Cubs pitcher Justin Steele is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Friday, White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease maintains his third-place spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Read MoreDodgers’ Buehler tops players for Saturday, Aug. 3; Twins’ Cruz rises to lead AL batters in 2019 points
Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Saturday, Nelson Cruz of the Twins rises to lead American League batters in 2019 Box-Toppers points after earning AL Batter of the Day honors.
Read MoreJose Altuve tops players in World Series Game 5 as Astros take 3-2 series lead
Jose Altuve of the Astros is Box-Toppers Player of the Game in World Series Game 5 Sunday.
The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 13-12 in 10 innings to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Read More
Nationals, Astros each have most players (seven) in Box-Toppers top 100 of 2017 at All-Star break
A look at the top 100 players in Box-Toppers points at the midseason break. League-leading teams—Nationals, Astros, Dodgers—have the most players on the list.
Read MoreMariners' Robinson Cano is Box-Toppers Player of the Game as AL wins 2017 All-Star Game
Robinson Cano of the Mariners is Box-Toppers 2017 All-Star Player of the Game.
Cano hit a 10th-inning, go-ahead homer in the American League’s 2-1 win over the National League. Cano went 1-for-2, striking out while entering the game in the seventh inning as a pinch hitter.
Cano was also named All-Star Game Most Valuable Player.
Cano had a Box-Toppers game score Tuesday of +1.0. One other player, Astros pitcher Chris Devenski, had a Box-Toppers game score of +2.0 (1IP 0H 0R 0BB K ND), but did not qualify to earn Player of the Game honors because he did not earn the win or save and did not pitch at least three innings.
Seven AL players had Box-Toppers game scores Tuesday of +1.0, but Cano beat them on tiebreakers. He automatically beat the four pitchers with game scores of +1.0 (Chris Sale of the Red Sox, Craig Kimbrel of the Red Sox, Andrew Miller of the Indians and Brandon Kintzler of the Twins), since batters always best pitchers in game score ties. He beat two batters with game scores of +1.0 (Miguel Sano of the Twins and Jonathan Schoop of the Orioles) because he had more at bats—Cano had two at bats, while both Sano and Schoop had one.
While Devenski had the highest Box-Toppers game score among AL pitchers, Kimbrel (1IP 0H 0R 2BB 2K W) was the highest-ranking pitcher qualified to earn Player of the Game honors because he earned the win.
Cano has 4.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, 20th among AL batters and second among AL second basemen, behind Jonathan Schoop of the Orioles (4.5). In 2016, Cano had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, second among AL batters, behind Jose Altuve of the Astros (12.5). Cano has 79.4 career Box-Toppers points, ranking sixth among active AL batters. He made his Box-Toppers debut in 2005 with the Yankees and has earned Box-Toppers points in 13 straight seasons.
Overall Box-Toppers points leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (21.1), was selected to the NL All-Star team but did not pitch in the game since he pitched in his regular start only two days earlier.
Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer, who started for the NL team and ranks second in overall 2017 Box-Toppers points (17.0), had a Box-Toppers game score Tuesday of +2.0 (1IP 1H 0R 0BB 2K ND).
Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale, who started for the AL team and leads AL players in 2017 Box-Toppers points (13.1), ranking third overall, had a Box-Toppers game score Tuesday of +1.0 (2IP 3H 0R 0BB 2K ND).
Aaron Judge of the Yankees, who has the most Box-Toppers points among AL batters in the All-Star Game (8.2), went 0-for-3 in the All-Star Game and had a Box-Toppers game score of -3.0, tied for the lowest among AL players. A night earlier, Judge won the All-Star Home Run Derby.
Ryon Healy of the Athletics has the most Box-Toppers points among AL batters (8.7), but was not selected for the All-Star Game.
Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers, who leads NL batters in Box-Toppers points (7.7), went 0-for-3 in the All-Star Game and had a Box-Toppers game score of -3.0.
Top player for the NL team was Yadier Molina of the Cardinals, who hit a sixth-inning, game-tying, solo homer and had a Box-Toppers game score of +2.0.
Scoring—Just as All-Star Game statistics don’t count in a player’s regular season statistics, no Box-Toppers points are awarded for the All-Star Game.
