 1 | Justin Verlander, (W 1‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| +8.0 | `PHI 2, TOR 1 (F/10) | Zack Wheeler | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| +6.1 | `MIN 4, SD 3 (F/11) | Pablo López | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | ||
| +5.1 | `COL 4, PIT 3 | Peter Lambert | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +4.0 | BAL 2, TB 1 | Dean Kremer, (W 4‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | KC 9, CHW 1 | Nick Pratto, 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| BAT | +3.0 | WSH 11, SF 6 | Stone Garrett, LF | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | CHC 10, STL 4 | Yan Gomes, C | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | TEX 4, SEA 3 | Will Smith, (S 6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +2.0 | MIA 5, ARI 4 | Jesus Sánchez, RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | BOS 5, ATL 2 | Jarren Duran, CF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | NYY 11, OAK 3 | Harrison Bader, CF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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 would 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.
Back to top
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 in 2023 (’23). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’22-23), the period 2018-2023 (’18-23) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2023 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2022 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’23 | ’22‑23 | ’18‑23 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.1 | 16.8 | 58.6 | 265.4 | -4.6 |
| Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 | pi sp | det al | 6.0 | 6.0 | 40.8 | 60.2 | +6.0 |
| Duran, Jarren 4783 | cf | bos al | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | +4.5 |
| Javier, Cristian 4290 | pi sp | hou al | 4.0 | 19.7 | 27.7 | 27.7 | -11.7 |
| Lopez, Pablo 4028 | pi sp | min al | 4.0 | 14.7 | 37.8 | 37.8 | -6.7 |
| Wheeler, Zack 3204 | pi sp | phi nl | 3.0 | 17.4 | 59.2 | 71.9 | -11.4 |
| Garrett, Stone 4767 | dh lf | dc nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
| Kremer, Dean 4330 | pi sp | bal al | 2.0 | 9.7 | 13.4 | 13.4 | -5.7 |
| Bader, Harrison 4071 | cf | nyy al | 2.0 | 3.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | +1.0 |
| Pratto, Nick 4700 | 1b lf | kc al | 1.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -1.0 |
| Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | nym nl | 1.0 | 27.0 | 79.6 | 233.6 | -25.0 |
| Sanchez, Jesus 4551 | rf | fla nl | 1.0 | 3.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | -1.0 |
| Smith, Will 3073 | pi cp | tex al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 18.7 | 26.7 | 0.0 |
| Gomes, Yan 3177 | ca | chi nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 5.5 | 20.2 | 0.0 |
| Lambert, Peter 4155 | pi mr sp | col nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
Chart is sortable. Click a column header to re-sort the chart by the values in that column. Refresh page to restore chart to default view.
Back to top
A Box-Toppers look at Thursday’s pitching matchups
A Box-Toppers look at the upcoming day’s probable pitching matchups. Teams are paired below with visiting teams on top and home teams on the bottom. Each team’s starting pitcher is shown with their Box-Toppers point total from 2023 (’23), over a two-year period (’22-23), over a six-year period (’18-23) and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’23 | ’22‑23 | ’18‑23 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYM | Senga, Kodai 4762 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| CIN | Law, Derek 3657 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| SD | Darvish, Yu 3003 | 1.0 | 17.8 | 56.4 | 125.0 |
| MIN | Ober, Bailey 4441 | 1.7 | 4.7 | 11.4 | 11.4 |
| CHW | Clevinger, Mike 3707 | 1.0 | 7.4 | 40.5 | 54.9 |
| KC | Singer, Brady 4337 | 1.0 | 12.7 | 19.7 | 19.7 |
| TB | Rasmussen, Drew 4547 | 5.0 | 16.1 | 18.1 | 18.1 |
| NYY | German, Domingo 3957 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 26.4 | 26.4 |
| SF | Cobb, Alex 2916 | 3.0 | 9.7 | 21.1 | 60.9 |
| ARI | Henry, Tommy* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| TEX | Eovaldi, Nathan 2928 | 3.7 | 9.7 | 37.5 | 63.3 |
| OAK | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
* Player has yet to earn Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
Chart is sortable. Click a column header to re-sort the chart by the values in that column. Refresh page to restore chart to default, game-by-game view.
Back to top