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David Ortiz is the only player inducted into internet baseball writers’ Hall of Fame for 2022.
None of the nine candidates Box-Toppers voted for Hall induction received the necessary 75 percent support. And Box-Toppers also did not vote for Ortiz.
Read MoreBox-Toppers is voting for nine players to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in the 2022 Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) ballot.
Of the nine players, three are in their first year on the ballot—Tim Lincecum, Jake Peavy and Mark Teixeira. The other six all return after not receiving the necessary votes to make the hall last year, including Curt Schilling, who is on the ballot for his 10th and final year.
Read MoreTrevor Hoffman has the most Box-Toppers points of any closing pitcher since tracking began in 1995, more even than Mariano Rivera, considered by many to be the greatest closer of all time.
Craig Kimbrel leads active closers in career Box-Toppers points. Other leaders include Edwin Diaz, Greg Holland and Kenley Jansen.
Read MoreTrevor Hoffman leads closing pitchers in career Box-Toppers points, ahead of Mariano Rivera, the all-time saves leader.
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Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 6.0 |
| 2 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 5.0 |
| 3 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.0 |
| 4 | Cespedes, Yoenis 3008 | cf lf dh ph | nym nl | 4.5 |
| 5 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 4.4 |
| 6 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | oak al | 4.4 |
| 7 | Machado, Manny 3087 | 3b ss | bal al | 4.2 |
| 8 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 4.0 |
| 9 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 4.0 |
| 10 | De La Rosa, Rubby 3342 | pi sp mr | ari nl | 4.0 |
Colon struck out seven over eight scoreless innings, allowing seven hits, in the 4-1 win over the Braves.
Colon earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first of the season, giving him 142.1 for his career. Colon ranks 22nd among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He trails 21st-ranked player Jim Thome (146.7).
American League Player of the Day—Rangers pitcher A.J. Griffin struck out nine over six innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 3-1 win over the Blue Jays. Griffin did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because he exited the game with the score tied, 1-1.
National League Batter of the Day—Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright hit a three-run homer and doubled, going 2-for-2, in the 10-3 win over the Phillies. Wainwright also won the game on the mound (6IP 5H 3R 4K), but had a higher Box-Toppers game score for batting (+4.0) than pitching (-2.0).
This is the first time in 2016 that a pitcher has earned Player of the Game honors for batting—it happened seven times in 2015. This is the third time in Wainwright’s career he has earned Player of the Game honors for batting.
Wainwright earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, his first of the season, and now has 103.3 career points and rises to 60th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes three players on the “all-time” list—Ken Griffey Jr. (102.2), Miguel Tejada (102.3) and Adrian Beltre of the Rangers (102.8). Wainwright trails 59th-ranked player Jamie Moyer (104.0).
This is also Wainwright’s first Box-Toppers points in more than a year—he was out much of 2015 with an Achilles injury. He last earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors April 25, 2015, and had 3.0 points for 2015 after he had 18.7 in 2014 (ranked eighth) and 20.2 in 2013 (ranked second).
American League Batter of the Day—Byung Ho Park of the Twins tripled and went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in two runs, in the 6-2 win over the Astros.
Streak—Nationals closing pitcher Jonathan Papelbon has now earned Box-Toppers points in 11 straight seasons after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.
Papelbon (1IP 0H 0R K Sv in the 2-0 win over the Royals) first earned Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Red Sox and has 53.4 career points, first among active NL closing pitchers, second among all active closing pitchers (behind Francisco Rodriguez of the Tigers, with 60.4) and 18th among all closing pitchers since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began.
Papelbon’s best season was 2012 with the Phillies when he had 7.0 Box-Toppers points and ranked fifth among NL closing pitchers. In 2015, Papelbon had 4.0 points with the Phillies, a season in which he also played for the Nationals. Monday was the first time Papelbon earned Player of the Game honors as a member of the Nationals.
Notable—Ryan Braun of the Brewers is Monday’s highest-ranked Player of the Game. Braun (2B 3-3 R BI in the 8-5 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.5 for the season and ranks 20th in Box-Toppers season player rankings, fourth among NL batters.