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 game scores of AL All-Star players
Here are all the players who played for the the winning American League team in Tuesday's All-Star Game, listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score. Robinson Cano is Box-Toppers Player of the Game (POG) with a game score of +1.0. Astros pitcher Chris Devenski had a higher Box-Toppers game score (+2.0) but did not qualify to earn Player of the Game because he did not earn the win or save and did not pitch at least three innings. Seven AL players had Box-Toppers game scores of +1.0, but Cano beat them on tiebreakers.| 7/11 | Score | AL All-Stars | Team | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| 2.0 | Chris Devenski | Astros | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| POG | 1.0 | Robinson Cano (PH-2B) | Mariners | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1.0 | Miguel Sano (3B) | Twins | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Jonathan Schoop (2B) | Orioles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Chris Sale | Red Sox | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | Craig Kimbrel (W, 0-0) | Red Sox | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | Andrew Miller (S, 0) | Indians | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Brandon Kintzler (H, 0) | Twins | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0.0 | Jose Ramirez (3B) | Indians | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 0.0 | Yonder Alonso (1B) | Athletics | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 0.0 | Justin Smoak (1B) | Blue Jays | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 0.0 | Dellin Betances | Yankees | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 0.0 | Jason Vargas | Royals | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 0.0 | Roberto Osuna | Blue Jays | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| -1.0 | Justin Upton (RF) | Tigers | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -1.0 | Michael Brantley (LF) | Indians | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -1.0 | Ervin Santana (B, 0) | Twins | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| -2.0 | Jose Altuve (2B) | Astros | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Mike Moustakas (3B) | Royals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Carlos Correa (SS) | Astros | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Francisco Lindor (SS) | Indians | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Corey Dickerson (DH) | Rays | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Nelson Cruz (PH) | Mariners | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Salvador Perez (C) | Royals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Gary Sanchez (C) | Yankees | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Mookie Betts (CF) | Red Sox | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -2.0 | Avisail Garcia (CF) | White Sox | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -3.0 | Aaron Judge (RF) | Yankees | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| -3.0 | George Springer (LF) | Astros | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
No Box-Toppers points are awarded for the All-Star Game.
Rangers' A.J. Griffin tops players for Monday, April 17; Cardinals' Lynn tops NL players
Rangers pitcher A.J. Griffin is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Griffin struck out eight over six scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk, in the 7-0 win over the Athletics.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2017 season as of April 17:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 4.7 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 4.0 |
| 3 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 3.4 |
| 4 | Morrison, Logan 2794 | 1b | tb al | 3.2 |
| 5 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 6 | Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bos al | 3.0 |
| 7 | Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 3.0 |
| 8 | Marte, Starling 3122 | lf cf | pit nl | 3.0 |
| 9 | Vargas, Jason 2055 | pi sp | kc al | 3.0 |
| 10 | Holland, Greg 2906 | pi cp | col nl | 3.0 |
National League Player of the Day—Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out five, in the 2-1 win over the Pirates.
National League Batter of the Day—Freddie Freeman of the Braves hit two home runs and two doubles in the 5-4 win over the Padres. Freeman went 4-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs.
American League Batter of the Day—Aaron Judge of the Yankees hit a two-run homer and went 2-for-4, driving in three total runs, in the 7-4 win over the White Sox.
Streak—Ryan Braun of the Brewers has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.
Braun (HR 2B 3-4 2R 3BI in the 6-3 win over the Cubs) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2007 with the Brewers and has 89.2 career points, second among active NL batters (trailing Ryan Howard of the Braves with 98.7). Braun’s best season was 2012 with the Brewers when he had 12.5 Box-Toppers points, first among NL batters.
Rankings—Two players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday:
- Red Sox pitcher Craig Kimbrel (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 3K Sv in the 4-3 win over the Rays) rises to sixth place in player rankings. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 3.0 for the season.
- Astros pitcher Chris Devenski (2IP 0H 0R 0BB 4K ND in the 3-0 win over the Angels) rises to seventh place in player rankings. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 3.0 for the season.
Scoring—Griffin earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lynn earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Freeman and Judge each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Monday’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.
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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score| 4/17 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 12.0 | TEX 7, OAK 0 | A.J. Griffin (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| NL | 8.0 | STL 2, PIT 1 | Lance Lynn (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | |
| 8.0 | SEA 6, MIA 1 | Ariel Miranda (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 6.0 | `ARI 4, LAD 2 | Robbie Ray | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 10 | ||
| 6.0 | `HOU 3, LAA 0 | Chris Devenski | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | ATL 5, SD 4 | Freddie Freeman, 1B | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | MIL 6, CHC 3 | Ryan Braun, LF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 4, TB 3 | Craig Kimbrel (S,6) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | NYY 7, CHW 4 | Aaron Judge, RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | CLE 3, MIN 1 | Danny Salazar (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
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.
