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
▪️ Sunday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Pavin Smith of the Diamondbacks is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2024 Box-Toppers points (BTP) through Sunday, Sept. 8:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 19.4 |
| 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 | 14.4 |
| 8 | Bryce Miller | pi sp | Mariners | 13.7 |
| 9 | Aaron Nola | pi sp | Phillies | 13.4 |
| 10 | Bailey Ober | pi sp | Twins | 13.4 |
Also Sunday, Braves pitcher Chris Sale rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day
Smith hit three home runs, including a grand slam and a three-run homer, in the 12-6 win over the Astros. Smith went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in eight runs.
Smith earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.5 for the season, 181st among all players and 31st among National League batters.
Smith is just the fifth batter this season to win overall Player of the Day honors and his +10.0 Box-Toppers game score is the third-best for all batters who have won Player of the Game honors this season.
Sunday was the 164th day of the 2024 regular season, which means pitchers have won overall Player of the Day honors in 159 days with batters winning just five. (In 2023, batters won Player of the Day honors 12 times in 183 days of the regular season.) Here are the other four times this season that a batter won overall Player of the Day honors:
March 21—Jake Cronenworth of the Padres was Player of the Day with a +6.0 Box-Toppers game score. It was the only game of the day, the second game of the 2024 season, played in South Korea.
June 20—Ryan Mountcastle of the Orioles was Player of the Day with a +4.0 Box-Toppers game score. Nine games were played that day.
Aug. 1—Jose Ramirez of the Guardians was Player of the Day with a +4.0 Box-Toppers game score. Five games were played that day.
Aug. 7—Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies was Player of the Day with a +10.0 Box-Toppers game score. Seventeen games were played that day.
Smith’s +10.0 Box-Toppers game score Sunday is third-best among all batters winning Player of the Game honors in 2024. Two other batters also had +10.0 game scores in 2024 but rank higher than Smith based on tiebreakers:
Aug. 7—Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies (3HR 2B 4-4 3R 7BI in the 9-4 win over the Dodgers).
April 27—Ceddanne Rafaela of the Red Sox (HR 2-2B SF 4-4 3R 7BI in the 17-0 win over the Cubs).
Schwarber and Rafaela’s +10.0 game scores rank higher than Smith’s because they both had four hits while Smith had three. Schwarber’s score ranks higher than Rafaela’s because he hit more home runs—three vs. one. In addition, both Schwarber and Smith won overall Player of the Day honors with their +10.0 game scores, while Rafaela earned AL Batter of the Day honors on April 27, since his game score was the day’s fifth-highest.
While those three +10.0 Box-Toppers game scores were the three-highest for batters in 2024, 155 game scores recorded by pitchers in 2024 are higher.
American League Player of the Day
Royals pitcher Michael Wacha struck out seven over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and one walk, in the 2-0 win over the Twins.
Wacha earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 9.4 for the season, 49th among all players and 25th among AL pitchers.
American League Batter of the Day
Trey Sweeney of the Tigers homered and went 4-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 9-1 win over the Athletics.
This was Sweeeny’s Box-Toppers debut, his first career Player of the Game honor. Sweeney made his Major League debut Aug. 16 and was playing in his 19th career game.
National League Batter of the Day
There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Sunday because the overall Player of the Day is NL batter Pavin Smith.
Rankings
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 | 272.4 |
| 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 | Chris Sale | pi sp | Braves | 171.4 |
| 15 | Roy Halladay | pi sp | Retired | 170.7 |
| 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 | Gerrit Cole | pi sp | Yankees | 161.3 |
| 20 | John Smoltz | pi sp | Retired | 160.9 |
Braves pitcher Chris Sale rises from sixth to fourth place in season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Sale (6IP 2H 0R BB 7K ND in the 4-3, 11-inning win over the Blue Jays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 18.1 for the season. He ranks third among NL pitchers behind Zack Wheeler of the Phillies (19.4) and Shota Imanaga of the Cubs (18.7).
