Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Players of the Game
▪️ B-T points of day’s top players
▪️ Top 10 players in 2024
▪️ Wednesday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Cortes struck out four over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 8-1 win over the Guardians.
Cortes earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.7 for the season, 24th among all players and 13th among American League pitchers.
Cortes becomes the 32nd player to reach 10 Box-Toppers points in 2024. It is his second season with 10 or more points. Previously, he had 15.4 points in 2022 with the Yankees, ninth among AL pitchers. In 2023, he had 2.0 points with the Yankees.
National League Player of the Day
Mets pitcher Sean Manaea struck out nine over seven innings, allowing three runs, three hits and no walks, in the 4-3 win over the Orioles. Manaea did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the Orioles tied the game after he exited.
Manaea earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 9.7 for the season, 14th among NL pitchers.
National League Batter of the Day
Elly De La Cruz of the Reds homered and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 11-7 win over the Blue Jays.
American League Batter of the Day
Riley Greene of the Tigers homered and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 8-2 win over the Cubs.
Notable
Dodgers pitcher Jack Flaherty has the most 2024 Box-Toppers points among the 15 who earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Flaherty (5.2IP 5H 2R ER BB 5K W in the 8-4 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.0 for the season, 19th among all players and eighth among NL pitchers.
Streak
Nolan Arenado of the Cardinals has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2024 Wednesday.
Arenado (GS 2B 3-5 2R 4BI in the 10-6, 10-inning win over the Brewers) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2014 with the Rockies and now has 65.9 career points, eighth among active NL batters. His best season was 2016 with the Rockies when he had 10.7 points, first among NL batters. In 2023, he had 4.0 points with the Cardinals, 50th among NL batters. He has finished among the top 10 NL batters in six seasons.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Wednesday, Aug. 21:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Padres | 17.4 |
| 2 | Tarik Skubal | pi sp | Tigers | 17.1 |
| 3 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 16.7 |
| 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 | Seth Lugo | pi sp | Royals | 12.1 |
| 10 | Aaron Judge | dh cf | Yankees | 12.0 |
Scoring
Cortes earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Manaea earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
De La Cruz and Greene 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) 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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Wednesday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Logan Gilbert, Mariners11.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 17th
▪️Jack Flaherty, Dodgers
10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 30th
Result—LAD 8, SEA 4
Flaherty was Player of the Game (5.2IP 5H 2R ER BB 5K W) with +1.2 B-T game score.
Gilbert had -11.8 B-T game score in loss (4.2IP 7H 8R 6ER 2BB 7K L).
Flaherty earns 1.0 B-T point, giving him 11.0 for 2024, rising to 19th among all players.
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+6.0—Juan Soto, Yankees (HR 2B 2-3 2R 5BI)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. CLE.
Player of the Game—Teammate Nestor Cortes (7IP 3H 0R 0BB 4K W) with +8.0 game score.
▪️+5.0—Logan Webb, Giants (8IP 5H 2R 0BB 6K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. CHW.
Player of the Game—Chad Kuhl, White Sox (2IP H 0R 0BB 4K ND) with +5.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Aaron Judge, Yankees (2HR 2-3 2R 3BI)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. CLE.
