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Juan Soto of the Yankees is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in Saturday’s American League Championship Series Game 5.
The New York Yankees defeated the Cleveland Guardians in the series four games to one and advance to the World Series.
AL Championship Series Game 5: Yankees 5, Guardians 2 (F/10)
Soto hit a 10th-inning, three-run homer that broke a 2-2 tie and put the Yankees ahead. Soto also doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring once and driving in three runs.
Soto earned 11.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 43rd among all players and second among AL batters, behind teammate Aaron Judge (13.0 points).
Soto had a Box-Toppers game score Saturday of +2.0. While Yankees reliever Jake Cousins had a higher game score of +4.1 (1.1IP 0H 0R BB 4K ND), he did not qualify to win Player of the Game because he did not pitch at least three innings or earn the win or save. Also, Yankees closing pitcher Luke Weaver had a +2.0 game score (2IP H 0R 0BB K W), same as Soto’s. But in game score ties, batters rank ahead of pitchers, giving Soto the edge for Player of the Game.
Yankees starting pitcher Carlos Rodon had a +0.2 game score (4.2IP 5H 2R BB 6K ND).
Guardians starting pitcher Tanner Bibee also had a +0.2 game score (5.2IP 6H 2R 0BB 5K ND). Guardians relief pitcher Hunter Gaddis, who picked up the loss, had a -2.0 game score (1IP H 3R 0ER BB 2K L). First baseman Josh Naylor led Guardians batters with a 0.0 game score (1-2 R 0BI).
The Yankees, who advance to the World Series, are both the top-seeded AL playoff team and the top-ranked AL team in Box-Toppers rankings. Yankees players accumulated 120.9 Box-Toppers points in 2024, fourth among all teams and most among AL teams. The Guardians had 106.3 Box-Toppers points, 13th among all teams. Despite having the second-best record among AL teams, they were sixth among AL teams in Box-Toppers rankings, behind the Seattle Mariners (fourth with 109.4 points), who did not qualify for the postseason.
Four different Yankees players won Player of the Game honors in the team’s four wins in the ALCS:
ALCS Preview: Top-ranked, top-seeded Yankees favored over Guardians
Saturday’s Player of the Game winners are listed in the chart.
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).| 10/19 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| +2.0 | NYY 5, CLE 2 (F/10) | Juan Soto RF | 5 | 1 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
` Pitcher had a no‑decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
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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 2024 (’24). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’23-24), the period 2019-2024 (’19-24) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2024 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2023 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’24 | ’23‑24 | ’19‑24 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soto, Juan 3994 | rf | nyy al | 11.0 | 20.0 | 36.5 | 44.0 | +2.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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Sunday’s pitching matchups (for more, see matchups chart):
NLCS Game 6, Dodgers lead Mets, 3-2
Mets—Sean Manaea, 15.4 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 11th among all players, sixth among NL pitchers and most among all Mets players.
Manaea previously won Player of the Game honors in the postseason on Oct. 8 in the NL Division Series.
Dodgers—Michael Kopech, 2.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 116th among NL pitchers.
The Dodgers, depleted at starting pitching due to numerous injuries, are expected to use relievers in a “bullpen” game, as they did in the Oct. 9 NLDS Game 4 win and in the Oct. 14 NLCS Game 2 loss. (Both of those games were started by Ryan Brasier, who went 1 1/3 innings on Oct. 9 and one inning on Oct. 14.)
Kopech has appeared in five postseason games for the Dodgers in 2024, serving as a reliever in all, appearing no more than one inning in each. The team won four of those games but Kopech was not Player of the Game in any of them. Kopech made 67 appearances in the regular season for the White Sox and Dodgers, appearing no earlier than the fifth inning in any game.
NLCS Preview: Surging Mets favored over injury-depleted Dodgers
A Box-Toppers look at Sunday’s League Championship Series 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 2024 (’24), this year and last year (’23-24), over a six-year period (’19-24) and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’24 | ’23‑24 | ’19‑24 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYM | Manaea, Sean 3637 | 15.4 | 19.1 | 46.5 | 69.3 |
| LAD | Kopech, Michael 4385 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 24.7 | 24.7 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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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. (No Box-Toppers points are awarded in postseason games.)
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Previews of all four Wild Card series
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Previews of the 2024 NL Division Series matchups
ALCS Preview: Top-ranked, top-seeded Yankees favored over Guardians
NLCS Preview: Surging Mets favored over injury-depleted Dodgers