Marlins' Jose Fernandez tops players in Tuesday, March 22's spring training games

Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez is Box-Toppers spring training Player of the Day for Tuesday.

Fernandez pitched five scoreless, no-hit innings, striking out four and walking one, in the 3-0 win over the Red Sox. Fernandez had 4.7 Box-Toppers points in 2015. His best season was his 2013 rookie year, when he had 19.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking fourth among all players.

American League Player of the Day—Jimmy Rollins of the White Sox hit a three-run homer and went 3-for-4, scoring three times, in the 8-7 win over the Giants. Rollins had 3.0 Box-Toppers points in 2015 with the Dodgers. He has 50.4 career points since 2001, which ranks third among active shortstops. His best year was 2007 with the Phillies when he had 4.7 points, fourth among NL shortstops.

National League Batter of the Day—Derek Norris of the Padres homered, doubled and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 17-5 win over the Rangers. Norris had 4.5 Box-Toppers points in 2015, his best season, when he ranked fourth among NL catchers.

Notable—James Loney of the Rays was Player of the Game in the 4-1 win over the Cuban National Team, in a game played in Havana, Cuba. Loney homered and went 2-for-2, driving in three runs. Loney had no Box-Toppers points in 2015, but has 32.4 career points since 2006. His best year was 2008 with the Dodgers, when he had 6.0 points.

Scoring—No Box-Toppers points are awarded in spring training games, but if it were the regular season, Fernandez would earn 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Rollins would earn 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day and Norris would earn 1.5 points for being NL Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) would earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Note—Fifteen spring training games were scheduled for Tuesday—13 are listed below. One game is not included because it ended in a tie (Giants vs. Diamondbacks) and one other game was cancelled (Angels vs. a non-Major League opponent).

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

3/22	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	8.0	Marlins	José Fernández (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		5.0	0	0	0	1	4
AL	5.0	White Sox	Jimmy Rollins SS	4	3	3	3	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.1	Royals	Chris Young (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		4.1	0	1	1	3	5
BAT	4.0	Padres	Derek Norris C	4	2	2	4	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	*Rays	James Loney 1B	2	1	2	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	Blue Jays	Ryan Goins 2B	2	2	2	2	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	Twins	Logan Darnell (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		2.0	0	0	0	0	2
	3.0	Astros	Carlos Correa SS	3	2	2	2	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Twins	Daniel Palka DH	3	2	2	2	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Angels	Geovany Soto PH-DH	1	1	1	2	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Rockies	Christian Bergman (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		4.0	1	0	0	3	3
	3.0	Cubs	Trevor Cahill (SV, 1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		2.0	0	0	0	0	1
	2.0	Yankees	Didi Gregorius SS	3	2	2	1	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
		* Game was against a non-Major League opponent, Rays beat Cuban National Team, 4-1

Mariners' Felix Hernandez (7IP 10K) tops players in Monday, April 6's opening day

Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez is Monday’s Player of the Day on baseball’s opening day of the season.

Hernandez struck out 10 over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 4-1 win over the Angels.

Hernandez had a Box-Toppers game score of +12, tied with Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz, who was Player of the Game in the 8-0 win over the Phillies. However, Hernandez won the tie-breaker to earn Player of the Day because he had more strikeouts than Buchholz (10 vs. nine).

Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto is National League Player of the Day. Cueto struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings in the 5-2 win over the Pirates. Cueto picked up a no-decision and did not earn the win because after he exited the game, the Pirates tied the score.

Cueto also had a Box-Toppers game score of +12, tied with Hernandez, but Hernandez beat Cueto on a tie-breaker to earn Player of the Day because he earned the win in his game, while Cueto earned a no-decision.

Nolan Arenado of the Rockies is NL Batter of the Day. Arenado homered, doubled and went 3-for-4 with four RBIs in the 10-0 win over the Brewers.

Alex Rios of the Royals is American League Batter of the Day. Rios homered, drove in three and went 3-for-4 in the 10-1 win over the White Sox.

Notables: Opening day often features baseball’s top aces, the top-of-the-rotation pitchers who were among Box-Toppers leaders in the previous season. Monday featured starts from last year’s top seven pitchers in Box-Toppers player rankings. However, only three earned Player of the Game honors. Here is how those seven players fared, listed in order of their 2014 Box-Toppers player ranking:

1. Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers—31.5 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—6IP 6H 3R 2BB 9K ND, Box-Toppers game score +1 in 6-3 win over Padres. (Jimmy Rollins, Box-Toppers game score +2 was Dodgers Player of the Game.)

2. Corey Kluber, Indians—25.8 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—7.1IP 3H 2R 2BB 7K L, Box-Toppers game score +5.1 in 2-0 loss to Astros. (Dallas Keuchel of Astros, Box-Toppers game score +5 was Player of the Game.)

