Braves’ Sale tops players Monday, Aug. 12, rising to 6th; Kershaw extends record streak

Braves pitcher Chris Sale is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to sixth place in season player rankings.

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▪️ Players of the Game
▪️ B-T points of day’s top players
▪️ Top 10 players in 2024
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Braves pitcher Chris Sale is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to sixth place in season player rankings.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Monday, Aug. 12:
  Player Pos Team BTP
1 Dylan Cease pi sp Padres 17.4
2 Tarik Skubal pi sp Tigers 16.1
3 Zack Wheeler pi sp Phillies 15.7
4 Shota Imanaga pi sp Cubs 15.7
5 Luis Gil pi sp Yankees 15.4
6 Chris Sale pi sp Braves 14.4
7 Tanner Bibee pi sp Guardians 13.0
8 Bailey Ober pi sp Twins 12.4
9 George Kirby pi sp Mariners 11.7
10 Tyler Glasnow pi sp Dodgers 11.7
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Also Monday, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw extended his streak of earning Box-Toppers points to 17 straight seasons—tied for the longest active streak—after earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2024.

Player of the Day

Sale struck out 12 over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 1-0, 10-inning win over the Giants. Sale did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.

Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 14.4 for the season, rising from eighth to sixth place overall and fourth place among National League pitchers.

Sale also now has 167.7 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 15th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his 2.0 points Monday, he passes two players on the “all-time” career points list—Manny Ramirez (166.2) and Johan Santana (166.6) and now trails 14th-place player, Roy Halladay (170.7).

Sale ranks fourth among active, signed players in career points, second among active NL pitchers, behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (271.4), who also earned Player of the Game honors Monday.

American League Player of the Day

Blue Jays pitcher Bowden Francis struck out eight over seven innings, allowing one run, one hit and no walks, in the 4-2 win over the Angels.

Francis earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season, 84th among AL pitchers.

American League Player of the Day is Blue Jays pitcher Bowden Francis.

National League Batter of the Day

Spencer Steer of the Reds hit two home runs, including a three-run shot, in the 6-1 win over the Cardinals. Steer went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in five runs.

National League Batter of the Day is Spencer Steer of the Reds.

American League Batter of the Day

Gavin Sheets of the White Sox hit three doubles and went 4-for-5, scoring once and driving in four runs, in the 12-2 win over the Yankees.

American League Batter of the Day is Gavin Sheets of the White Sox.

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw earns his first Player of the Game honor of 2024 Monday.

Active season streaks

Here are the 13 players who have active streaks of earning Box-Toppers points for 13 or more consecutive seasons. Players are listed by the length of their streak and with their current team status. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total.

Streak Player Pos Team Duration BTP*
17 Zack Greinke pi sp Free agent 2007‑2023 224.5
17 Clayton Kershaw pi sp Dodgers 2008‑2024 271.4
16 Evan Longoria 3b Free agent 2008‑2023 62.7
16 Max Scherzer pi sp Rangers 2009‑2024 253.7
15 Andrew McCutchen dh lf Pirates 2009‑2023 80.9
15 Craig Kimbrel pi cp Orioles 2010‑2024 94.1
15 Giancarlo Stanton dh rf Yankees 2010‑2024 77.4
15 Aroldis Chapman pi mr cp Pirates 2010‑2024 67.1
14 Freddie Freeman 1b Dodgers 2011‑2024 89.9
14 Kenley Jansen pi cp Red Sox 2011‑2024 69.4
13 Mike Trout cf Angels 2011‑2023 84.2
13 Brandon Belt 1b dh Free agent 2011‑2023 46.2
13 Starling Marte rf Mets 2012‑2024 30.0
BTP*: Career Box-Toppers points

Streak

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has now earned Box-Toppers points in 17 straight seasons—tied for the longest active streak—after earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2024 Monday.

Box-Toppers season streaks

Here are the players who have earned Box-Toppers points in the most consecutive seasons. Albert Pujols holds the record for the longest such streak at 22 seasons. Players are listed by length of their streak. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.)
 