Sale ranks fourth overall behind third-place Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal, even though they both have 18.1 points on the season. Skubal ranks higher because he has more 2023 points than Sale—10.7 vs. 8.7.
Sale recorded a +10.0 Box-Toppers game score Sunday, same as overall Player of the Day Pavin Smith. But Sale finished behind Smith because in cases of game score ties, batters rank ahead of pitchers. Had Sale won overall Player of the Day honors, he would have earned 2.0 points and risen to second place overall with 19.1 points.
Sale also now has 171.4 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 14th place among players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his 1.0 point Sunday, he passes Roy Halladay (170.7) on the “all-time” career points list. He now trails 13th-ranked player, Cole Hamels (174.2).
Sale ranks fourth among active, signed players in career points, second among active NL pitchers, behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (272.4).
Notable
Dodgers pitcher Jack Flaherty now has 12.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024 after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Flaherty (7.1IP 4H 0R 0BB 6K W in the 4-0 win over the Guardians) ranks 21st among all players and ninth among NL pitchers.
Sunday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Tanner Bibee, Guardians13.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 12th
▪️Jack Flaherty, Dodgers
11.0 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 30th
Result—LAD 4, CLE 0
Flaherty was Player of the Game (7.1IP 4H 0R 0BB 6K W) with +9.1 B-T game score.
Bibee had -2.0 B-T game score in loss (5IP 4H 2R 3BB 4K L).
Flaherty earns 1.0 B-T point, giving him 12.0 B-T points for 2024, rising to 21st.
High scores, no points
Highest Box-Toppers game scores for the day among players who did not earn Player of the Game honors:▪️+7.0—Gerrit Cole, Yankees (6IP 3H 2R 0ER BB 7K L)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. CHC.
Player of the Game—Jameson Taillon, Cubs (6IP 6H R BB 6K W) with +3.0 game score.
▪️+6.0—Yariel Rodriguez, Blue Jays (5IP 2H R BB 6K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. ATL.
Player of the Game—Chris Sale, Braves (6IP 2H 0R BB 7K ND) with +10.0 game score.
▪️+5.2—Luis Severino, Mets (6.2IP 5H R 2BB 8K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. CIN.
Player of the Game—Buck Farmer, Reds (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K W) with +3.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 460 total players Sunday, 132 pitchers-26.9—Seth Johnson, Phillies (2.1IP 8H 9R 3BB 0K L vs. MIA)
-22.0—Justin Verlander, Astros
-17.0—Miles Mikolas, Cardinals
-16.0—Caden Dana, Angels
-15.8—Ross Stripling, Athletics
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 328 total batters Sunday-5.0—Grant McCray, Giants 0-5 4K
-5.0—Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres 0-5 3K
-5.0—Josh Rojas, Mariners 0-5 2K
-5.0—Ryan McMahon, Rockies 0-5 K
-5.0—Ernie Clement, Blue Jays 0-6 R
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Scoring
Smith earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Wacha earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day.
Sweeney earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day.