Debut—Padres relief pitcher Ryan Buchter made his Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Buchter (1.1IP 0H 0R 4K ND in the 2-1 win over the Rockies) made his Major League debut June 20, 2014, and was playing in his 14th career game. He is the 3,626th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Colon earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Griffin earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Wainwright and Park 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/2 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | Mets | Bartolo Colon (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| AL | 8.0 | `Rangers | A.J. Griffin | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 | |
| 4.1 | `Padres | Ryan Buchter | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Cardinals | Adam Wainwright, SP | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Mariners | Steve Cishek (S,7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Santiago Casilla (S,5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Brewers | Ryan Braun, LF | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Twins | Byung Ho Park, DH | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Nationals | Jonathan Papelbon (S,9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Cubs | Ben Zobrist, RF | 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. | ||||||||||||||||
| Player | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Braun, Ryan J. 2300 | lf | mil nl | 3.5 | 8.5 | 39.5 | 81.2 | -1.5 |
| Park, Byung Ho 3616 | dh | min al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Griffin, A.J. 3074 | pi sp | tex al | 2.7 | 2.7 | 17.4 | 17.4 | 2.7 |
| Colon, Bartolo | pi sp | nym nl | 2.0 | 8.7 | 50.6 | 142.1 | -4.7 |
| Cishek, Steve 2997 | pi cp | sea al | 2.0 | 3.0 | 22.0 | 22.0 | 1.0 |
| Wainwright, Adam 2150 | pi sp | stl nl | 1.5 | 4.5 | 52.6 | 103.3 | -1.5 |
| Casilla, Santiago 2301 | pi cp | sf nl | 1.0 | 6.0 | 18.7 | 21.7 | -4.0 |
| Papelbon, Jonathan 2110 | pi cp | dc nl | 1.0 | 5.0 | 22.7 | 53.4 | -3.0 |
| Zobrist, Ben 2216 | rf | chi nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 20.0 | 29.0 | 0.0 |
| Buchter, Ryan 3626 | pi mr | sd nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Astros remain active buyers and stay atop team rankings. Dodgers pass Cardinals in NL. Blue Jays, picking up Price & Tulo, gain most points in past week.
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Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Saturday’s Player of the Day and rises to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 8.7 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 6.0 |
| 4 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 6.0 |
| 5 | Harang, Aaron 1599 | pi sp | phi nl | 5.1 |
| 6 | Miller, Shelby 3134 | pi sp | atl nl | 5.0 |
| 7 | Hosmer, Eric 2886 | 1b | kc al | 5.0 |
| 8 | Harper, Bryce 3011 | lf rf | dc nl | 5.0 |
| 9 | Heston, Chris 3437 | pi sp | sf nl | 5.0 |
| 10 | Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b | det al | 4.7 |
Also Saturday, CC Sabathia and Jonathan Papelbon extended their streaks of consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point—Sabathia now has 15 seasons and Papelbon has 10—and Kris Bryant earned Player of the Game honors two days in a row, the third time in six days.
Player of the Day—Scherzer struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 4-1 win over the Padres.
Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, rising to second place in overall player rankings for the season. He now ranks first among all NL players, passing Gerrit Cole of the Pirates. Both Scherzer and Cole have 6.0 Box-Toppers points, but Scherzer wins the tie-breaker because he had more Box-Toppers points in 2014—22.1 vs. 5.7.
American League Player of the Day—Angels pitcher Matt Shoemaker struck out seven over seven innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 6-1 win over the Orioles.
National League Batter of the Day—Brandon Crawford of the Giants homered, doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in six runs, in the 11-2 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Eduardo Escobar of the Twins doubled and went 4-for-4, with one run and one RBI, in the 6-4 win over the Rays.
Streaks—Two players extended their streaks of consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point after earning Player of the Game honors Friday:
Sabathia (7IP R 5K W in the 5-1 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season. He earned his first points in 2001 with the Indians. His best year was 2008 with the Indians and Brewers when he had 26.7 Box-Toppers points, first among NL pitchers that year (while he played in both leagues in 2008, he is counted as an NL pitcher since that’s where he ended his season).
In 2014, Sabathia had 1.0 Box-Toppers point with the Yankees. Saturday marked the first time Sabathia earned Player of the Game honors since April 24, 2014.
