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Three players were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame Tuesday—Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner.
All three received the necessary 75 percent support of voters from the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). Box-Toppers supported Sabathia and Wagner in separate voting by the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA), but notably did not support Suzuki, who was a near-unanimous choice.
Read MoreBox-Toppers is voting for four players to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in the 2025 Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) ballot.
Box-Toppers is voting for these players: Felix Hernandez, Torii Hunter, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner.
Notably, Box-Toppers is not voting for Ichiro Suzuki, who is on the Hall ballot for the first time for 2025. While Suzuki is expected to be a shoo-in for the Hall and to possibly be only the second player inducted on a unanimous vote, I devoted a previous post to why Box-Toppers doesn’t view him as a Hall of Famer. In addition, this post which will show how unfavorably he compares in Box-Toppers rankings to even this year’s Hall candidates, may even make a more stark case why I don’t see Suzuki as a Hall of Famer.
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As baseball writers push for Ichiro Suzuki to not only be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame but to become only the second player voted in unanimously, what chucklehead will oppose that?
It pains me to say: Me. Let me explain.
Despite earning Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year Awards and getting 3,000 hits, Suzuki was not the key player very often in his team’s wins. There was almost always some other teammate outperforming Suzuki in team wins. Suzuki never led his team in a season in Box-Toppers points and never even led his team’s batters.
Read MoreBraves pitcher Max Fried is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove rises to first place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Two other players—C.J. Cron of the Rockies and Brewers pitcher Corbin Burnes—rise into the top 10 in Box-Toppers points for 2022. Plus, two players extend long streaks of consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points—Mets pitcher Max Scherzer (14 seasons) and Kurt Suzuki of the Angels (16 seasons).
Read MoreReds pitcher Trevor Bauer is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to second place in season player rankings.
Bauer struck out nine in a scoreless seven-inning complete game, allowing one hit and three walks, in the 5-0, seven-inning win over the Royals.
Read MoreMariners pitcher Hunter Strickland is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Strickland struck out one in one inning of relief, allowing no hits, runs or walks and earning the save, in the 5-4, 12-inning win over the Athletics.
Read MoreIn 2017, Carlos Beltran tied Jason Giambi for the longest streak of consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points at 19. With Beltran's retirement, CC Sabathia and Albert Pujols now have the longest active streaks of consecutive seasons earning Box-Toppers points at 17.
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Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale rises to the lead in this week’s Box-Toppers team rankings report, passing last week’s leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw.
Sale now has 25.1 Box-Toppers points, passing both Kershaw (23.1) and Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer (24.0). However, both Kershaw and Scherzer could pass Sale in their starts Sunday—Kershaw would need to earn Player of the Day honors (worth 2.0 points) and Scherzer would need to earn at least NL Player of the Day honors (worth 1.7 points).
Read MoreManny Ramirez leads outfielders in career Box-Toppers points. Carlos Beltran leads active outfielders in career points. Mike Trout leads outfielders in recent seasons.
Read MoreJason Giambi leads list of players who earned Box-Toppers points in most consecutive seasons (19). Carlos Beltran, with 18 straight seasons earning points, could tie Giambi if he earns Box-Toppers points in 2017.
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Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Sunday, Manny Machado of the Orioles regained the Box-Toppers points lead among American League batters after earning AL Batter of the Day honors.
| 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 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 11.7 |
| 10 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
Player of the Day—Darvish pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out eight and allowing five hits and no walks, in the 5-3, 11-inning win over the Astros. Darvish did not earn the win, picking up a no decision, because after he exited, the Astros tied the game in the bottom of the ninth inning.
National League Player of the Day—Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks allowed one run over 7 1/3 innings, allowing three hits, no walks and striking out four, in the 3-1 win over the Athletics.
American League Batter of the Day—Manny Machado of the Orioles hit three homers, going 3-for-6 and driving in seven runs, in the 10-2 win over the White Sox.
Machado earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 10.2 for the season. He becomes the 20th player with 10 or more Box-Toppers points this season and the second batter. He passes Jose Altuve of the Astros (10.0) to retake the Box-Toppers points lead among AL batters. Machado ranks 19th among all players, the highest-ranked batter.
