Red Sox' Chris Sale tops players for Monday, June 26, ranks 4th in Box-Toppers player rankings

Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and ranks fourth in season player rankings.

Also Monday, Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2017 season as of June 26:  

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	16.4
2	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	13.0
3	Santana, Ervin 2005	pi sp	min al	12.4
4	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	bos al	12.1
5	Ray, Robbie 3502	pi sp	ari nl	10.0
6	Carrasco, Carlos 2885	pi sp	cle al	9.4
7	McCullers, Lance 3488	pi sp	hou al	9.4
8	Wood, Alex 3246	pi sp	lad nl	9.0
9	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	ari nl	8.7
10	Judge, Aaron 3767	rf	nyy al	8.2

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Sale struck out nine over 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run, four hits and two walks, in the 4-1 win over the Twins.

Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 12.1 for the season. He maintains his rank of fourth place in season player rankings, second place among American League pitchers, behind Ervin Santana of the Twins (12.4).

National League Player of the Day—Jedd Gyorko of the Cardinals homered and went 2-for-3, driving in three runs, in the 8-2 win over the Reds.

American League Batter of the Day—Lonnie Chisenhall of the Indians went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 15-9 win over the Rangers.

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	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	200.1
4	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	190.0
6	Alex Rodriguez	dh	released	187.0
7	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	184.3
8	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
9	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	169.7
10	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
11	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
12	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	164.8
13	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
14	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
15	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
16	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
17	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
18	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
19	Bartolo Colon	pi sp	atl nl	151.2
20	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0

BTP: Box-Toppers points
List of top 100 players since 1995 at the close of the 2016 season.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Monday because the overall NL Player of the Day is batter Jedd Gyorko.

Rankings—Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.

Greinke (5IP 3H R 3BB 5K W in the 6-1 win over the Phillies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 8.7 for the season. He ranks fifth among NL pitchers.

Greinke also now rises to 12th place in career Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his point Monday, Greinke has 164.8 career points and passes Roger Clemens (164.8) on the “all-time” list. (Though both Greinke and Clemens have identical career Box-Toppers point totals, Greinke ranks higher because he has more Box-Toppers points in 2017.) And it should be noted that Clemens’ entire career from 1984 was not tracked by Box-Toppers—only his career from 1995 on. If his entire career were tracked, rough projections put his career Box-Toppers point total at 320.

Greinke now trails 11th-ranked player Johan Santana (166.6) on the “all-time” Box-Toppers career points list.

Scoring—Sale earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Gyorko earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Chisenhall earns 1.5 points for being AL 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 

6/26	Score	Game	Player of the Game	AB	R	H	BI		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	7.1	BOS 4, MIN 1	Chris Sale (W, 10-3)	-	-	-	-		6.1	4	1	1	2	9
	7.0	NYY 6, CHW 5	Jordan Montgomery (W, 6-4)	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	1	1	1	8
	4.1	LAA 4, LAD 0	Ricky Nolasco (W, 3-9)	-	-	-	-		6.1	5	0	0	2	5
BAT	3.0	CLE 15, TEX 9	Lonnie Chisenhall (RF)	5	2	3	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
NL	3.0	STL 8, CIN 2	Jedd Gyorko (3B)	3	1	2	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	SF 9, COL 2	Buster Posey (C)	4	0	3	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	ARI 6, PHI 1	Zack Greinke (W, 9-4)	-	-	-	-		5.0	3	1	1	3	5
	1.0	CHC 5, WSH 4	Albert Almora Jr. (CF)	1	0	1	1		-	-	-	-	-	-

MLB—Overall Box-Toppers Player of the Day, worth 2.0 total Box-Toppers points.
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	+/-
Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	bos al	12.1	25.5	93.5	98.5	-1.3
Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	ari nl	8.7	18.4	87.7	164.8	-1.0
Posey, Buster 2745	ca 1b	sf nl	5.5	9.0	34.0	38.5	2.0
Chisenhall, Lonnie 2959	rf cf	cle al	3.5	7.0	15.0	17.0	0.0
Montgomery, Jordan 3814	pi sp	nyy al	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0
Nolasco, Ricky 2125	pi sp	ana al	2.0	13.4	30.1	89.2	-9.4
Almora, Albert Jr. 3764	cf	chi nl	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	2.0
Gyorko, Jedd 3164	3b	stl nl	1.7	4.2	16.9	16.9	-0.8

What are those numbers after players' names?