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’17). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’16-17), the period 2012-2017 (’12-17) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2017 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2016 total (+/-).| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Kimbrel, Craig 2825 | pi cp | bos al | 3.0 | 11.0 | 55.7 | 61.7 | -5.0 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 3.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | -0.7 |
| Judge, Aaron 3767 | rf | nyy al | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
| Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 2.0 | 8.7 | 12.7 | 12.7 | -4.7 |
| Griffin, A.J. 3074 | pi sp | tex al | 2.0 | 7.7 | 22.4 | 22.4 | -3.7 |
| Lynn, Lance 2992 | pi sp | stl nl | 1.7 | 1.7 | 57.6 | 57.6 | 1.7 |
| Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | atl nl | 1.5 | 9.0 | 34.7 | 40.2 | -6.0 |
| Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 1.0 | 13.5 | 36.3 | 36.3 | -11.5 |
| Braun, Ryan J. 2300 | lf | mil nl | 1.0 | 11.5 | 37.0 | 89.2 | -9.5 |
| Miranda, Ariel 3738 | pi sp | sea al | 1.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | -1.0 |
Mets' Syndergaard tops players for Sunday, April 9, rises to lead Box-Toppers season player rankings
Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to lead all players in season Box-Toppers points.
Syndergaard struck out nine over seven innings, allowing two runs and five hits, in the 5-2 win over the Marlins.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2017 season as of April 9:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 2 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 2.7 |
| 3 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 2.0 |
| 4 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 2.0 |
| 5 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 2.0 |
| 6 | Finnegan, Brandon 3535 | pi sp | cin nl | 2.0 |
| 7 | Mazara, Nomar 3614 | rf | tex al | 2.0 |
| 8 | Chacin, Jhoulys 2711 | pi mr sp | sd nl | 2.0 |
| 9 | Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 2.0 |
| 10 | Puig, Yasiel 3193 | rf | lad nl | 2.0 |
Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, passing previous leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (2.0).
American League Player of the Day—Twins pitcher Ervin Santana pitched six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out four, in the 4-1 win over the White Sox.
Santana earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 2.7 for the season and rising to second place in season Box-Toppers rankings.
Santana also becomes the 75th player since Box-Toppers inception in 1995 to reach 100 career Box-Toppers points. With his points Sunday, he has exactly 100.0 and ranks 75th among all players since 1995. He passes five players on the “all-time” list—Ryan Howard of the Braves (98.7), Jim Edmonds (98.8), White Sox pitcher James Shields (99.4), Giants pitcher Matt Cain (99.7) and Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto (99.8). Santana now trails 74th-ranked player Larry Walker (100.1).
American League Batter of the Day—Joey Gallo of the Rangers homered and went 2-for-4, driving in five runs, in the 8-1 win over the Athletics.
National League Batter of the Day—Starling Marte of the Pirates hit a walk-off 10th-inning home run in the 6-5 win over the Braves. Marte also went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs.
Notable—Two other players who earned Player of the Game honors Sunday are among the top 10 players in season Box-Toppers rankings:
- Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta rises to fourth place with 2.0 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors in the 7-4 win against Brewers (7IP 3H 3R 2BB 10K W).
- Astros pitcher Chris Devenski rises to ninth place with 2.0 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors in the 5-4, 12-inning win over the Royals (4IP 3H R 0BB 7K W).
Currently, 12 players have 2.0 Box-Toppers points on the season. Ties are broken among those players based on how many Box-Toppers points the players had in 2016. For example, Kershaw ranks highest among those 13 players because he had 24.4 Box-Toppers points in 2016, while Arrieta, who ranks third, had 15.7.
Scoring—Syndergaard earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Santana earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Gallo and Marte each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’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.
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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score| 4/9 | Score | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | NYM 5, MIA 2 | Noah Syndergaard (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| 7.0 | CIN 8, STL 0 | Scott Feldman (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | CHC 7, MIL 4 | Jake Arrieta (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | ||
| AL | 6.0 | MIN 4, CHW 1 | Ervin Santana (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | |
| 6.0 | HOU 5, KC 4 (F/12) | Chris Devenski (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 5.0 | `PHI 4, WSH 3 | Jeremy Hellickson | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | TEX 8, OAK 1 | Joey Gallo, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | TB 7, TOR 2 | Steven Souza, RF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 7, DET 5 | Matt Barnes (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | PIT 6, ATL 5 (F/10) | Starling Marte, CF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | ARI 3, CLE 2 | Patrick Corbin (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | NYY 7, BAL 3 | Dellin Betances (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | LAD 10, COL 6 | Corey Seager, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | SF 5, SD 3 | Buster Posey, C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | LAA 10, SEA 9 | Jefry Marte, PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 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.