Sabathia’s career 174.3 Box-Toppers points is fifth among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began). He trails Randy Johnson (278.8), Pedro Martinez (244.8), Curt Schilling (194.1) and Alex Rodriguez (183.8).
Papelbon earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Red Sox. His two best seasons were 2006 with the Red Sox and 2012 with the Phillies—he had 7.0 Box-Toppers points in both seasons. In 2006, he ranked seventh among AL closing pitchers. In 2012, he ranked fifth among NL closing pitchers.
In 2014, he had 3.0 Box-Toppers points with the Phillies.
Papelbon has 49.4 career Box-Toppers points, which ranks 20th among all closing pitchers since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. His career 49.4 points ranks second among active closing pitchers currently in the NL (behind Francisco Rodriguez of the Brewers with 59.4).
Notable—Kris Bryant of the Cubs earned Player of the Game honors for the second day in a row and the third time in six days.
Bryant (2-2 2R in the 4-1 win over the Pirates) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point. He was also Player of the Game Thursday and on May 11, when he made his Box-Toppers debut. He has 3.0 Box-Toppers points for the season (and for his career) and currently ranks eighth among NL batters for 2015.
Debut—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Shoemaker earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Crawford and Escobar each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 5/16 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 12.0 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W, 4-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | |
| AL | 9.0 | Angels | Matt Shoemaker (W, 3-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | |
| 8.1 | Rockies | Jorge De La Rosa (W, 1-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | Giants | Brandon Crawford SS | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Mets | Wilmer Flores SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Yankees | CC Sabathia (W, 2-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 3.0 | White Sox | John Danks (W, 2-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | `Red Sox | Tommy Layne (H, 1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | Phillies | Jonathan Papelbon (S, 9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.2 | Astros | Scott Feldman (W, 3-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 2.0 | Braves | Jace Peterson 2B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Twins | Eduardo Escobar SS | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Cubs | Kris Bryant 3B | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Tigers | Blaine Hardy (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Indians | Cody Allen (S, 6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 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. | ||||||||||||||||
Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels, who pitched the first six innings in a combined no-hitter, is Monday’s Player of the Day.
Hamels pitched six no-hit innings, allowing no runs, walking five and striking out seven, in the 7-0 win over the Braves. The other three Phillies pitchers who combined for the no-hitter were Jake Diekman, Ken Giles and Jonathan Papelbon.
Hamels earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.4 for the season. He becomes the 40th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He ranks 25th among all players and ninth among National League pitchers. Hamels has now earned 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points in each of the nine years of his career.
Athletics pitcher Jason Hammel is American League Player of the Day. Hammel allowed one run over eight innings, striking out five, in the 6-1 win over the Mariners. Hammel earned 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, his first points earned since being traded from the Cubs, giving him 10.4 for the season. He becomes the 41st player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He ranks 40th among all players and 19th among AL pitchers.
Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers is AL Batter of the Day. Cabrera hit two home runs, going 4-for-5, scoring four times and driving in three runs, in the 12-1 win over the Indians. Cabrera becomes the 42nd player this season to earn 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 10.0 for the season. He ranks 41st among all players and second among AL batters, behind Jose Abreu of the White Sox (15.5 Box-Toppers points). In 2013, Cabrera led AL batters with 16.9 Box-Toppers points.
Josh Rutledge of the Rockies is NL Batter of the Day. Rutledge went 3-for-3, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 10-9 win over the Giants.
Notable: Rays pitcher Drew Smyly rose to 21st place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Smyly (5.2IP 7K ND in the 4-3 win over the Red Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.4 for the season. He ranks 13th among AL pitchers.
Hamels receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Hammel receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Cabrera and Rutledge each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Monday’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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 901 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 8.0 | Phillies | Cole Hamels (W, 8-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | |
| AL | 7.0 | Athletics | Jason Hammel (W, 2-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | Tigers | Miguel Cabrera DH | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.1 | Cubs | Jacob Turner (W, 5-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 5.0 | Twins | Joe Mauer DH | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Rockies | Josh Rutledge SS | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Padres | Tyson Ross (W, 13-12) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 3.2 | `Rays | Drew Smyly | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Salvador Perez C | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Hunter Pence RF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Cardinals | Kolten Wong PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Marlins | Steve Cishek (S, 32) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Nationals | Denard Span CF | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 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 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.