Phillies' Jeremy Hellickson tops players for Wednesday, July 20; Indians' Carrasco tops AL players

Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson is Wednesday’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 July 20:  

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	20.0
2	Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	16.4
3	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	14.0
4	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	13.4
5	Kluber, Corey 3200	pi sp	cle al	12.5
6	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	tex al	12.1
7	Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	11.4
8	Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	11.0
9	Syndergaard, Noah 3472	pi sp	nym nl	11.0
10	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	10.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Hellickson struck out eight over eight innings, allowing one run, five hits and no walks, in the 4-1 win over the Marlins.

American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco pitched six scoreless innings, allowing one hit, two walks and striking out six, in the 11-4 win over the Royals.

Carrasco earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 8.4 for the season, most of any of the 16 who earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday. Carrasco ranks 26th in Box-Toppers season player rankings, 10th among AL pitchers.

Both Hellickson and Carrasco had Box-Toppers game scores Wednesday of +9.0, but Hellickson won overall Player of the Day on a tiebreaker because he had more innings pitched—eight vs. six.

American League Batter of the Day—Hanley Ramirez of the Red Sox hit three home runs and went 3-for-4, driving in six runs, in the 11-7 win over the Giants.

National League Batter of the Day—Jedd Gyorko of the Cardinals hit two home runs and went 3-for-4, driving in three runs, in the 3-2 win over the Padres.

Debüts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

• Mariners pitcher Edwin Diaz (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 3K ND in the 6-5, 11-inning win over the White Sox) made his Major League debut June 6 and was playing in his 20th career game. He is the 3,690th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
• Jose Peraza of the Reds (2-4 R 2BI in the 6-3 win over the Braves) made his Major League debut Aug. 10, 2015, and was playing in his 37th career game. He is the 3,691st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Hellickson earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Carrasco earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Ramirez and Gyorko each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’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

7/20	Score	Game	Player of Game	AB	R	H	BI		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	9.0	PHI 4, MIA 1	Jeremy Hellickson (W,7-7)	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	1	1	0	8
AL	9.0	CLE 11, KC 4	Carlos Carrasco (W,7-3)	-	-	-	-		6.0	1	0	0	2	6
BAT	8.0	BOS 11, SF 7	Hanley Ramirez, 1B	4	3	3	6		-	-	-	-	-	-
	7.0	TB 11, COL 3	Chris Archer (W,5-13)	-	-	-	-		6.0	4	2	2	2	11
	7.0	NYY 5, BAL 0	Michael Pineda (W,4-9)	-	-	-	-		6.0	5	0	0	2	8
	6.0	HOU 7, OAK 0	Doug Fister (W,10-6)	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	2	5
	5.1	CHC 6, NYM 2	Kyle Hendricks (W,9-6)	-	-	-	-		6.1	7	0	0	1	7
	5.0	WSH 8, LAD 1	Gio Gonzalez (W,6-8)	-	-	-	-		6.0	3	1	1	2	6
BAT	4.0	STL 3, SD 2	Jedd Gyorko, 3B	4	2	3	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	TOR 10, ARI 4	Marcus Stroman (W,8-4)	-	-	-	-		8.0	8	1	1	0	6
	4.0	`SEA 6, CHW 5 (11)	Edwin Diaz	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	3
	3.0	STL 4, SD 2	Carlos Martinez (W,9-6)	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	2	2	1	5
	2.0	MIL 9, PIT 5	Jonathan Lucroy, C	3	1	1	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	LAA 7, TEX 4	Jefry Marte, 1B	3	1	1	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	CIN 6, ATL 3	Jose Peraza, LF	4	1	2	2		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	MIN 4, DET 1	Danny Santana, DH	0	1	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
		`Denotes that the 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 (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	+/-
Carrasco, Carlos 2885	pi sp	cle al	8.4	26.4	42.5	42.5	-9.6
Hellickson, Jeremy 2778	pi sp	phi nl	7.4	12.4	36.1	39.1	2.4
Hendricks, Kyle 3386	pi sp	chi nl	7.0	16.7	21.7	21.7	-2.7
Martinez, Carlos 3371	pi sp	stl nl	5.7	19.4	20.4	20.4	-8.0
Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0	21.0	45.1	45.1	-11.0
Stroman, Marcus 3327	pi sp	tor al	4.7	7.4	21.1	21.1	2.0
Pineda, Michael 2841	pi sp	nyy al	4.0	14.7	32.1	32.1	-6.7
Gonzalez, Gio 2626	pi sp	dc nl	3.0	12.7	69.8	83.5	-6.7
Lucroy, Jonathan 2744	ca	mil nl	3.0	4.7	23.6	24.6	1.3
Ramirez, Hanley 2119	1b ss	bos al	3.0	3.0	25.7	53.6	3.0
Fister, Doug 2688	pi sp	hou al	2.0	4.0	49.5	53.2	0.0
Gyorko, Jedd 3164	3b 2b	stl nl	1.5	5.0	14.2	14.2	-2.0
Marte, Jefry 3529	1b	ana al	1.0	2.0	2.0	2.0	0.0
Santana, Danny 3350	dh cf	min al	1.0	1.0	4.5	4.5	1.0
Diaz, Edwin 3690	pi mr	sea al	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0
Peraza, Jose 3691	lf	cin nl	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Giants' Bumgarner tops players for Tuesday, Aug. 11; Harvey, Greinke rise in Box-Toppers top 10 rankings