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’17). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’16-17), the period 2012-2017 (’12-17) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2017 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2016 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym nl | 3.0 | 19.7 | 30.1 | 30.1 | -13.7 |
| Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 2.7 | 6.7 | 39.5 | 100.0 | -1.3 |
| Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 2.0 | 17.7 | 72.5 | 77.5 | -13.7 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr cp | hou al | 2.0 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.7 | -1.7 |
| Marte, Starling 3122 | lf | pit nl | 1.5 | 4.0 | 13.5 | 13.5 | -1.0 |
| Gallo, Joey 3485 | 3b | tex al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.5 |
| Hellickson, Jeremy 2778 | pi sp | phi nl | 1.0 | 14.1 | 35.1 | 45.8 | -12.1 |
| Souza, Steven Jr. 3461 | rf | tb al | 1.0 | 6.7 | 12.2 | 12.2 | -4.7 |
| Betances, Dellin 3333 | pi mr | nyy al | 1.0 | 5.0 | 13.7 | 13.7 | -3.0 |
| Seager, Corey 3587 | ss | lad nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | -3.0 |
| Corbin, Patrick 3027 | pi sp cp | ari nl | 1.0 | 4.7 | 33.5 | 33.5 | -2.7 |
| Posey, Buster 2745 | ca 1b | sf nl | 1.0 | 4.5 | 29.5 | 34.0 | -2.5 |
| Marte, Jefry 3529 | 1b ph | ana al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Feldman, Scott 2632 | pi sp | cin nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 17.7 | 25.7 | 1.0 |
| Barnes, Matt 3466 | pi mr | bos al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 |
Dbacks' Braden Shipley tops players for Thursday, Aug. 11; Astros' Altuve rises to 10th in Box-Toppers rankings
Diamondbacks pitcher Braden Shipley is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of Aug. 11:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 18.7 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 16.2 |
| 5 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 14.1 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.1 |
| 8 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 13.4 |
| 9 | Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 12.7 |
| 10 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 12.5 |
Also Thursday, Jose Altuve of the Astros became the first batter in nearly two months to land a spot among Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Altuve, the Box-Toppers points leader among American League batters, rises to 10th place among all players.
Player of the Day—Shipley pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out seven and allowing three hits and one walk, in the 9-0 win over the Mets.
American League Player of the Day—Astros pitcher Chris Devenski pitched five scoreless innings, allowing two hits, no walks and striking out five, in the 10-2 win over the Twins.
This was Devenski’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Devenski made his Major League debut April 8 and was playing in his 32nd career game. He is the 3,702nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
American League Batter of the Day—Mike Napoli of the Indians hit a three-run homer and two doubles, going 4-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 14-4 win over the Angels.
National League Batter of the Day—Hernan Perez of the Brewers homered and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 11-3 win over the Braves.
Rankings—Jose Altuve of the Astros rises to 10th place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Thursday.
Altuve (2B 4-5 3R 3BI in the 15-7 win over the Twins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.5 for the season. He extends his Box-Toppers points lead among AL batters (second place Manny Machado of the Orioles has 10.2 points).
Altuve is the first batter in the overall top 10 in Box-Toppers points since June 14, when Machado was among the top 10 with 8.7 points. Altuve’s 12.5 points for the season also matches the 12.5 points Adrian Beltre of the Rangers had in 2015 to lead AL batters at the end of the season.
Debut—Yankees pitcher Luis Cessa made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Cessa (2IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K W in the 4-2 win over the Red Sox) made his Major League debut April 8 and was playing in his seventh career game. He is the 3,703rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Shipley earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Devenski earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Napoli and Perez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 8/11 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 10.0 | ARI 9, NYM 0 | Braden Shipley (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| AL | 8.0 | HOU 10, MIN 2 | Chris Devenski (W,1-4) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |
| BAT | 7.0 | CLE 14, LAA 4 | Mike Napoli, 1B | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 7.0 | PIT 4, SD 0 | Jameson Taillon (W,3-2) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 6.0 | KC 2, CHW 1 | Danny Duffy (W,9-1) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | HOU 15, MIN 7 | Jose Altuve, 2B | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | BAL 9, OAK 6 | Mark Trumbo, RF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | NYY 4, BOS 2 | Luis Cessa (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 4.0 | COL 12, TEX 9 | Adam Ottavino (S,1) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | MIL 11, ATL 3 | Hernan Perez, 3B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | CHC 4, STL 3 (11) | Mike Montgomery (W,4-5) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 12.5 | 19.5 | 29.0 | 29.0 | 5.5 |
| Duffy, Danny 2915 | pi sp | kc al | 9.7 | 13.7 | 28.7 | 28.7 | 5.7 |
| Trumbo, Mark 2851 | rf | bal al | 8.2 | 10.7 | 33.9 | 33.9 | 5.7 |
| Napoli, Mike 2161 | 1b | cle al | 5.0 | 9.5 | 37.2 | 56.2 | 0.5 |
| Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | pit nl | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Montgomery, Mike 3513 | pi cp mr sp | chi nl | 4.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 0.0 |
| Perez, Hernan 3577 | 3b ss ph | mil nl | 3.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 2.5 |
| Shipley, Braden 3695 | pi sp | ari nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi sp | hou nl | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| Ottavino, Adam 3054 | pi cp | col nl | 1.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | -1.0 |
| Cessa, Luis 3703 | pi mr | nyy al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |