Brewers’ Montas tops players Thursday, Sept. 12; Valdez, Cortes rise in top 10 rankings

Brewers pitcher Frankie Montas is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

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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
▪️ Thursday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
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Brewers pitcher Frankie Montas is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Also two of Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners are in the season player rankings top 10 list: Astros pitcher Framber Valdez ranks seventh and Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes rises to eighth place.

Player of the Day

Montas struck out eight over six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks, in the 3-0 win over the Giants.

Montas earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, 128th among all players and 51st among National League pitchers.

American League Player of the Day is Rays pitcher Cole Sulser.

American League Player of the Day

Rays pitcher Cole Sulser struck out four over three scoreless and hitless innings of middle relief, allowing one walk and picking up the win, in the 5-2 win over the Guardians.

Sulser earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first points of the season, and ranks 133rd among AL pitchers.

AL & NL Batters of the Day

There are no separate AL and NL Batters of the Day for Thursday because no batters won Player of the Game honors in the eight games completed.

Astros pitcher Framber Valdez is Box-Toppers Player of the Game Thursday.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Thursday, Sept. 12:
  Player Pos Team BTP
1 Zack Wheeler pi sp Phillies 20.4
2 Shota Imanaga pi sp Cubs 18.7
3 Tarik Skubal pi sp Tigers 18.1
4 Chris Sale pi sp Braves 18.1
5 Dylan Cease pi sp Padres 17.4
6 Luis Gil pi sp Yankees 17.4
7 Framber Valdez pi sp Astros 15.4
8 Nestor Cortes pi sp Yankees 14.4
9 Seth Lugo pi sp Royals 14.1
10 Bryce Miller pi sp Mariners 13.7
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Rankings

Two of Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners are in the season player rankings top 10 list:

Astros pitcher Framber Valdez (6.1IP 5H R BB 6K ND in the 6-3 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 15.4 for the season, holding steady in seventh place overall and third among AL pitchers, behind Tarik Skubal of the Tigers (18.1) and Luis Gil of the Yankees (17.4).

Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes (5IP 3H R 3BB 9K ND in the 2-1, 10-inning win over the Red Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.4 for the season, rising to eighth place overall and fourth place among AL pitchers.

Cortes had a +6.0 Box-Toppers game score Thursday, same as AL Player of the Day winner, Rays pitcher Cole Sulser. But Sulser ranked ahead of Cortes to win AL Player of the Day because he earned the win in his game while Cortes picked up a no-decision.

Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes is Box-Toppers Player of the Game Thursday.

Notable

Cardinals pitcher Sonny Gray now has 110.3 career Box-Toppers points—69th-most among players since 1995 when Box-Toppers tracking began—after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.

Gray (6IP 2H R 2BB 9K W in the 6-1 win over the Reds) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, passing Jeff Kent (110.2) on the “all-time” career points list. (Kent began his career in 1992 before Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. Box-Toppers estimates he would have about 125 points if his entire career were tracked.)

Gray ranks 12th among active, signed players in career points, seventh among active NL pitchers.

Gray now has 12.4 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 17th among all players and ninth among NL pitchers.

Cardinals pitcher Sonny Gray now has 110.3 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.

Debut

Ranger pitcher Kumar Rocker made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday with his first career Player of the Game honor.

Rocker (4IP 3H R 2BB 7K ND in the 5-4 win over the Mariners) was also making his Major League debut.

Ranger pitcher Kumar Rocker made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday with his first career Player of the Game honor.

Scoring

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

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

  • All of Thursday’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.

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.

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Thursday’s sidelights sidebar

Top Thursday pitchers

▪️Tarik Skubal, Tigers
18.1 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 3rd
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. COL
(6IP 4H R 0BB 6K ND), +6.0 B-T game score.
Player of the Game—Ryan Feltner, Rockies (5.2IP 3H 2R 2BB 6K ND), +2.2 game score.
▪️Framber Valdez, Astros
14.4 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 7th
Won Player of the Game in win vs. OAK.
(6.1IP 5H R BB 6K ND), +4.1 B-T game score.
Valdez earns 1.0 B-T point, giving him 15.4 for 2024, remaining in 7th.
▪️Bryce Miller, Mariners
13.7 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 9th
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. TEX
(6IP 5H R BB 7K ND), +5.0 B-T game score.
Player of the Game—Kumar Rocker, Rangers (4IP 3H R 2BB 7K ND), +4.0 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:
▪️+6.1—Mitchell Parker, Nationals (6.1IP 3H 2R 0ER 0BB 5K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. MIA.
Player of the Game—Jesus Tinoco, Marlins (2IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K Sv) with +4.0 game score.
▪️+6.0—Tarik Skubal, Tigers (6IP 4H R 0BB 6K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. COL.
Player of the Game—Ryan Feltner, Rockies (5.2IP 3H 2R 2BB 6K ND) with +2.2 game score.
▪️+6.0—Hayden Birdsong, Giants (5IP 2H 0R BB 4K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. MIL.
Player of the Game—Frankie Montas, Brewers (6IP 2H 0R 2BB 8K W) with +10.0 game score.