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:

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of Aug. 11.  

	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

What are those numbers after players' names?

• Mets pitcher Matt Harvey rose to sixth place with 15.4 Box-Toppers points.
• Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rose to eighth place with 15.0 Box-Toppers points.

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:

• Mets pitcher Matt Harvey rose to sixth place with 15.4 Box-Toppers points. Harvey (8IP 4H 0R 4K W in the 4-0 win over the Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point and ranks third among NL pitchers, behind Jacob deGrom of the Mets (17.4) and Max Scherzer of the Nationals (16.0).
• Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke rose to eighth place with 15.0 Box-Toppers points. Greinke (6IP 6H 0R 6K W in the 5-0 win over the Nationals) earns 1.0 point and ranks fifth among NL pitchers. Greinke also now has 140.7 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 21st among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He trails 20th place player, Jim Thome (146.7).

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:

• Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco (8IP 4H 2R 8K ND in the 5-4, 16-inning win over the Yankees) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.0 for the season. He ranks 11th among all players and fifth among AL pitchers.
• Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker (6IP 5H 2R 6K ND in the 6-5, 10-inning win over the Orioles) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.7 for the season. He becomes the 25th player with 10 or more Box-Toppers points this season and ranks 20th among all players, 10th among AL pitchers.

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.

Top player from each game

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.

Indians' Carrasco tops players for Saturday, Aug. 16; Tigers' Price rises to 6th in Box-Toppers rankings

Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco is Saturday’s Player of the Day, while Tigers pitcher David Price rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings.

Carrasco pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out five in the 6-0 win over the Orioles.

Price rose from eighth to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Price (8IP R 7K W in the 4-2 win over the Mariners) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 16.1 for the season. He ranks third among American League pitchers.

Jedd Gyorko of the Padres is National League Player of the Day. Gyorko hit a grand slam and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 9-5 win over the Cardinals.

David Ortiz of the Red Sox is American League Batter of the Day. Ortiz hit a pair of two-run homers and went 3-for-5, driving in six runs, in the 10-7 win over the Astros.

Notables: Twins pitcher Phil Hughes rose to 16th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Hughes (7.1IP R 6K W in the 4-1 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.1 for the season. He ranks 10th among AL pitchers.

Marlins pitcher Henderson Alvarez becomes the 29th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points after he earned Player of the Game honors. Alvarez (7IP R 6K W in the 2-1 win over the Diamondbacks) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.7 for the season. He ranks 25th among all players and 11th among NL pitchers.

Carrasco receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Gyorko receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Ortiz receives 1.5 for being AL Batter of the Day.

All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed, click here.

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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

816	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	9.0	Indians	Carlos Carrasco (W, 5-4)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	0	0	0	5
	7.0	Tigers	David Price (W, 12-8)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	3	1	1	3	7
BAT	6.0	Red Sox	David Ortiz DH	5	2	3	6	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
NL	6.0	Padres	Jedd Gyorko 2B	3	2	2	5	2	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	5.0	Marlins	Henderson Alvarez (W, 9-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	1	1	1	6
	4.1	Twins	Phil Hughes (W, 13-8)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.1	7	1	1	0	6
	4.0	`Yankees	Shane Greene	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.0	7	2	2	1	10
	4.0	`Nationals	Craig Stammen	-	-	-	-	-	-		3.0	1	0	0	0	2
	2.2	Angels	Matt Shoemaker (W, 11-4)	-	-	-	-	-	-		5.2	4	2	2	1	6
	2.0	Giants	Michael Morse LF, 1B	3	1	3	1	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Brewers	Yovani Gallardo (W, 8-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	6	1	1	1	3
	2.0	Blue Jays	Casey Janssen (S, 19)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	1
	1.0	Braves	Chris Johnson 3B	4	0	3	2	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Mets	Juan Lagares CF	3	1	1	2	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-

` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Rays' Chris Archer (7IP 12K) tops players for Wednesday, Aug. 13

Rays pitcher Chris Archer is Wednesday’s Player of the Day. Archer struck out 12 over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 10-1 win over the Rangers.

