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
▪️ Saturday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Saturday, Braves pitcher Chris Sale rises to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. In addition, Willy Adames of the Brewers rises to lead National League batters in 2024 Box-Toppers points after earning NL Batter of the Day honors.
Player of the Day
Burnes struck out seven over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 4-2 win over the Tigers.
Burnes earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.7 for the season, 35th among all players and 18th among American League pitchers.
Burnes becomes the 46th player this season to reach 10 Box-Toppers points. It is his fourth and fourth straight season with 10 or more points. His best season was 2021 with the Brewers when he had 18.1 points, fifth overall and fourth among NL pitchers. In 2023, he had 11.7 points with the Brewers, 13th among NL pitchers.
National League Player of the Day
Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove struck out eight over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 8-0 win over the Giants.
Musgrove earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 8.7 for the season, 30th among NL pitchers.
Musgrove recorded a +11.0 Box-Toppers game score Saturday, the same as Burnes. But Burnes won overall Player of the Day over Musgrove because he had more innings pitched in his game—seven vs. six.
National League Batter of the Day
Willy Adames of the Brewers hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 15-8 win over the Diamondbacks.
Adames earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 10.5 for the season, 38th overall and rising to first place among NL batters, passing previous leader Brenton Doyle of the Rockies (9.7), who held the lead since July 1.
Adames also becomes the 47th player—and just the second batter—to reach 10 Box-Toppers points this season. This is Adames’ first season with 10 or more points. His previous best season was 2023 with the Brewers, when he had 6.7 points, 16th among NL batters.
The only other batter with more than 10 points in 2024 is Aaron Judge of the Yankees, whose 12.0 points leads AL batters. The fewest batters to reach 10 points in a season is four in 2022. However, there are six batters with between 8.5 and 9.7 points who could pass 10 points by winning one Player of the Game or Batter of the Day honor.
Though Adames now leads NL batters with 10.5 points, his current point total is still lower than the record-low total for a player to lead any category in a season. (Nolan Arenado of the Rockies led NL batters in 2016 with 10.7 points.) But there are still two weeks left in the season.
American League Batter of the Day
Rafael Devers of the Red Sox went 1-for-2, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 7-1 win over the Yankees.
Devers earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, 15th among AL batters.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Saturday, Sept. 14:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 20.4 |
| 2 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Padres | 19.1 |
| 3 | Chris Sale | pi sp | Braves | 19.1 |
| 4 | Shota Imanaga | pi sp | Cubs | 18.7 |
| 5 | Tarik Skubal | pi sp | Tigers | 18.1 |
| 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 |
Rankings
Braves pitcher Chris Sale rises from fifth to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday.
Sale (6IP 5H R 2BB 6K W in the 10-1 win over the Dodgers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 19.1 for the season. He is third overall and third among NL pitchers behind Zack Wheeler of the Phillies (20.4) and Dylan Cease of the Padres (19.1). Though Cease and Sale both have 19.1 points, Cease ranks ahead because he has more 2023 points—10.0 vs. 8.7.
Sale also now has 172.4 career Box-Toppers points, 14th-most among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. He trails 13th-ranked player Cole Hamels (174.2). He ranks fourth among active, signed players in career points and second among active NL pitchers behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (272.4), who he trails now by exactly 100 Box-Toppers points.
Saturday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Jack Flaherty, Dodgers12.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 10th among NL pitchers
▪️Chris Sale, Braves
18.1 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 4th among NL pitchers
Result—ATL 10, LAD 1
Sale was Player of the Game with +3.0 B-T game score (6IP 5H R 2BB 6K W).
Flaherty had -10.0 B-T game score in loss (3IP 5H 4R 4BB 4K L).
Sale earns 1.0 B-T point, giving him 19.1 for 2024, rising to 3rd among NL pitchers.
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+5.0—William Contreras, Brewers (HR 2B SF 2-4 3R 4BI)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. ARI.
Player of the Game—Teammate Willy Adames (2HR 3-3 2R 5BI) with +7.0 game score.
▪️+5.0—Garrett Mitchell, Brewers (HR 2-3 3R 3BI)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. ARI.
Player of the Game—Teammate Willy Adames (2HR 3-3 2R 5BI) with +7.0 game score.
▪️+5.0—Randal Grichuk, Diamondbacks (HR 2-2 2R 3BI)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. MIL.
Player of the Game—Willy Adames, Brewers (2HR 3-3 2R 5BI) with +7.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 450 total players Saturday, 124 pitchers-24.8—Brandon Pfaadt, Diamondbacks (1.2IP 7H 8R 3BB 0K L vs. MIL)
-15.9—Gerrit Cole, Yankees
-15.0—Louie Varland, Twins
-14.9—Evan Phillips, Dodgers
-14.0—Dylan Floro, Diamondbacks
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 326 total batters Saturday-5.0—Tommy Pham, Royals 0-5 2K
-5.0—George Springer, Blue Jays 0-5 2K
-5.0—Salvador Perez, Royals 0-5 2K
-5.0—Jake Cronenworth, Padres 0-5 K
-5.0—Santiago Espinal, Reds 0-4 K
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Notable
Royals pitcher Michael Wacha becomes the 48th player this season to reach 10 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday.
Wacha (5IP 4H R 3BB 8K W in the 5-1 win over the Pirates) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.4 for the season, 40th among all players and 21st among AL pitchers.
This is Wacha’s second and second straight season with 10 or more points after earning 11.0 points in 2023 with the Padres, 17th among NL pitchers.
Debut
Mariners pitcher Troy Taylor made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Taylor (1IP H 0R 0BB 2K ND in the 5-4 win over the Rangers) made his Major League debut Aug. 11 and was playing in his 15th career game.
Scoring
Burnes earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Musgrove earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
Adames and Devers each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Saturday’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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Career Box-Toppers points—Active players
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) September 15, 2024
1—Clayton Kershaw #Dodgers 272.4
2—Max Scherzer #Rangers 253.7
3—Justin Verlander #Astros 247.0
4—Chris Sale #Braves 172.4*
5—Gerrit Cole #Yankees 161.3
6—Jacob deGrom #Rangers 139.2
*Earns 1.0 B-T point as Player of the Game Saturday pic.twitter.com/wDGyQqaOfZ
2024 Box-Toppers points—NL batters
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) September 15, 2024
1—Willy Adames #Brewers 10.5*
2—Brenton Doyle #Rockies 9.7
3—Francisco Lindor #Mets 9.4
4—Bryce Harper #Phillies 8.7†
5—Eugenio Suárez #Dbacks 8.5
*Earns 1.5 B-T pts as Saturday’s NL Batter of the Day
†Earns 1.0 pt as Player of the Game SA
Only 1 of the 4 pitchers w/100+ career Box-Toppers points who started Saturday won B-T Player of the Game: Chris Sale #Braves in win v. LAD
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) September 15, 2024
Other 3 did not:
Max Scherzer #Rangers in loss v. SEA
Justin Verlander #Astros in win v. LAA
Gerrit Cole #Yankees in loss v. BOS
Details >🧵 https://t.co/HhFDaq9nAD
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).| 9/14 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +11.0 | BAL 4, DET 2 | Corbin Burnes (W, 14‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| NL | +11.0 | SD 8, SF 0 | Joe Musgrove (W, 6‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| BAT | +7.0 | MIL 15, ARI 8 | Willy Adames SS | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +7.0 | CIN 11, MIN 1 | Nick Martinez (W, 9‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| +7.0 | CLE 6, TB 1 | Joey Cantillo (W, 2‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +6.0 | WSH 4, MIA 1 | Patrick Corbin (W, 6‑13) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +5.0 | TOR 7, STL 2 | José Berríos (W, 16‑9) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| +5.0 | `CHW 7, OAK 6 | Chris Flexen | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | ||
| +4.0 | KC 5, PIT 1 | Michael Wacha (W, 13‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | ||