National League Batter of the Day—Martin Prado of the Marlins doubled and went 3-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 10-7 win over the Rockies.
| Yr | Team | BTP |
| 2001 | SEA | 4.0 |
| 2002 | SEA | 2.5 |
| 2003 | SEA | 4.2 |
| 2004 | SEA | 5.0 |
| 2005 | SEA | 6.0 |
| 2006 | SEA | 3.5 |
| 2007 | SEA | 8.0* |
| 2008 | SEA | 3.5 |
| 2009 | SEA | 5.5 |
| 2010 | SEA | 1.0 |
| 2011 | SEA | 2.0 |
| 2012 | SEA/NYY | 2.5 |
| 2013 | NYY | 2.0 |
| 2014 | NYY | 1.0 |
| 2015 | MIA | 1.0 |
| 2016 | MIA | 2.0 |
| Total | 53.7 |
Notable—Ichiro Suzuki of the Marlins picked up his 3,000th Major League hit, a triple, Sunday in the 10-7 win over the Rockies. (Teammate Martin Prado was Player of the Game.)
Suzuki has 53.7 career Box-Toppers points. He ranks 272nd among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He ranks 57th among all outfielders since 1995, ninth among all active outfielders and seventh among active NL outfielders.
Suzuki has earned Box-Toppers points in each of his 16 Major League seasons, tied for the 13th-longest streak in Box-Toppers tracking history. While Suzuki has consistently earned Box-Toppers points, he doesn’t earn very many since he doesn’t frequently hit for power, with few home runs and RBIs. His best season was 2007 with the Mariners when he had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, ninth among AL outfielders.
He’s had fewer than 3.0 Box-Toppers points in eight seasons—half his Major League career, including three seasons with only 1.0 point, just enough to keep the consecutive season streak with Box-Toppers points alive. In 2015, he had 1.0 point and so far in 2016, he has 2.0 points.
Only two other players in the 3,000-hit club earned nearly all their hits while being tracked by Box-Toppers (which began in 1995):
Scoring—Darvish earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hendricks earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Machado and Prado each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’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
| 8/7 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 10.0 | `TEX 5, HOU 3 (11) | Yu Darvish | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| 7.1 | SEA 3, LAA 1 | James Paxton (W,4-5) | - | - | - | - | 8.1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | BAL 10, CHW 2 | Manny Machado, 3B | 6 | 3 | 3 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| NL | 6.1 | CHC 3, OAK 1 | Kyle Hendricks (W,11-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | |
| 6.0 | NYY 3, CLE 2 | Masahiro Tanaka (W,8-4) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | MIN 6, TB 3 | Miguel Sano, 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | MIA 10, COL 7 | Martin Prado, 3B | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | WSH 1, SF 0 | Tanner Roark (W,12-6) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | ||
| 4.0 | LAD 8, BOS 5 | Kenley Jansen (S,34) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | `PHI 6, SD 5 | Hector Neris (H,21) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | KC 7, TOR 1 | Kendrys Morales, DH | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | ARI 9, MIL 3 | Phil Gosselin, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | CIN 7, PIT 3 | Dan Straily (W,7-6) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | NYM 3, DET 1 | Jeurys Familia (S,39) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 6, STL 3 | Jim Johnson (S,8) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 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 | +/- |
| Machado, Manny 3087 | ss 3b | bal al | 10.2 | 17.7 | 21.2 | 21.2 | 2.7 |
| Hendricks, Kyle 3386 | pi sp | chi nl | 9.7 | 19.4 | 24.4 | 24.4 | 0.0 |
| Tanaka, Masahiro 3305 | pi sp | nyy al | 9.7 | 17.7 | 30.4 | 30.4 | 1.7 |
| Roark, Tanner 3261 | pi sp | dc nl | 9.7 | 10.7 | 25.7 | 25.7 | 8.7 |
| Jansen, Kenley 2871 | pi cp | lad nl | 6.0 | 10.0 | 36.4 | 36.4 | 2.0 |
| Familia, Jeurys 3446 | pi cp | nym nl | 5.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | -3.0 |
| Morales, Kendrys 2142 | dh | kc al | 4.0 | 8.7 | 18.7 | 34.7 | -0.7 |
| Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | tex al | 3.7 | 3.7 | 48.9 | 48.9 | 3.7 |
| Prado, Martin 2511 | 3b | fla nl | 3.0 | 9.0 | 22.5 | 29.0 | -3.0 |
| Johnson, Jim 2417 | pi cp mr | atl nl | 3.0 | 5.0 | 15.0 | 20.7 | 1.0 |
| Straily, Dan 3080 | pi sp | cin nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 13.7 | 13.7 | 3.0 |
| Paxton, James 3280 | pi sp | sea al | 2.7 | 3.7 | 9.4 | 9.4 | 1.7 |
| Sano, Miguel 3527 | rf 3b | min al | 2.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -4.0 |
| Neris, Hector 3553 | pi mr | phi nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 |
| Gosselin, Philip 3398 | 2b ph | ari nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.0 |
| 4 | Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | chi al | 4.7 |
| 5 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.7 |
| 6 | Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 | cf lf dh ph | nym nl | 4.5 |
| 7 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 4.4 |
| 8 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 4.4 |
| 9 | Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b ss | bal al | 4.2 |
| 10 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 4.0 |
Also Tuesday, Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta regained his top spot in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Aaron Nola struck out seven over seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits, in the 1-0 win over the Cardinals. Nola earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season, rising to fifth in season player rankings.
