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
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
▪️ Friday’s sidelights sidebar
▪️ Subscribe to newsletter
▪️ Support Box-Toppers
Athletics pitcher Jeffrey Springs is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Other Player of the Game winners Friday include Mookie Betts of the Dodgers and Jonah Heim of the Rangers.
Player of the Day
Springs struck out nine over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 7-0 win over the Mariners.
Springs earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first points of the season, and now ranks third among all players.
Springs is one of four players with 2.0 Box-Toppers points in 2025. They are ranked based on their 2024 point totals. Springs earned 5.0 Box-Toppers points with the Rays in 2024, 58th among AL pitchers. Mariners pitcher Logan Gilbert, Thursday’s Player of the Day, also with 2.0 points, ranks first. He earned 13.0 points in 2024.
National League Player of the Day
Mookie Betts of the Dodgers hit two home runs, including a 10th-inning, walk-off, three-run homer, in the 8-5, 10-inning win over the Tigers. Betts went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in four runs.
Betts earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, his first points of the season, and ranks sixth among all players.
Betts earned 3.5 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 59th among NL batters.
American League Batter of the Day
Jonah Heim of the Rangers hit two home runs and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 4-1 win over the Red Sox.
Heim earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, his first points of the season, and ranks ninth among all players. He earned 2.5 Box-Toppers points in 2024, seventh among AL catchers.
National League Batter of the Day
There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Friday because the overall NL Player of the Day is batter Mookie Betts.
Friday’s sidelights sidebar
Top pitching matchup
▪️Reynaldo López, Braves12.8 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 11th among NL pitchers
▪️Dylan Cease, Padres
21.1 Box-Toppers points in 2024, 2nd among NL pitchers
Result—SD 4, ATL 3
Neither starter was Player of the Game.
López had -11.0 B-T game score in loss (5IP 9H 3R 2BB K ND), third-lowest among all Friday players.
Cease had -0.9 B-T game score (4.1IP 4H 3R 2BB 7K ND).
Player of the Game—Jason Adam, Padres (IP 0H 0R BB 3K W) 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:▪️+11.0—Kyle Freeland, Rockies (6IP 2H 0R 0BB 7K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in loss vs. TB.
Player of the Game—Ryan Pepiot, Rays (6IP 6H 2R ER BB 8K ND) with +4.0 game score.
▪️+4.0—Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers (5IP 5H 2R 2BB 10K ND)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. DET.
Player of the Game—Teammate Mookie Betts (2HR 3-5 3R 4BI) with +5.0 game score.
▪️+2.0—Pavin Smith, Diamondbacks (2B 3-4 2R BB)
Was not Player of the Game in win vs. CHC.
Player of the Game—Teammate Eugenio Suárez (2HR 2-4 2R 4BI) with +4.0 game score.
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores
Out of 259 total players Friday, 78 pitchers-15.9—Jameson Taillon, Cubs (4.1IP 9H 6R 0BB K L vs. ARI)
-12.9—Beau Brieske, Tigers
-11.0—Reynaldo López, Braves
-10.8—Tanner Houck, Red Sox
-9.9—Charlie Morton, Orioles
Lowest Box-Toppers game scores by batters
Out of 181 total batters Friday-5.0—Brenton Doyle, Rockies 0-5 3K
-5.0—Bryan Reynolds, Pirates 0-5 3K
-4.0—Rafael Devers, Red Sox 0-4 4K
-4.0—Max Muncy, Dodgers 0-4 3K
-4.0—Donovan Solano, Mariners 0-4 3K
Box-Toppers uses Baseball-Reference.com, MLB.com and other sources to compile this information.
Debut
Nathan Lukes of the Blue Jays made his Box-Toppers debut Friday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Lukes (1-2 2R BI in the 8-2 win over the Orioles) made his Major League debut March 30, 2023, and was playing in his 53rd career game.
Scoring
Springs earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Betts earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.
Heim earns 1.5 points for being AL 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.
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.
For additional updates, follow Box-Toppers on Bluesky or Twitter (X).
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).| 3/28 | BTG | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +11.0 | ATH 7, SEA 0 | Jeffrey Springs (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| NL | +5.0 | LAD 8, DET 5 (F/10) | Mookie Betts SS | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | NYM 3, HOU 1 | Tylor Megill (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| +4.0 | ARI 8, CHC 1 | Eugenio Suárez 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | `TB 3, COL 2 | Ryan Pepiot | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | TEX 4, BOS 1 | Jonah Heim C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | SD 4, ATL 3 | Jason Adam (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| +2.0 | PIT 4, MIA 3 | Oneil Cruz CF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | TOR 8, BAL 2 | Nathan Lukes CF | 2 | 2 | 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 would 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.