| +3.0 | PHI 6, NYM 4 | Bryce Harper 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | BOS 7, NYY 1 | Rafael Devers 3B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | COL 6, CHC 5 (F/10) | Sam Hilliard PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | ATL 10, LAD 1 | Chris Sale (W, 17‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| +2.0 | HOU 5, LAA 3 | Kyle Tucker PH‑RF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | `SEA 5, TEX 4 | Troy Taylor | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
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 | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | atl nl | 19.1 | 27.8 | 40.8 | 172.4 | +10.4 |
| Burnes, Corbin 4029 | pi sp | bal al | 10.7 | 22.4 | 63.6 | 66.6 | -1.0 |
| Adames, Willy 4041 | ss | mil nl | 10.5 | 17.2 | 28.6 | 29.6 | +3.8 |
| Wacha, Michael 3276 | pi sp | kc al | 10.4 | 21.4 | 40.9 | 71.6 | -0.6 |
| Berrios, Jose 3791 | pi sp | tor al | 9.7 | 20.1 | 52.2 | 79.0 | -0.7 |
| Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | sd nl | 8.7 | 15.7 | 59.2 | 68.9 | +1.7 |
| Harper, Bryce 3011 | 1b | phi nl | 8.7 | 11.7 | 32.7 | 74.6 | +5.7 |
| Martinez, Nick 3430 | pi mr sp | cin nl | 7.7 | 15.1 | 20.1 | 26.8 | +0.3 |
| Devers, Rafael 4038 | 3b | bos al | 5.0 | 12.5 | 36.0 | 38.5 | -2.5 |
| Corbin, Patrick 3027 | pi sp | dc nl | 5.0 | 12.1 | 39.2 | 97.4 | -2.1 |
| Tucker, Kyle 4277 | rf ph | hou al | 4.0 | 16.5 | 33.2 | 33.2 | -8.5 |
| Hilliard, Sam 4390 | dh cf pr ph | col nl | 3.5 | 3.5 | 9.0 | 9.0 | +3.5 |
| Cantillo, Joey 5106 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
| Flexen, Chris 4368 | pi sp | chi al | 2.7 | 2.7 | 16.4 | 16.4 | +2.7 |
| Taylor, Troy 5110 | pi mr | sea al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Sunday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAL | Povich, Cade 5029 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| DET | Montero, Keider 5057 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| CIN | Lowder, Rhett 5107 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| MIN | Festa, David 5067 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| BOS | Crawford, Kutter 4660 | 5.7 | 11.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| NYY | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | 11.7 | 12.7 | 46.2 | 69.3 |
| KC | Singer, Brady 4337 | 10.0 | 15.0 | 33.7 | 33.7 |
| PIT | Jones, Jared 4956 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 |
| MIA | Oller, Adam 4719 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| WSH | Gore, MacKenzie 4582 | 4.0 | 11.0 | 15.7 | 15.7 |
| NYM | Peterson, David 4347 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| PHI | Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | 10.4 | 14.4 | 14.4 | 14.4 |
| STL | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | 4.0 | 10.7 | 25.8 | 40.2 |
| TOR | Rodriguez, Yariel 4979 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| TB | Bradley, Taj 4780 | 10.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| CLE | Lively, Ben 3903 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 7.0 |
| OAK | Sears, JP 4627 | 7.7 | 11.7 | 16.7 | 16.7 |
| CHW | Burke, Sean* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| CHC | Hendricks, Kyle 3386 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 36.1 | 76.6 |
| COL | Quantrill, Cal 4195 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 22.7 | 22.7 |
| SD | Perez, Martin 3213 | 4.7 | 9.4 | 22.2 | 39.2 |
| SF | Roupp, Landen 5079 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| HOU | Blanco, Ronel 4959 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 8.7 |
| LAA | Dana, Caden* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| MIL | Hall, DL 5097 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| ARI | Gallen, Zac 4171 | 10.4 | 27.1 | 61.5 | 61.5 |
| TEX | Heaney, Andrew 3515 | 9.0 | 20.4 | 41.8 | 56.5 |
| SEA | Kirby, George 4595 | 11.7 | 25.4 | 36.8 | 36.8 |
| LAD | Buehler, Walker 3943 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 44.5 | 59.6 |
| ATL | Morton, Charlie 2503 | 9.4 | 19.4 | 63.3 | 113.5 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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