American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana allowed one run over eight innings, striking out five and allowing four hits, in the 4-1 win over the Red Sox. Quintana earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season, rising to fourth in season player rankings.
American League Batter of the Day—Francisco Lindor of the Indians hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 7-3 win over the Tigers.
National League Batter of the Day—Howie Kendrick of the Dodgers went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 10-5 win over the Rays.
| Streak | Player | Pos | Duration | Career BTP |
|
| 1 | 19 | Jason Giambi | 1b | 1995-2013 | 133.4 |
| 2 | 18 | Jim Thome | 1b dh | 1995-2012 | 146.7 |
| 2 | 18 | Chipper Jones | 3b | 1995-2012 | 149.0 |
| 2 | 18 | Johnny Damon | lf | 1995-2012 | 63.0 |
| 2 | 18 | Alex Rodriguez | dh | 1996-2013 | 187.0 |
| 2 | 18 | Carlos Beltran* | rf | 1999-2016 | 99.9 |
| 7 | 17 | Mariano Rivera | pi cp | 1995-2011 | 126.4 |
| 7 | 17 | Derek Jeter | ss | 1996-2012 | 76.4 |
| 7 | 17 | Paul Konerko | 1b | 1998-2014 | 100.7 |
| 7 | 17 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | 1999-2015 | 157.0 |
| 7 | 17 | Torii Hunter | cf | 1999-2015 | 115.9 |
| 12 | 16 | Manny Ramirez | lf | 1995-2010 | 167.2 |
| 12 | 16 | Andy Pettitte | pi sp | 1995-2010 | 138.5 |
| 12 | 16 | Jamie Moyer | pi sp | 1995-2010 | 104.0 |
| 12 | 16 | Scott Rolen | 3b | 1996-2011 | 97.6 |
| 12 | 16 | Kevin Millwood | pi sp | 1997-2012 | 108.3 |
| 12 | 16 | Derek Lowe | pi sp | 1998-2013 | 91.5 |
| 12 | 16 | David Ortiz* | dh | 2000-2015 | 137.9 |
| 12 | 16 | Aramis Ramirez | 3b | 2000-2015 | 105.8 |
| 12 | 16 | Mark Buehrle* | pi sp | 2000-2015 | 116.7 |
| 12 | 16 | Albert Pujols* | dh 1b | 2001-2016 | 175.3 |
| 12 | 16 | Ichiro Suzuki* | rf | 2001-2016 | 52.7 |
Kendrick has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Angels and has 31.5 career points, sixth among active NL second basemen. His best season was 2009 with the Angels when he had 5.5 points. He had 4.0 points in 2015 with the Dodgers.
Rankings—Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta regained the lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.
Arrieta (7IP 3H R 5K W in the 7-1 win over the Pirates) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.0 for the season. While he has the same number of Box-Toppers points as Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, Arrieta wins the tiebreaker because he had more Box-Toppers points in 2015—29.1 vs. 25.7.
Streak—Ichiro Suzuki of the Marlins has now earned Box-Toppers points in 16 straight seasons, tied for the 12th-longest streak since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.
Suzuki (1-1 2BI in the 8-2 win over the Athletics) earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2001 with the Mariners and has 52.7 career points, sixth among active NL outfielders. His best season was 2007 with the Mariners when he had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, ninth among AL outfielders. He had 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 2015 with the Marlins.