Cardinals pitcher Justin Masterson is National League Player of the Day. Masterson pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 5-2 win over the Marlins.

Victor Martinez of the Tigers is American League Batter of the Day. Martinez went 3-for-4, scoring once and driving in three runs, in the 8-4 win over the Pirates.

Jedd Gyorko of the Padres is NL Batter of the Day. Gyorko doubled and went 4-for-4, scoring a run, in the 5-3 win over the Rockies.

Notables: Braves pitcher Ervin Santana rose to 21st place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. Santana (6IP 9K W in the 3-2 win over the Dodgers) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.0 for the season. He ranks eighth among NL pitchers in Box-Toppers points.

Nationals pitcher Jordan Zimmermann became the 28th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. Zimmermann (6.1IP R W in the 3-2 win over the Mets) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.0 for the season. He is in 27th place in Box-Toppers player rankings and ranks 12th among NL pitchers.

Archer receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Masterson receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Martinez and Gyorko each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Wednesday, click here.

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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

813	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	11.0	Rays	Chris Archer (W, 8-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	1	1	2	12
	10.0	Royals	Jason Vargas (W, 9-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		9.0	3	0	0	0	4
NL	7.0	Cardinals	Justin Masterson (W, 2-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	0	0	0	3
	7.0	`Indians	Trevor Bauer	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	4	2	2	2	9
	5.2	Mariners	Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 11-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.2	5	0	0	1	5
	4.1	Nationals	Jordan Zimmermann (W, 8-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.1	5	1	0	0	4
BAT	3.0	Tigers	Victor Martinez DH	4	1	3	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	`Dbacks	Andrew Chafin	-	-	-	-	-	-		5.0	3	0	0	2	3
	2.0	Twins	Glen Perkins (S, 30)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	1
	1.2	Cubs	Tsuyoshi Wada (W, 2-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.2	5	2	2	1	5
BAT	1.0	Padres	Jedd Gyorko 2B	4	1	4	0	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Orioles	Adam Jones CF	4	1	1	3	0	2		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Red Sox	Mike Napoli 1B	4	1	1	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Giants	Joaquin Arias PH	0	1	0	0	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Braves	Ervin Santana (W, 12-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.0	8	2	2	2	9
	1.0	Angels	Huston Street (S, 7)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	0

` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Indians' Kluber, top player for Wednesday, July 30, rises in Box-Toppers top 10 player rankings, along with Scherzer, Greinke

Indians pitcher Corey Kluber is Wednesday’s Player of the Day and rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings, while two other pitchers also improved their standing in the player ranking top 10 list.

Kluber pitched a complete game shutout, allowing three hits and striking out eight, in the 2-0 win over the Mariners. Kluber earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 13.4 for the season, rising to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) He ranks fourth among American League pitchers.

Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer bolstered his second place standing in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Scherzer (7IP 1R 6K W in the 7-2 win over the White Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 18.1 for the season. He extends his lead among AL pitchers (second-place David Price of the Rays has 14.1 Box-Toppers points). He also matches his career-high season total of 18.1 Box-Toppers points from 2013 with two months to go in the season. Last year, his 18.1 points led all American League players.

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke, Wednesday’s National League Player of the Day, rises to sixth in Box-Toppers player rankings. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Greinke struck out 13 over eight innings, allowing one run, in the 3-2 win over the Braves. Greinke did not earn the win because after he left game, the Braves tied the game 2-2 in the ninth inning, before the Dodgers won in the bottom of the 10th. Greinke earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points, giving him 13.8 for the season. He is in fourth place among NL pitchers.

Jedd Gyorko of the Padres is NL Batter of the Day. Gyorko homered and doubled, going 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 12-1 win over the Cardinals.

Dioner Navarro of the Blue Jays is AL Batter of the Day. Navarro went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs in the 6-1 win over the Red Sox.