All of Sunday’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 9, 2024
1—Clayton Kershaw #Dodgers 272.4
2—Max Scherzer #Rangers 253.7
3—Justin Verlander #Astros 247.0
4—Chris Sale #Braves 171.4*
5—Gerrit Cole #Yankees 161.3
6—Jacob deGrom #Rangers 139.2
*Earns 1.0 B-T point as Player of the Game Sunday
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).| 9/8 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +10.0 | ARI 12, HOU 6 | Pavin Smith LF‑1B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 8 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +10.0 | `ATL 4, TOR 3 (F/11) | Chris Sale | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| +9.1 | LAD 4, CLE 0 | Jack Flaherty (W, 12‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| AL | +9.0 | KC 2, MIN 0 | Michael Wacha (W, 12‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| +9.0 | MIA 10, PHI 1 | Edward Cabrera (W, 4‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +8.0 | PIT 7, WSH 3 | Jared Jones (W, 6‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 | ||
| +6.0 | COL 4, MIL 1 | Kyle Freeland (W, 5‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| +5.0 | TB 2, BAL 0 | Zack Littell (W, 6‑9) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | +4.0 | DET 9, OAK 1 | Trey Sweeney SS | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | TEX 7, LAA 4 | Andrew Heaney (W, 5‑13) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 | ||
| +3.0 | CHC 2, NYY 1 | Jameson Taillon (W, 10‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +3.0 | SEA 10, STL 4 | Trent Thornton (W, 4‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | CIN 3, NYM 1 | Buck Farmer (W, 3‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +1.0 | CHW 7, BOS 2 | Luis Robert Jr. CF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +0.1 | `SF 7, SD 6 | Spencer Bivens | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
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 | 18.1 | 26.8 | 39.8 | 171.4 | +9.4 |
| Flaherty, Jack 3971 | pi sp | lad nl | 12.0 | 16.0 | 44.2 | 57.3 | +8.0 |
| Wacha, Michael 3276 | pi sp | kc al | 9.4 | 20.4 | 39.9 | 70.6 | -1.6 |
| Heaney, Andrew 3515 | pi sp | tex al | 9.0 | 20.4 | 41.8 | 56.5 | -2.4 |
| Jones, Jared 4956 | pi sp | pit nl | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | +7.0 |
| Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 | 11.4 | 31.1 | 57.5 | +0.6 |
| Littell, Zack 4533 | pi sp | tb al | 5.7 | 7.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 | +3.7 |
| Smith, Pavin 4427 | dh lf 1b ph | ari nl | 4.5 | 6.5 | 11.0 | 11.0 | +2.5 |
| Freeland, Kyle 3763 | pi sp | col nl | 2.0 | 7.7 | 22.7 | 41.1 | -3.7 |
| Cabrera, Edward 4641 | pi sp mr | fla nl | 2.0 | 5.7 | 12.1 | 12.1 | -1.7 |
| Thornton, Trent 4120 | pi mr sp | sea al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 10.7 | 10.7 | +2.0 |
| Bivens, Spencer 5090 | pi mr sp | sf nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +2.0 |
| Sweeney, Trey 5105 | ss | det al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | +1.5 |
| Farmer, Buck 3809 | pi mr cp | cin nl | 1.0 | 4.7 | 5.7 | 9.4 | -2.7 |
| Robert, Luis 4296 | cf | chi al | 1.0 | 4.5 | 10.0 | 10.0 | -2.5 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Monday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | Bellozo, Valente 5082 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| PIT | Skenes, Paul 5005 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 |
| TB | Sulser, Cole 4270 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| PHI | Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | 9.4 | 13.4 | 13.4 | 13.4 |
| CIN | Martinez, Nick 3430 | 5.7 | 13.1 | 18.1 | 24.8 |
| ATL | Morton, Charlie 2503 | 9.4 | 19.4 | 63.3 | 113.5 |
| KC | Singer, Brady 4337 | 10.0 | 15.0 | 33.7 | 33.7 |
| NYY | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | 11.7 | 12.7 | 46.2 | 69.3 |
| NYM | Blackburn, Paul 3869 | 4.0 | 8.7 | 12.7 | 15.7 |
| TOR | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | 6.7 | 26.8 | 64.6 | 70.6 |
| BAL | Povich, Cade 5029 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| BOS | Bello, Brayan 4727 | 7.7 | 9.7 | 10.7 | 10.7 |
| LAA | Detmers, Reid 4513 | 3.7 | 10.4 | 18.4 | 18.4 |
| MIN | Festa, David 5067 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| CLE | Cantillo, Joey* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| CHW | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| CHC | Hendricks, Kyle 3386 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 36.1 | 76.6 |
| LAD | Buehler, Walker 3943 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 44.5 | 59.6 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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