Back to top
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 2025 (’25). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’24-’25), the period 2020-2025 (’20-25) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2025 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2024 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’25 | ’24‑25 | ’20‑25 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springs, Jeffrey 4372 | pi sp | oak al | 2.0 | 7.0 | 24.4 | 24.4 | -3.0 |
| Betts, Mookie 3404 | ss rf | lad nl | 1.7 | 5.2 | 30.9 | 67.7 | -1.8 |
| Heim, Jonah 4492 | ca | tex al | 1.5 | 4.0 | 15.2 | 15.2 | -1.0 |
| Pepiot, Ryan 4714 | pi sp | tb al | 1.0 | 10.7 | 17.7 | 17.7 | -8.7 |
| Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | ari nl | 1.0 | 9.5 | 23.0 | 54.0 | -7.5 |
| Cruz, Oneil 4665 | cf ss | pit nl | 1.0 | 4.5 | 9.0 | 9.0 | -2.5 |
| Adam, Jason 4256 | pi mr cp | sd nl | 1.0 | 4.0 | 13.4 | 14.4 | -2.0 |
| Megill, Tylor 4464 | pi sp | nym nl | 1.0 | 3.7 | 19.4 | 19.4 | -1.7 |
| Lukes, Nathan 5128 | cf | tor al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
Chart is sortable. Click a column header to re-sort the chart by the values in that column. Refresh page to restore chart to default view.
Back to top
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 2025 (’25), this year and last year (’24-25), over a six-year period (’20-25) and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’25 | ’24‑25 | ’20‑25 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIL | Cortes, Nestor 4160 | 0.0 | 15.4 | 37.8 | 39.8 |
| NYY | Fried, Max 4011 | 0.0 | 13.4 | 55.9 | 66.9 |
| LAA | Soriano, Jose 4884 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| CHW | Cannon, Jonathan 5036 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| MIN | Ryan, Joe 4539 | 0.0 | 9.7 | 35.8 | 35.8 |
| STL | Fedde, Erick 4065 | 0.0 | 8.7 | 23.5 | 27.2 |
| BAL | Kremer, Dean 4330 | 0.0 | 8.7 | 29.8 | 29.8 |
| TOR | Scherzer, Max 2588 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 56.5 | 253.7 |
| PHI | Luzardo, Jesus 4282 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 35.9 | 35.9 |
| WSH | Irvin, Jake 4805 | 0.0 | 10.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 |
| COL | Senzatela, Antonio 3760 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 5.0 | 13.0 |
| TB | Littell, Zack 4533 | 0.0 | 8.4 | 14.4 | 14.4 |
| PIT | Falter, Bailey 4473 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 13.4 | 13.4 |
| MIA | Bellozo, Valente 5082 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| SF | Verlander, Justin 2112 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 41.4 | 247.0 |
| CIN | Lodolo, Nick 4586 | 0.0 | 9.0 | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| CLE | Williams, Gavin 4865 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| KC | Lugo, Seth 3729 | 0.0 | 14.1 | 25.5 | 38.5 |
| BOS | Buehler, Walker 3943 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 28.1 | 59.6 |
| TEX | Mahle, Tyler 3929 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 22.4 | 32.4 |
| NYM | Canning, Griffin 4134 | 0.0 | 4.7 | 15.7 | 22.4 |
| HOU | Arrighetti, Spencer 5022 | 0.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| ATL | Schwellenbach, Spencer 5035 | 0.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| SD | Vasquez, Randy 4841 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| CHC | Imanaga, Shota 4960 | 0.0 | 20.7 | 20.7 | 20.7 |
| ARI | Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 | 0.0 | 12.4 | 16.1 | 16.1 |
| DET | Olson, Reese 4861 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 10.4 | 10.4 |
| LAD | Sasaki, Roki* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| ATH | Bido, Osvaldo 4882 | 0.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| SEA | Miller, Bryce 4797 | 0.0 | 15.7 | 28.8 | 28.8 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
Chart is sortable. Click a column header to re-sort the chart by the values in that column. Refresh page to restore chart to default, game-by-game view.
Back to top