Player of the Game—Teammate Nestor Cortes (7IP 3H 0R 0BB 4K W) with +8.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 451 total players Wednesday, 129 pitchers-25.9—Matt Waldron, Padres (4.1IP 12H 10R BB 3K L vs. MIN)
-14.0—Joey Cantillo, Guardians
-13.9—Nick Martinez, Reds
-13.8—Jordan Montgomery, Diamondbacks
-13.0—Logan Webb, Mariners
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 322 total batters Wednesday-5.0—Julio Rodríguez, Mariners 0-5 2K
-5.0—Addison Barger, Blue Jays 0-5 K
-5.0—Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Pirates 0-5 K
-5.0—Michael Harris II, Braves 0-5
-4.0—Kyle Higashioka, Padres 0-4 4K
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Career Box-Toppers points—Active batters:
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) August 22, 2024
1—Freddie Freeman #Dodgers 89.9
2—Paul Goldschmidt #STLCards 88.0
3—Joey Votto #BlueJays 85.4*
4—Mike Trout #Angels 84.2
5—Andrew McCutchen #Pirates 80.9
6—Shohei Ohtani #Dodgers 78.7†
*Announced retirement
†Earned 45.5 pts as pitcher
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).| 8/21 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +8.0 | NYY 8, CLE 1 | Nestor Cortes (W, 7‑10) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| NL | +7.0 | `NYM 4, BAL 3 | Sean Manaea | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 9 | |
| +7.0 | `TEX 1, PIT 0 | Andrew Heaney | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| +6.0 | KC 3, LAA 0 | Michael Lorenzen (W, 7‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | CIN 11, TOR 7 | Elly De La Cruz SS | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | WSH 6, COL 1 | Mitchell Parker (W, 7‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +5.0 | MIN 11, SD 4 | Simeon Woods Richardson (W, 5‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| +5.0 | `CHW 6, SF 2 | Chad Kuhl | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| +4.0 | STL 10, MIL 6 (F/10) | Nolan Arenado 3B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | ARI 10, MIA 8 | Lourdes Gurriel Jr. PH‑LF | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | DET 8, CHC 2 | Riley Greene DH | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | TB 4, OAK 2 | Ryan Pepiot (W, 7‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | ||
| +2.0 | PHI 3, ATL 2 | Matt Strahm (W, 5‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| +1.2 | LAD 8, SEA 4 | Jack Flaherty (W, 10‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| +1.2 | `BOS 4, HOU 1 | Cooper Criswell | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
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 (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’24 | ’23‑24 | ’19‑24 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flaherty, Jack 3971 | pi sp | lad nl | 11.0 | 15.0 | 43.2 | 56.3 | +7.0 |
| Cortes, Nestor 4160 | pi sp | nyy al | 10.7 | 12.7 | 35.1 | 35.1 | +8.7 |
| Pepiot, Ryan 4714 | pi sp | tb al | 9.7 | 14.7 | 16.7 | 16.7 | +4.7 |
| Manaea, Sean 3637 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 | 13.4 | 40.8 | 63.6 | +6.0 |
| Heaney, Andrew 3515 | pi sp | tex al | 7.0 | 18.4 | 39.8 | 54.5 | -4.4 |
| Parker, Mitchell 4982 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | +6.0 |
| Criswell, Cooper 4840 | pi sp | bos al | 5.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | +4.0 |
| Greene, Riley 4675 | cf dh | det al | 4.2 | 4.2 | 6.7 | 6.7 | +4.2 |
| Lorenzen, Michael 3479 | pi sp | kc al | 4.0 | 12.7 | 19.7 | 27.2 | -4.7 |
| Gurriel, Lourdes Jr. 4148 | lf ph | ari nl | 3.7 | 7.7 | 20.4 | 20.4 | -0.3 |
| Woods Richardson, Simeon 4974 | pi sp | min al | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | +3.7 |
| De La Cruz, Elly 4844 | ss | cin nl | 3.5 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | -2.0 |
| Strahm, Matt 3724 | pi mr sp | phi nl | 2.0 | 7.0 | 11.0 | 16.0 | -3.0 |
| Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | stl nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 31.0 | 65.9 | -3.0 |
| Kuhl, Chad 3687 | pi mr sp | chi al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 8.7 | 16.7 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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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 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLE | Williams, Gavin 4865 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| NYY | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | 5.0 | 22.0 | 99.4 | 160.3 |
| COL | Quantrill, Cal 4195 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 22.7 | 22.7 |
| WSH | Corbin, Patrick 3027 | 2.0 | 9.1 | 36.2 | 94.4 |
| MIL | Peralta, Freddy 3965 | 10.7 | 28.4 | 58.5 | 67.2 |
| STL | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | 3.0 | 9.7 | 24.8 | 39.2 |
| DET | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| CHC | Steele, Justin 4415 | 7.0 | 18.1 | 26.1 | 26.1 |
| TB | Springs, Jeffrey 4372 | 2.0 | 5.7 | 19.4 | 19.4 |
| OAK | Bido, Osvaldo 4882 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| CIN | Lodolo, Nick 4586 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| PIT | Skenes, Paul 5005 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| LAA | Canning, Griffin 4134 | 2.0 | 8.0 | 19.7 | 19.7 |
| TOR | Undecided\ | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| HOU | Arrighetti, Spencer 5022 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| BAL | Burnes, Corbin 4029 | 8.7 | 20.4 | 61.6 | 64.6 |
| PHI | Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | 8.4 | 12.4 | 12.4 | 12.4 |
| ATL | Schwellenbach, Spencer 5035 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| NYM | Severino, Luis 3567 | 6.7 | 11.4 | 21.1 | 64.9 |
| SD | Cease, Dylan 4231 | 17.4 | 27.4 | 64.2 | 64.2 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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