Streak Player Pos Duration Career
BTP
1 22 Albert Pujols 1b 2001‑2022 207.8
2 20 Miguel Cabrera 1b 2003‑2022 159.4
3 19 Jason Giambi 1b 1995‑2013 133.4
3 19 Carlos Beltran rf 1999‑2017 108.6
3 19 CC Sabathia pi sp 2001‑2019 203.4
6 18 Jim Thome 1b dh 1995‑2012 146.7
6 18 Chipper Jones 3b 1995‑2012 149.0
6 18 Johnny Damon lf 1995‑2012 63.0
6 18 Alex Rodriguez 3b 1996‑2013 187.0
6 18 Nelson Cruz dh 2006‑2023 89.9
11 17 Mariano Rivera pi cp 1995‑2011 126.4
11 17 Derek Jeter ss 1996‑2012 76.4
11 17 Paul Konerko 1b 1998‑2014 100.7
11 17 Tim Hudson pi sp 1999‑2015 157.0
11 17 Torii Hunter cf 1999‑2015 115.9
11 17 David Ortiz dh 2000‑2016 145.9
11 17 Zack Greinke* pi sp 2007‑2023 224.5
11 17 Clayton Kershaw* pi sp 2008‑2024 271.4
BTP: Box-Toppers points
* Active streak.

Kershaw (5.2IP 3H R 2BB 6K W in the 5-2 win over the Brewers) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2008 with the Dodgers. His best season was 2014 with the Dodgers when he had 31.5 Box-Toppers points, first among all players. He has led all players in Box-Toppers points in a season three times (2011, 2013 and 2014) and finished among the top three in points in each season from 2011 to 2017. He earned 20 or more points for those seven straight seasons, the longest such streak since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.

In 2023, Kershaw earned 11.1 Box-Toppers points, 14th among NL pitchers.

Kershaw’s 17-season streak is tied for the longest active streak with pitcher Zack Greinke, who earned points from 2007 to 2023. Greinke’s streak is still active only because the 40-year-old is still listed as a free agent, even though he has not played in 2024. In other words, Kershaw’s streak is the longest streak of a player who is signed and active in 2024.

Kershaw’s streak is tied for the 11th-longest streak since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. Kershaw is now one of 18 players to have a streak of 17 or more seasons earning points. The longest streak is 22 consecutive seasons earning points by Albert Pujols, who did it from 2001-2022. Kershaw’s streak is tied for the second-longest among pitchers, behind CC Sabathia (19 seasons). Three other pitchers have 17 season streaks: Mariano Rivera, Tim Hudson and Greinke.

This is the latest date in a season that Kershaw has earned his first Box-Toppers Player of the Game honor of a season. Kershaw underwent shoulder surgery in the offseason and did not pitch in 2024 until July 25. Monday was his fourth start of the season.

Previously, the latest date in a season Kershaw earned his first Box-Toppers point was Aug. 2, which was the pandemic-delayed season of 2020 that didn’t start until late July. Prior to that, the latest Kershaw earned his first Box-Toppers point of a season was his rookie 2008 season, on July 27. Kershaw made his Major League debut May 25 that year.

Besides those anomalies, Kershaw has been remarkably consistent in earning Box-Toppers points. Other than 2008, 2020 and 2024, the latest Kershaw earned his first points in a season was April 18—in 2010 and 2013.

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:
  Player Pos Team BTP
1 Randy Johnson pi sp Retired 282.5
2 Clayton Kershaw pi sp Dodgers 271.4
3 Max Scherzer pi sp Rangers 253.7
4 Justin Verlander pi sp Astros 247.0
5 Pedro Martinez pi sp Retired 244.8
6 Zack Greinke pi sp Free agent 224.5
7 Albert Pujols 1b Retired 207.8
8 CC Sabathia pi sp Retired 203.4
9 Curt Schilling pi sp Retired 194.1
10 Alex Rodriguez 3b Retired 187.0
11 Jon Lester pi sp Retired 179.3
12 Felix Hernandez pi sp Retired 175.1
13 Cole Hamels pi sp Retired 174.2
14 Roy Halladay pi sp Retired 170.7
15 Chris Sale pi sp Braves 167.7
16 Johan Santana pi sp Retired 166.6
17 Manny Ramirez lf dh Retired 166.2
18 Roger Clemens pi sp Retired 164.8
19 John Smoltz pi sp Retired 160.9
20 Miguel Cabrera 1b Retired 159.4
BTP: Box-Toppers points