Kluber receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Greinke receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Gyorko and Navarro each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed Wednesday, click here.

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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

730	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	14.0	Indians	Corey Kluber (W, 11-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		9.0	3	0	0	0	8
NL	13.0	`Dodgers	Zack Greinke	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	1	1	1	13
	7.0	Nationals	Tanner Roark (W, 11-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	1	1	2	7
	7.0	Brewers	Yovani Gallardo (W, 6-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	1	5
	5.0	Astros	Dallas Keuchel (W, 10-7)	-	-	-	-	-	-		9.0	4	1	1	3	5
	5.0	Tigers	Max Scherzer (W, 13-3)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	1	1	1	6
BAT	4.0	Padres	Jedd Gyorko 2B	5	2	3	4	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Mets	Daniel Murphy 2B	5	2	3	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	`Royals	Wade Davis (H, 19)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	2
BAT	2.0	Blue Jays	Dioner Navarro C	4	0	3	3	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Giants	Gregor Blanco CF	3	0	3	2	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Rangers	Neftali Feliz (S, 3)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	1
	1.0	Orioles	Adam Jones CF	4	1	2	2	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Dbacks	Didi Gregorius SS	4	1	2	2	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Rockies	Rob Scahill (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	1	0	0	0	1

` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Rangers' Yu Darvish, with a near no-hitter, tops players for Friday, May 9

Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is Friday’s Player of the Day. Darvish gave up his only hit in the ninth inning, pitching 8 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out 12, in the 8-0 win over the Red Sox.

Darvish rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers player standings. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.7 for the season. (See the updated top 10 list on the home page.)

Braves pitcher Julio Teheran is National League Player of the Day. Teheran gave up one run and one hit over eight innings, striking out nine, in the 3-2, 10-inning win over the Cubs. Teheran did not earn a win, picking up a no-decision, because he left the game with the score tied 2-2.

Teheran rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers player standings. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 5.7 for the season. (See the updated top 10 list on the home page.)

Jedd Gyorko of the Reds is NL Batter of the Day. Gyorko hit two home runs and went 3-for-6 and drove in six runs in the 4-3 win over the Rockies.

Jose Abreu of the White Sox is American League Batter of the Day. Abreu homered and went 3-for-4, driving in two runs, in the 9-3 win over the Diamondbacks.

Notables: Three others who earned Player of the Game honors Friday are in the top 10 of Box-Toppers season player rankings:

• Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto rose to seventh place. Cueto (8IP 2R 8K ND in the 4-3 win over the Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 5.7 for the season.

• Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka rose to eighth place. Tanaka (6.1IP 2R 7K W in 5-3 win over the Brewers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 5.7 for the season.

• Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner rose to ninth place. Bumgarner (8IP 1R 8K W in 3-1 win over the Dodgers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.5 for the season.

Four players each reached 5.7 Box-Toppers points Friday. The tie among them was broken based on their total Box-Toppers points over 2013-14. (Darvish 21.7, Teheran 19.4, Cueto 9.7 and Tanaka 5.7.)

Darvish receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Teheran receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Gyorko and Abreu each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

509	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	17.2	Rangers	Yu Darvish (W, 3-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.2	1	0	0	2	12
NL	12.0	`Braves	Julio Teheran	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	1	1	1	2	9
	10.0	Athletics	Tommy Milone (W, 1-3)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	2	0	0	3	7
	10.0	Royals	Jason Vargas (W, 3-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	0	0	0	6
	9.0	Giants	Madison Bumgarner (W, 4-3)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	4	1	1	1	8
BAT	7.0	Padres	Jedd Gyorko 2B	4	2	3	6	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	6.0	`Reds	Johnny Cueto	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	2	2	1	8
	5.0	Pirates	Neil Walker 2B	4	2	3	4	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
BAT	3.0	White Sox	Jose Abreu DH	4	2	3	2	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Angels	Ernesto Frieri (S, 4)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	2
	2.2	Indians	Corey Kluber (W, 3-3)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.2	9	2	2	0	9
	2.0	Twins	Phil Hughes (W, 4-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	8	0	0	0	3
	2.0	Phillies	Jonathan Papelbon (S, 10)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	1
	1.1	Yankees	Masahiro Tanaka (W, 5-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.1	7	2	2	1	7
	1.0	Orioles	Wei-Yin Chen (W, 4-2)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	2	2	1	4

` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.