Blog
The Cleveland Indians are the top-ranked team in Box-Toppers’ 2018 preseason rankings, the same position where they finished the 2017 season.
The Nationals top NL teams and the World Series-champion Astros fall to 8th.
Meanwhile, the New York Mets made the biggest offseason improvement in players’ accumulated Box-Toppers points, while the Tampa Bay Rays and the Kansas City Royals had the biggest declines.
Read MoreThree of the four players who won Cy Young or Most Valuable Player awards in 2017 also led their teams in Box-Toppers points for the season.
The only exception: American League Most Valuable Player Jose Altuve did not lead Astros batters in Box-Toppers points. In fact, with only 2.5 Box-Toppers points, he finished 11th among Astros batters and 21st among all Astros players.
Read MoreGeorge Springer of the Astros is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in World Series Game 2 Wednesday.
The Houston Astros win 7-6 in 11 innings to tie the best-of-seven game series at 1-1.
Read More
The Los Angeles Dodgers top Box-Toppers team rankings for the 10th straight week despite earning only 1.0 Box-Toppers point during the past week.
Meanwhile, the Houston Astros bounce back to lead American League teams in Box-Toppers rankings on the strength of two August deadline acquisitions. The Astros also gained more Box-Toppers points than any other team during the past week mainly because of those trades.
Read More
Twins pitcher Ricky Nolasco is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Friday, two players—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer and Cubs pitcher Jon Lester—rise in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 17.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 5 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 14.1 |
| 6 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 12.5 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 12.4 |
| 8 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 12.4 |
| 9 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
| 10 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 11.0 |
Player of the Day—Nolasco allowed one run over eight innings, giving up three hits, one walk and striking out six, in the 2-1, 12-inning win over the White Sox. Nolasco did not earn the win, picking up a no decision, because he exited with the game tied.
National League Player of the Day—Cubs pitcher Jon Lester pitched six scoreless innings, striking out seven and allowing four hits and two walks, in the 12-1 win over the Mariners.
Lester earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 12.4 for the season and rising to eighth place in season player rankings, sixth among NL pitchers.
Lester displaces teammate, pitcher Jake Arrieta (10.7 Box-Toppers points), from the season player ranking top 10 list. Arrieta had been in the top 10 this season continuously since April 16 and led all players from April 21 to April 30 and from May 3 to May 6. Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has led all players since May 7 (currently with 20.0 Box-Toppers points). Arrieta has not earned Box-Toppers points since June 17. He led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2015 with 29.1.
Lester now also has 133.5 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 28th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Friday, Lester passes Jason Giambi (133.4) on the “all-time” list and now trails 27th-ranked player Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers (138.4).
National League Batter of the Day—Tommy Pham of the Cardinals hit a two-run homer and went 2-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 11-6 win over the Marlins.
American League Batter of the Day—Cameron Maybin of the Tigers doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 14-6 win over the Astros.
Rankings—Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer rises to second place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Scherzer (7IP 5H R 2BB 6K W in the 4-1 win over the Giants) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 17.0 for the season. He rises from third to second in season player rankings, passing Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez (16.4) and now trails overall leader Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (20.0 Box-Toppers points) by 3.0 points.
Scherzer also now has 123.0 career Box-Toppers points, ranked 38th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. Scherzer trails 37th-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1).