Kershaw now has 271.4 career Box-Toppers points, second-most among all players since player tracking began in 1995, behind Randy Johnson (282.5). (It should be noted that Johnson began his career in 1988, before the advent of Box-Toppers tracking. If his entire career were tracked, rough projections put his Box-Toppers point total at 380.) Kershaw leads active players in career points ahead of Rangers pitcher Max Scherzer (253.7) and leads active NL pitchers in career points ahead of Chris Sale of the Braves (167.7), who was Monday’s overall Player of the Day.

Scoring

  • Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.

  • Francis earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day.

  • Steer and Sheets each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.

  • All of Monday’s other Player of the Game winners (listed in the chart) 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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Monday’s sidelights sidebar

Top pitching matchup

▪️Chris Sale, Braves
21.1 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 10th among NL pitchers
▪️Blake Snell, Giants
22.7 Box-Toppers points over 2023-24, 6th among NL pitchers
Result—ATL 1, SF 0
Sale was Player of the Game (7IP 3H 0R 0BB 12K ND) with +16.0 B-T game score.
Snell had +12.1 B-T game score in loss (6.1IP 2H 0R 3BB 11K ND).
Sale had the day’s highest B-T game score and Snell had the day’s second-highest.
Sale earns 2.0 B-T points as Player of the Day, giving him 23.1 over 2023-24, rising to 5th among NL pitchers over that span.

High scores, no points

Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:
▪️+12.1—Blake Snell, Giants (6.1IP 2H 0R 3BB 11K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. ATL.
Player of the Game—Chris Sale, Braves (7IP 3H 0R 0BB 12K ND) with +16.0 game score.
▪️+6.0—Raisel Iglesias, Braves (2IP 0H 0R 0BB 4K W)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. SF.
Player of the Game—Teammate Chris Sale (7IP 3H 0R 0BB 12K ND) with +16.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Ian Happ, Cubs (HR 1-2 3R 2BI)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. CLE.
Player of the Game—Jhonkensy Noel, Guardians (2HR 2-4 2R 4BI) with +4.0 game score.

Lowest Box-Toppers game scores

Out of 317 total players Monday, 90 pitchers
-19.8—Enyel De Los Santos, Yankees (1.2IP 8H 7R 0BB K ND)
-11.9—Taj Bradley, Rays
-10.8—Ben Lively, Guardians
-10.8—Ky Bush, White Sox
-10.0—Shota Imanaga, Cubs
-10.0—Luis Gil, Yankees

Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters

Out of 227 total batters Monday
-5.0—Masataka Yoshida, Red Sox 0-5 2K
-5.0—Michael Massey, Royals 0-5 K
-5.0—Bryan Reynolds, Pirates 0-5 K
-5.0—Lenyn Sosa, White Sox 0-5
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.