Lowest Box-Toppers game scores

Out of 245 total players Thursday, 72 pitchers
-12.8—Carson Spiers, Reds (2.2IP 7H 5R 4ER 3BB 4K L vs. STL)
-8.0—Derek Law, Nationals
-8.0—Darren McCaughan, Marlins
-7.8—Grant Holman, Athletics
-7.0—Ryan Pepiot, Rays

Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters

Out of 173 total batters Thursday
-5.0—Jarren Duran, Red Sox 0-5 2K
-5.0—Junior Caminero, Rays 0-5 K
-5.0—Alex Bergman, Astros 0-5
-4.0—J.P. Crawford, Mariners 0-4 3K
-4.0—Rafael Devers, Red Sox 0-4 3K
-4.0—Grant McCray, Giants 0-4 3K
-4.0—Tyler Stephenson, Reds 0-4 3K
-4.0—Mike Yastrzemski, Giants 0-4 3K
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).
9/12 BTG Game Player AB R H BI   IP H R ER BB K
MLB +10.0 MIL 3, SF 0 Frankie Montas (W, 7‑10) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   6.0 2 0 0 2 8
  +9.0 STL 6, CIN 1 Sonny Gray (W, 13‑9) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   6.0 2 1 1 2 9
AL +6.0 TB 5, CLE 2 Cole Sulser (W, 1‑0) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   3.0 0 0 0 1 4
  +6.0 `NYY 2, BOS 1 (F/10) Nestor Cortes ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   5.0 3 1 1 3 9
  +4.1 `HOU 6, OAK 3 Framber Valdez ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   6.1 5 1 1 1 6
  +4.0 MIA 6, WSH 3 Jesus Tinoco (S, 1) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   2.0 0 0 0 0 2
  +4.0 `TEX 5, SEA 4 Kumar Rocker ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   4.0 3 1 1 2 7
  +2.2 `COL 4, DET 2 Ryan Feltner ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑   5.2 3 2 2 2 6
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 +/‑
Valdez, Framber 4048 pi sp hou al 15.4 25.4 54.8 56.8 +5.4
Cortes, Nestor 4160 pi sp nyy al 14.4 16.4 38.8 38.8 +12.4
Gray, Sonny 3259 pi sp stl nl 12.4 22.8 60.4 110.3 +2.0
Montas, Frankie 3803 pi sp mil nl 6.0 6.0 38.5 41.5 +6.0
Feltner, Ryan 4635 pi sp col nl 2.0 4.0 6.0 6.0 0.0
Tinoco, Jesus 5095 pi mr cp fla nl 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 +2.0
Sulser, Cole 4270 pi mr cp tb al 1.7 1.7 3.7 3.7 +1.7
Rocker, Kumar 5108 pi sp tex al 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 +1.0
What are those numbers after players' names?
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A Box-Toppers look at Friday’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
BAL Eflin, Zach 3679 7.7 19.7 38.5 51.2
DET Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
KC Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
PIT Ortiz, Luis 4738 7.0 7.0 8.0 8.0
NYM Quintana, Jose 3040 8.0 8.0 30.8 91.1
PHI Nola, Aaron 3569 13.4 25.4 69.5 115.1
MIA Cabrera, Edward 4641 2.0 5.7 12.1 12.1
WSH Herz, DJ 5032 5.7 5.7 5.7 5.7
BOS Houck, Tanner 4342 12.4 14.4 26.1 26.1
NYY Schmidt, Clarke 4581 4.0 6.0 10.4 10.4
STL Fedde, Erick 4065 7.7 7.7 24.5 26.2
TOR Gausman, Kevin 3191 9.0 27.7 58.1 97.1
TB Littell, Zack 4533 5.7 7.7 11.7 11.7
CLE Bibee, Tanner 4792 13.0 21.7 21.7 21.7
LAD Knack, Landon 5009 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0
ATL Schwellenbach, Spencer 5035 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0
OAK Basso, Brady* 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
CHW Crochet, Garrett 4434 10.7 10.7 11.7 11.7
CIN Aguiar, Julian* 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
MIN Ober, Bailey 4441 13.4 22.1 31.8 31.8
CHC Assad, Javier 4899 6.0 10.7 10.7 10.7
COL Gomber, Austin 3985 6.0 7.0 20.0 24.7
HOU Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 9.7 19.7 37.1 37.1
LAA Aldegheri, Samuel 5103 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
MIL Peralta, Freddy 3965 12.3 30.1 60.2 68.9
ARI Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 0.0 13.0 34.4 67.2
TEX deGrom, Jacob 3343 0.0 7.7 61.6 139.2
SEA Hancock, Emerson 4985 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
SD Cease, Dylan 4231 17.4 27.4 64.2 64.2
SF Webb, Logan 4258 10.0 22.4 50.3 50.3
Starters subject to change.
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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