3. Madison Bumgarner, Giants—22.6 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—7IP 6H R BB 3K W, Box-Toppers game score +1 in 5-4 win over Diamondbacks. (Angel Pagan, Box-Toppers game score +2 was Giants Player of the Game.)

4. Johnny Cueto, Reds—22.4 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—Cueto earned NL Player of the Day honors, see details above.

5. Max Scherzer, Nationals—22.1 Box-Toppers points in 2014 (with Tigers).

Monday—7.2 IP 4H 3R 2BB 8K L, Box-Toppers game score +6.2 in 3-1 loss to Mets. (Bartolo Colon of the Mets, Box-Toppers game score of +8.0 was Player of the Game.)

6. Felix Hernandez, Mariners—20.8 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—Hernandez earned overall Player of the Day honors, see details above.

7. David Price, Tigers—19.1 Box-Toppers points in 2014.

Monday—8.2 IP 5H 0R 5K W, Box-Toppers game score +8.2 in 4-0 win over Twins. (Price earned Player of the Game honors.)

Also notable: Devon Travis of the Blue Jays (HR 1-2 2R BI in the 6-1 win over the Yankees) made his Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors. Travis is the 3,436th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He is the first player to make his debut in the 2015 season.

Hernandez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Cueto earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Arenado and Rios each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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.

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

406	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	12.0	Mariners	Felix Hernandez (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	2	1	1	1	10
	12.0	Red Sox	Clay Buchholz (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	0	0	1	9
NL	12.0	`Reds	Johnny Cueto	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	1	10
	9.0	Athletics	Sonny Gray (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	1	0	0	1	3
	8.2	Tigers	David Price (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.2	5	0	0	0	5
	8.0	Mets	Bartolo Colon (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.0	3	1	1	1	8
BAT	6.0	Rockies	Nolan Arenado 3B	4	3	3	4	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	5.0	Astros	Dallas Keuchel (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	0	0	3	4
BAT	3.0	Royals	Alex Rios RF	4	1	3	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Braves	Jason Grilli (S, 1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	2
	2.0	Giants	Angel Pagan CF	4	1	3	2	1	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Dodgers	Jimmy Rollins SS	4	1	2	3	1	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Blue Jays	Devon Travis 2B	2	2	1	1	2	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.2	Orioles	Chris Tillman (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.2	4	1	1	3	4
		`Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Rays' Alex Cobb (7IP 0R) tops players for Saturday, April 12

Rays pitcher Alex Cobb is Saturday’s Player of the Day. Cobb pitched seven scoreless innings in the 1-0 win over the Reds.

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke is National League Player of the Day. Greinke struck out eight over 5 1/3 innings in the 8-5 win over the Diamondbacks.

David Murphy of the Indians is American League Batter of the Day. Murphy homered, tripled and drove in four runs in the 12-6 win over the White Sox. Murphy earned 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, and now ranks ninth place among all players in Box-Toppers points for the season.

Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies is NL Batter of the Day. Rollins hit a 10th inning, walk-off home run in the 5-4 win over the Marlins. He went 3-5 in the game and drove in two runs.

Notable: Brewers pitcher Yovani Gallardo rises to seventh place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season. Gallardo (6IP 6K ND) was top player in the 3-2 win over the Pirates. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 3.0 for the season.

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

All of Saturday’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

412	Score	Team	Players	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	8.0	Rays	Alex Cobb (W, 1-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	0	5
	7.0	Athletics	Sonny Gray (W, 2-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	1	1	2	9
	4.0	Twins	Ricky Nolasco (W, 1-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	1	1	1	4
NL	3.1	Dodgers	Zack Greinke (W, 3-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		5.1	8	1	1	0	8
BAT	3.0	Indians	David Murphy RF	5	2	2	4	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	Yankees	Brian McCann C	4	2	2	3	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	`Orioles	Bud Norris	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	0	0	3	4
	3.0	`Rockies	Brett Anderson	-	-	-	-	-	-		3.0	1	0	0	1	2
BAT	2.0	Phillies	Jimmy Rollins SS	5	2	3	2	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Braves	Justin Upton LF	4	2	3	1	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Astros	Robbie Grossman LF	4	1	2	3	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Tigers	Justin Verlander (W, 1-1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	8	2	2	1	8
	2.0	Mets	John Lannan (W, 1-0)	-	-	-	-	-	-		2.0	0	0	0	0	0
	1.0	Cardinals	Daniel Descalso SS, 2B	4	2	2	1	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	`Brewers	Yovani Gallardo	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.0	6	2	2	1	6

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