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).
8/11 BTG Game Player AB R H BI   IP H R ER BB K
MLB +16.0 `ATL 1, SF 0 (F/10) Chris Sale ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   7.0 3 0 0 0 12
AL +12.0 TOR 4, LAA 2 Bowden Francis (W, 5‑3) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   7.0 1 1 1 0 8
  +8.2 HOU 6, TB 1 Framber Valdez (W, 12‑5) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   5.2 3 1 1 1 9
BAT +6.0 CIN 6, STL 1 Spencer Steer 2B 3 2 2 5   ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
  +4.2 LAD 5, MIL 2 Clayton Kershaw (W, 1‑2) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   5.2 3 1 1 2 6
BAT +4.0 CHW 12, NYY 2 Gavin Sheets 1B 5 1 4 4   ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
  +4.0 CLE 9, CHC 8 Jhonkensy Noel RF 4 2 2 4   ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
  +2.1 `SD 2, PIT 1 Joe Musgrove ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   4.1 2 0 0 1 1
  +2.0 MIN 8, KC 3 Royce Lewis 3B 4 2 2 2   ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
  +2.0 ARI 5, COL 4 Brandon Pfaadt (W, 7‑6) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   7.0 8 4 4 0 11
  +2.0 `BOS 5, TEX 4 (F/10) Brayan Bello ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   6.0 4 1 1 3 5
MLB—Overall Box‑Toppers Player of the Day, worth 2.0 total Box‑Toppers points.
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.
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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 (+/-).
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Player of the Game Pos Team ’24 ’23‑24 ’19‑24 Career +/‑
Sale, Chris 2806 pi sp atl nl 14.4 23.1 36.1 167.7 +5.7
Valdez, Framber 4048 pi sp hou al 9.4 19.4 48.8 50.8 -0.6
Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 pi sp ari nl 9.4 13.1 13.1 13.1 +5.7
Bello, Brayan 4727 pi sp bos al 4.7 6.7 7.7 7.7 +2.7
Steer, Spencer 4726 lf 1b 2b cin nl 3.5 6.5 7.5 7.5 +0.5
Noel, Jhonkensy 5061 rf ph cle al 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 +3.5
Musgrove, Joe 3705 pi sp sd nl 3.0 10.0 53.5 63.2 -4.0
Sheets, Gavin 4457 dh rf chi al 3.0 4.0 11.5 11.5 +2.0
Francis, Bowden 5034 pi mr sp tor al 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.7 +2.7
Lewis, Royce 4606 3b dh min al 2.0 6.0 7.0 7.0 -2.0
Kershaw, Clayton 2494 pi sp lad nl 1.0 12.1 56.6 271.4 -10.1
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A Box-Toppers look at Tuesday’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 2024 (’24), this year and last year (’23-24), over a six-year period (’19-24) and their career point total.
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Game Starter ’24 ’23‑24 ’19‑24 Career
WSH Irvin, Jake 4805 9.0 12.0 12.0 12.0
BAL Rogers, Trevor 4311 2.0 3.0 16.0 16.0
CHC Assad, Javier 4899 5.0 9.7 9.7 9.7
CLE Boyd, Matthew 3550 0.0 0.0 9.0 28.8
MIA Bellozo, Valente* 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
PHI Walker, Taijuan 3453 1.0 8.7 31.8 58.2
SEA Kirby, George 4595 11.7 25.4 36.8 36.8
DET Skubal, Tarik 4414 16.1 26.8 46.2 46.2
STL Fedde, Erick 4065 6.7 6.7 23.5 25.2
CIN Greene, Hunter 4651 7.7 13.4 19.4 19.4
HOU Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 5.7 15.7 33.1 33.1
TB Baz, Shane 4560 0.0 0.0 1.7 1.7
OAK Stripling, Ross 3629 1.0 2.0 25.7 40.1
NYM Blackburn, Paul 3869 4.0 8.7 12.7 15.7
TEX Urena, Jose 3492 1.0 1.0 4.0 24.4
BOS Crawford, Kutter 4660 5.7 11.4 15.4 15.4
KC Lugo, Seth 3729 11.1 17.5 26.5 35.5
MIN Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
LAD Stone, Gavin 4942 5.0 6.0 6.0 6.0
MIL Rea, Colin 3582 8.7 13.7 13.7 17.4
NYY Cortes, Nestor 4160 6.7 8.7 31.1 31.1
CHW Cannon, Jonathan 5036 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
TOR Gausman, Kevin 3191 6.0 24.7 55.1 94.1
LAA Fulmer, Carson 3910 1.7 1.7 1.7 2.7
COL Gomber, Austin 3985 3.0 4.0 17.0 21.7
ARI Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 0.0 13.0 34.4 67.2
PIT Ortiz, Luis 4738 5.0 5.0 6.0 6.0
SD King, Michael 4549 9.0 18.0 23.7 23.7
ATL Morton, Charlie 2503 7.4 17.4 61.3 111.5
SF Harrison, Kyle 4914 5.0 7.0 7.0 7.0
Starters subject to change.
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
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