Scoring—Nolasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lester earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Pham and Maybin each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 7/29 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | `MIN 2, CHW 1 (12) | Ricky Nolasco | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| NL | 7.0 | CHC 12, SEA 1 | Jon Lester (W,11-4) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |
| 6.2 | MIL 3, PIT 1 | Junior Guerra (W,7-2) | - | - | - | - | 8.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 5.2 | TB 5, NYY 1 | Jake Odorizzi (W,5-5) | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | STL 11, MIA 6 | Tommy Pham, CF | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | WSH 4, SF 1 | Max Scherzer (W,11-6) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | CIN 6, SD 0 | Brandon Finnegan (W,6-8) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | DET 14, HOU 6 | Cameron Maybin, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | TEX 8, KC 3 | Rougned Odor, 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | LAD 9, ARI 7 | Joc Pederson, CF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | BOS 6, LAA 2 | Rick Porcello (W,14-2) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 2.0 | COL 6, NYM 1 | Carlos Gonzalez, RF | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | TOR 6, BAL 5 | Edwin Encarnacion, DH | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | CLE 5, OAK 3 | Abraham Almonte, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | ATL 2, PHI 1 | Nick Markakis, RF | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 17.0 | 38.0 | 102.6 | 123.0 | -4.0 |
| Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 12.4 | 24.4 | 70.6 | 133.5 | 0.4 |
| Guerra, Junior 3633 | pi sp | mil nl | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| Encarnacion, Edwin 2098 | dh | tor al | 7.0 | 17.4 | 45.6 | 66.1 | -3.4 |
| Porcello, Rick 2573 | pi sp | bos al | 6.0 | 10.0 | 31.7 | 40.7 | 2.0 |
| Nolasco, Ricky 2125 | pi sp | min al | 5.7 | 7.7 | 28.4 | 81.5 | 3.7 |
| Gonzalez, Carlos 2460 | rf | col nl | 5.5 | 17.0 | 45.7 | 58.7 | -6.0 |
| Markakis, Nick 2116 | rf | atl nl | 4.0 | 8.5 | 19.5 | 46.1 | -0.5 |
| Odor, Rougned 3336 | 2b | tex al | 4.0 | 7.0 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 1.0 |
| Odorizzi, Jake 3291 | pi sp | tb al | 3.7 | 12.4 | 23.4 | 23.4 | -5.0 |
| Finnegan, Brandon 3535 | pi sp | cin nl | 3.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 0.0 |
| Maybin, Cameron 2672 | cf | det al | 3.0 | 4.0 | 11.5 | 15.5 | 2.0 |
| Pederson, Joc 3621 | cf | lad nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Pham, Thomas 3596 | cf | stl nl | 1.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Almonte, Abraham 3554 | cf ph | cle al | 1.0 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | -0.5 |
Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 13.4 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 12.0 |
| 4 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.7 |
| 5 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 10.8 |
| 6 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.7 |
| 7 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.7 |
| 8 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 10.5 |
| 9 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 10.4 |
| 10 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 10.0 |
Carrasco struck out 14 over 7 1/3 innings, allowing one run, three hits and two walks, in the 4-1 win over the Blue Jays.
Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.7 for the season (most of any of Thursday’s 11 Players of the Games), rising to 31st place among all players, ninth among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Danny Espinosa of the Nationals hit a grand slam and a three-run homer in the 13-4 win over the Reds. Espinosa went 2-for-4, driving in seven runs.
American League Batter of the Day—Cameron Maybin of the Tigers doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring once and driving in four runs, in the 10-7 win over the Rays.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Thursday because the NL Player of the Day was batter Danny Espinosa.
Debut—Mets pitcher Erik Goeddel made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors.
Goeddel (1.2IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K W in the 4-3 win over the Cubs) made his Major League debut Sept. 1, 2014, and was playing in his 48th career game. He is the 3,672nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Carrasco earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Espinosa earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Maybin earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 6/30 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.1 | CLE 4/TOR 1 | Carlos Carrasco (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | |
| 11.0 | `NYY 2/TEX 1 | Michael Pineda | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 12 | ||
| NL | 7.0 | DC 13/CIN 4 | Danny Espinosa, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.1 | SEA 5/BAL 3 | Taijuan Walker (W,4-6) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 5.0 | LAD 8/MIL 1 | Kenta Maeda (W,7-5) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | DET 10/TB 7 | Cameron Maybin, CF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.2 | NYM 4/CHC 3 | Erik Goeddel (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 8/MIA 5 | Brandon Snyder, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | CHW 6/MIN 5 | David Robertson (S,21) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 2.0 | SF 12/OAK 6 | Brandon Belt, 1B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | KC 4/STL 2 | Kendrys Morales, RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 6.7 | 24.7 | 40.8 | 40.8 | -11.3 |
| Walker, Taijuan 3453 | pi sp | sea al | 5.7 | 19.4 | 19.4 | 19.4 | -8.0 |
| Belt, Brandon 2943 | 1b | sf nl | 5.0 | 6.5 | 18.5 | 18.5 | 3.5 |
| Maeda, Kenta 3609 | pi sp | lad nl | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Robertson, David 2774 | pi cp | chi al | 4.0 | 12.0 | 24.0 | 25.0 | -4.0 |
| Pineda, Michael 2841 | pi sp | nyy al | 3.0 | 13.7 | 31.1 | 31.1 | -7.7 |
| Morales, Kendrys 2142 | dh | kc al | 3.0 | 7.7 | 17.7 | 33.7 | -1.7 |
| Espinosa, Danny 2804 | ss 2b | dc nl | 1.7 | 4.7 | 13.4 | 15.4 | -1.3 |
| Maybin, Cameron 2672 | cf | det al | 1.5 | 2.5 | 10.0 | 14.0 | 0.5 |
| Snyder, Brandon 3017 | 3b ph | atl nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 1.0 |
| Goeddel, Erik 3672 | pi mr | nym nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
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. Players earn Box-Toppers points 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.