Scoring—Nola earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Quintana earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Lindor and Kendrick each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’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
| 5/3 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | Phillies | Aaron Nola (W,2-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| 10.0 | Giants | Jeff Samardzija (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 | ||
| 9.0 | Braves | Matt Wisler (W,1-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 8.0 | Cubs | Jake Arrieta (W,6-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| AL | 7.0 | White Sox | Jose Quintana (W,4-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | |
| BAT | 5.0 | Indians | Francisco Lindor, SS | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Orioles | Chris Tillman (W,3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Dodgers | Howie Kendrick, 2B | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Blue Jays | Justin Smoak, 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Brewers | Chris Carter, 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Astros | George Springer, RF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Mike Moustakas, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Padres | Fernando Rodney (S,6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Mariners | Kyle Seager, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Marlins | Ichiro Suzuki, PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 6.0 | 35.1 | 62.8 | 65.8 | -23.1 |
| Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | chi al | 4.7 | 10.7 | 29.5 | 29.5 | -1.3 |
| Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 2.7 |
| Carter, Chris 2828 | 1b | mil nl | 3.5 | 4.5 | 22.4 | 23.4 | 2.5 |
| Tillman, Chris 2754 | pi sp | bal al | 3.0 | 7.7 | 36.8 | 38.8 | -1.7 |
| Samardzija, Jeff 2495 | pi sp | sf nl | 2.0 | 11.4 | 40.1 | 41.1 | -7.4 |
| Rodney, Fernando 1803 | pi cp | sd nl | 2.0 | 3.0 | 20.0 | 32.0 | 1.0 |
| Kendrick, Howie 2191 | 2b | lad nl | 1.5 | 5.5 | 17.5 | 31.5 | -2.5 |
| Lindor, Francisco 3586 | ss | cle al | 1.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 0.5 |
| Moustakas, Mike 2967 | 3b ph | kc al | 1.0 | 8.7 | 22.2 | 22.2 | -6.7 |
| Seager, Kyle 3031 | 3b | sea al | 1.0 | 6.0 | 20.0 | 20.0 | -4.0 |
| Smoak, Justin 2731 | 1b | tor al | 1.0 | 6.0 | 15.9 | 20.4 | -4.0 |
| Wisler, Matt 3522 | pi sp | atl nl | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -2.0 |
| Springer, George 3337 | rf | hou al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 0.0 |
| Suzuki, Ichiro 1467 | rf ph | fla nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 9.5 | 52.7 | 0.0 |
Who are the players with the most consecutive seasons earning at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point? A list of consistent, durable players, dominated by batters over pitchers.
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Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to 18th in player rankings.
Also Tuesday, two players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings:
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 17.4 |
| 2 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | tor al | 16.1 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 16.0 |
| 4 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 15.8 |
| 5 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 15.4 |
| 6 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 15.4 |
| 7 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 15.0 |
| 8 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 15.0 |
| 9 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 14.4 |
| 10 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 14.4 |
Plus, Ichiro Suzuki of the Marlins, with his first Player of the Game honor of the season, has now earned Box-Toppers points in 15 straight seasons.
Player of the Day—Bumgarner pitched a complete game five-hitter, allowing one run and striking out 12, in the 3-1 win over the Astros.
Bumgarner earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.0 for the season. He is the 24th player with 10 or more Box-Toppers points this season and ranks 18th among all players, ninth among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Carlos Rodon pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out 11 and allowing four hits, in the 3-0 win over the Angels.
National League Batter of the Day—Jedd Gyorko of the Padres homered and went 2-for-4, driving in four runs, in the 11-6 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Joe Mauer of the Twins doubled and went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in one run, in the 3-2 win over the Rangers.
Rankings—Two players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday:
Notable—There were five players who earned Player of the Game honors Tuesday who now have more than 10 Box-Toppers points on the season. In addition to Bumgarner, Harvey and Greinke, the other two are:
Streak—Ichiro Suzuki of the Marlins has now earned Box-Toppers points for 15 straight seasons after earning his first Player of the Game honor of the season on Tuesday.
Suzuki (1-2 R BI in the 5-4, 10-inning win over the Red Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point. He earned his first points in 2001 with the Mariners. His best season was 2007 with the Mariners, when he had 8.0 Box-Toppers points, ninth among AL outfielders. In 2014, he had 1.0 Box-Toppers point with the Yankees. He has 51.7 career Box-Toppers points, which ranks sixth among active NL outfielders.
Scoring—Bumgarner earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Rodon earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Gyorko and Mauer each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’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
| 8/11 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | Giants | Madison Bumgarner (W,13-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | |
| AL | 13.0 | White Sox | Carlos Rodon (W,5-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| 8.0 | Mets | Matt Harvey (W,11-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 8.0 | `Indians | Carlos Carrasco | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 6.0 | Dbacks | Jeremy Hellickson (W,8-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 6.0 | Rays | Erasmo Ramirez (W,9-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 6.0 | Royals | Yordano Ventura (W,7-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | ||
| 5.0 | Dodgers | Zack Greinke (W,12-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | Cardinals | Trevor Rosenthal (S,34) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Padres | Jedd Gyorko, 2B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Blue Jays | Drew Hutchison (W,11-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2.0 | `Mariners | Taijuan Walker | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 1.0 | Cubs | Anthony Rizzo, 1B | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 1.0 | Twins | Joe Mauer, 1B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1.0 | Marlins | Ichiro Suzuki, RF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
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.