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
▪️ Friday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Musgrove struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing one hit and no walks, in the 7-0 win over the Mets.
Musgrove earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, 123rd among all players and 50th among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day
Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodon struck out five over six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and one walk, in the 3-0 win over the Rockies.
Rodon earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 11.7 for the season, 15th among all players and seventh among AL pitchers.
National League Batter of the Day
Eugenio Suarez of the Diamondbacks hit a grand slam and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in five runs, in the 12-2 win over the Red Sox.
Suarez earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 5.5 for the season, 13th among NL batters.
American League Batter of the Day
Anthony Santander of the Orioles hit a grand slam and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 7-5 win over the Astros.
Santander earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 4.5 for the season, 17th among AL batters.
Debut
Cubs pitcher Porter Hodge made his Box-Toppers debut Friday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Hodge (1.1IP 0H 0R BB 3K W in the 6-3 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut May 22 and was playing in his 28th career game.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Friday, Aug. 23:| 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
Musgrove earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Rodon earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day.
Suarez and Santander each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Friday’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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Friday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Nathan Eovaldi, Rangers10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 16th among AL pitchers
▪️Tanner Bibee, Guardians
13.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 3rd among AL pitchers
Result—TEX 5, CLE 3
Neither starter was Player of the Game.
Eovaldi had -3.0 B-T game score (6IP 7H 3R BB 5K W).
Bibee had -5.8 B-T game score in loss (5.2IP 8H 4R BB 6K L).
Player of the Game—Andrew Chafin, Rangers (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K ND) with +3.0 B-T game score.
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+4.1—Ross Stripling, Athletics (4.1IP 2H 0R 2BB 4K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. MIL.
Player of the Game—Gary Sánchez, Brewers (3B 2-4 2R 3BI) with +3.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Hunter Brown, Astros (6IP 3H 2R ER 2BB 6K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. BAL.
Player of the Game—Anthony Santander, Orioles (GS 2-4 2R 4BI) with +4.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Hayden Birdsong, Giants (4IP H 0R 4BB 5K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. SEA.
Player of the Game—Luke Raley, Mariners (HR 2-3 R 2BI) with +2.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 436 total players Friday, 131 pitchers-16.9—Paul Blackburn, Mets (2.1IP 10H 5R 0BB K L vs. SD).
-16.0—Taijuan Walker, Phillies
-15.8—JP Sears, Athletics
-15.0—Josh Winckowski, Red Sox
-14.9—Bryan Abreu, Astros
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 305 total batters Friday-5.0—Tyler Fitzgerald, Giants 0-5 4K
-5.0—Kyle Schwarber, Phillies 0-5 3K
-5.0—Trea Turner, Phillies 0-5 3K
-5.0—Randy Arozarena, Mariners 0-5 2K
-5.0—Elly De La Cruz, Reds 0-5 2K
-5.0—Spencer Torkelson, Tigers 0-5 2K
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Two players in top 10 in Box-Toppers points for 2024 started Friday, but neither won Player of the Game honors:
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) August 24, 2024
• Chris Sale #Braves -3.0 B-T game score in win vs. WSH
• Tanner Bibeee #Guardians -5.8 B-T game score in loss vs. TEX.
🧵https://t.co/3QmXYh2hoM https://t.co/7udzU7IBOj
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).| 8/23 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +15.0 | SD 7, NYM 0 | Joe Musgrove (W, 4‑4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |
| BAT | +6.0 | ARI 12, BOS 2 | Eugenio Suárez 3B | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| AL | +6.0 | NYY 3, COL 0 | Carlos Rodón (W, 14‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | |
| BAT | +4.0 | BAL 7, HOU 5 | Anthony Santander RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.1 | CHC 6, MIA 3 | Porter Hodge (W, 2‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| +3.0 | MIL 11, OAK 3 | Gary Sánchez DH | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | LAD 7, TB 3 | Enrique Hernández 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | KC 7, PHI 4 | Hunter Renfroe RF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | STL 6, MIN 1 | Andre Pallante (W, 6‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ||
| +3.0 | PIT 6, CIN 5 | Dennis Santana (W, 3‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | ATL 3, WSH 2 (F/10) | Raisel Iglesias (W, 3‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| +3.0 | `TOR 5, LAA 4 | Erik Swanson | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | `TEX 5, CLE 3 | Andrew Chafin (H, 10) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +2.0 | SEA 6, SF 5 (F/10) | Luke Raley 1B‑RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +1.0 | DET 5, CHW 2 | Zach McKinstry PH‑DH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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 | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rodon, Carlos 3494 | pi sp | nyy al | 11.7 | 12.7 | 46.2 | 69.3 | +10.7 |
| Pallante, Andre 4656 | pi sp | stl nl | 5.7 | 5.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 | +5.7 |
| Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | ari nl | 5.5 | 8.0 | 25.0 | 50.0 | +3.0 |
| Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | sd nl | 5.0 | 12.0 | 55.5 | 65.2 | -2.0 |
| Santander, Anthony 3935 | rf | bal al | 4.5 | 7.5 | 19.5 | 21.0 | +1.5 |
| Hernandez, Enrique 3541 | 3b | lad nl | 4.5 | 6.0 | 16.0 | 22.0 | +3.0 |
| Santana, Dennis 4275 | pi mr cp | pit nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | +3.0 |
| Renfroe, Hunter 3749 | rf | kc al | 2.0 | 5.5 | 24.2 | 33.9 | -1.5 |
| Iglesias, Raisel 3467 | pi cp | atl nl | 2.0 | 5.0 | 19.0 | 33.7 | -1.0 |
| Chafin, Andrew 3397 | pi mr cp | tex al | 2.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 8.0 | 0.0 |
| Raley, Luke 4868 | lf 1b | sea al | 2.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 0.0 |
| Sanchez, Gary 3701 | ca dh | mil nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 14.0 | 27.5 | +1.0 |
| McKinstry, Zach 5086 | dh ph | det al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +2.0 |
| Swanson, Erik 4131 | pi mr cp sp | tor al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | -2.0 |
| Hodge, Porter 5088 | pi mr | chi nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Saturday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COL | Blalock, Bradley* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| NYY | Warren Will* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LAA | Fulmer, Carson 3910 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.7 |
| TOR | Francis, Bowden 5034 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| HOU | Valdez, Framber 4048 | 11.4 | 21.4 | 50.8 | 52.8 |
| BAL | Suarez, Albert 3870 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 |
| MIL | Rea, Colin 3582 | 10.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 | 19.1 |
| OAK | Boyle, Joe 4948 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| ARI | Gallen, Zac 4171 | 6.0 | 22.7 | 57.1 | 57.1 |
| BOS | Crawford, Kutter 4660 | 5.7 | 11.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| CHC | Imanaga, Shota 4960 | 15.7 | 15.7 | 15.7 | 15.7 |
| MIA | Bellozo, Valente 5082 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| SF | Snell, Blake 3688 | 9.0 | 23.7 | 61.9 | 98.1 |
| SEA | Kirby, George 4595 | 11.7 | 25.4 | 36.8 | 36.8 |
| CIN | Aguilar, Julian* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| PIT | Woodford, Jake 4293 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| DET | Skubal, Tarik 4414 | 17.1 | 27.8 | 47.2 | 47.2 |
| CHW | Bush, Ky* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| PHI | Suarez, Ranger 4228 | 9.4 | 13.1 | 28.1 | 28.1 |
| KC | Singer, Brady 4337 | 10.0 | 15.0 | 33.7 | 33.7 |
| STL | Gray, Sonny 3259 | 9.4 | 19.8 | 57.4 | 107.3 |
| MIN | Lopez, Pablo 4028 | 9.7 | 23.1 | 55.2 | 56.9 |
| TEX | Gray, Jon 3634 | 6.7 | 14.4 | 36.4 | 59.8 |
| CLE | Lively, Ben 3903 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 |
| WSH | Irvin, Jake 4805 | 9.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 12.0 |
| ATL | Morton, Charlie 2503 | 9.4 | 19.4 | 63.3 | 113.5 |
| NYM | Peterson, David 4347 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| SD | King, Michael 4549 | 11.7 | 20.7 | 26.4 | 26.4 |
| TB | Bradley, Taj 4780 | 10.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| LAD | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | 2.0 | 13.1 | 57.6 | 272.4 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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