Los Angeles Dodgers edge out Washington Nationals as Box-Toppers' top preseason team. Champion Cubs slip to 5th after key player losses. Indians rank 1st among AL teams.
Read MoreChicago Cubs lead Box-Toppers rankings for 11th week, but challengers are closing in
Cubs lead holds again, but slips slightly. Hot Indians pass Rangers to become top AL team. Nationals are hottest team of week, partly due to an acquisition.
Read MoreCubs' Hammel tops players for Sunday, April 24; Red Sox' Hembree tops AL players
Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Hammel struck out seven over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 9-0 win over the Reds. Hammel earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 3.0 for the season, the most of any of Sunday’s Players of the Game. He ranks 14th in season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of April 24:| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 5.0 |
| 2 | Volquez, Edinson 2220 | pi sp | kc al | 4.4 |
| 3 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 4.0 |
| 4 | Velasquez, Vince 3611 | pi sp | phi nl | 4.0 |
| 5 | Santiago, Hector 3109 | pi sp | ana al | 3.7 |
| 6 | Latos, Mat 2644 | pi sp | chi al | 3.7 |
| 7 | Davis, Chris 2478 | 1b | bal al | 3.5 |
| 8 | Cano, Robinson 2092 | 2b | sea al | 3.5 |
| 9 | Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | cin nl | 3.5 |
| 10 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 3.4 |
American League Player of the Day—Red Sox closing pitcher Heath Hembree pitched three scoreless innings of extra-inning relief, allowing two hits and striking out four, in the 7-5, 12-inning win over the Astros.
This was Hembree’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Hembree made his Major League debut Sept. 3, 2013, and was playing in his 40th career game. He is the 3,620th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—Alex Presley of the Brewers hit a two-run, pinch-hit homer in the 8-5 win over the Phillies.
Presley had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, tied with Jason Rogers of the Pirates, who was Player of the Game in the 12-10, 13-inning win over the Diamondbacks (1-1 R 2BI), but Presley won NL Batter of the Day on a tiebreaker—he hit a home run, while Rogers hit a triple.
American League Batter of the Day—Marlon Byrd of the Indians went 2-for-3, scoring once and driving in two runs, in the 6-3 win over the Tigers.
Debuts—In addition to Hembree, two other players made their Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:
- Joc Pederson of the Dodgers (HR 1-1 2R BI in the 12-10 win over the Rockies) made his Major League debut Sept. 1, 2014, and was playing in his 187th career game. He is the 3,621st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
- Michael Conforto of the Mets (2B 1-3 2BI in the 3-2 win over the Braves) made his Major League debut July 24, 2015, and was playing in his 72nd career game. He is the 3,622nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Hammel earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hembree earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Presley and Byrd 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 4/24 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | Cubs | Jason Hammel (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |
| AL | 5.0 | Red Sox | Heath Hembree (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4.0 | Rays | Drew Smyly (W,1-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | Royals | Yordano Ventura (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | White Sox | David Robertson (S,7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.2 | `Nationals | Yusmeiro Petit | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4.2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 3.2 | Mariners | Nick Vincent (S,1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Brewers | Alex Presley, PH-CF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Pirates | Jason Rogers, 1B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Dodgers | Joc Pederson, CF | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Cardinals | Kevin Siegrist (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Marlins | J.T. Realmuto, C | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Indians | Marlon Byrd, RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Roberto Osuna (S,6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 0.0 | Mets | Michael Conforto, LF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `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 | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Hammel, Jason 2235 | pi sp | chi nl | 3.0 | 12.7 | 36.1 | 49.2 | -6.7 |
| Smyly, Drew 3009 | pi sp | tb al | 3.0 | 9.0 | 31.1 | 31.1 | -3.0 |
| Osuna, Roberto 3512 | pi cp | tor al | 3.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | -1.0 |
| Ventura, Yordano 3294 | pi sp | kc al | 2.0 | 13.7 | 23.4 | 23.4 | -9.7 |
| Robertson, David 2774 | pi cp | chi al | 2.0 | 10.0 | 22.0 | 23.0 | -6.0 |
| Siegrist, Kevin 3260 | pi mr | stl nl | 2.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Petit, Yusmeiro 2337 | pi mr sp | dc nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 9.0 | 18.7 | 2.0 |
| Hembree, Heath 3620 | pi cp | bos al | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| Byrd, Marlon 1751 | rf | cle al | 1.5 | 6.5 | 15.5 | 40.0 | -3.5 |
| Presley, Alex 2900 | cf ph | mil nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 1.5 |
| Realmuto, J.T. 3491 | ca | fla nl | 1.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | -4.0 |
| Rogers, Jason 3602 | 3b | pit nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Vincent, Nick 3203 | pi cp | sea al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 |
| Conforto, Michael 3622 | lf | nym nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Pederson, Joc 3621 | cf | lad nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Washington Nationals top Box-Toppers' 2015 preseason team rankings
Nationals' offseason net gain in Box-Toppers points pushes them to top of preseason team rankings. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Athletics plummet in rankings and the Cubs and Red Sox make big leaps upward.
Read MoreDodgers' Clayton Kershaw, pitching no-hitter, tops players for Wednesday, June 18, rises to 3rd in Box-Toppers points
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, pitching a no-hitter, is Wednesday’s Player of the Day and rises to third place in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
Kershaw struck out 15 over nine innings, allowing no runs, hits or walks in the 8-0 win over the Rockies. The Rockies only baserunner reached on an error. This was Kershaw’s first no-hitter and the second thrown this season—the other by Dodgers pitcher Josh Beckett on May 25.
Kershaw receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.7 for the season. He rises from eighth to third place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season (see the updated top 10 list on the home page). He is now in second place in Box-Toppers points among National League pitchers, behind Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals (12.0).
Kershaw led all players in Box-Toppers points in 2013 with 21.7.
Red Sox pitcher John Lackey is American League Player of the Day. Lackey pitched nine shutout innings and struck out nine in the 2-1, 10-inning win over the Twins. Lackey, however, did not pick up the win because he left with the game tied 0-0 after nine innings.
Brian McCann of the Yankees is AL Batter of the Day. McCann homered, tripled and drove in five runs in the 7-3 win over the Blue Jays.
Marlon Byrd of the Phillies is NL Batter of the Day. Byrd homered, went 3-for-5, scored twice and drove in three runs in the 10-5 win over the Braves.
Kershaw receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Lackey receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. McCann and Byrd 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
| 618 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 24.0 | Dodgers | Clayton Kershaw (W, 7-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | |
| AL | 14.0 | `Red Sox | John Lackey | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| 10.0 | Cubs | Jake Arrieta (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 8.2 | Royals | Jeremy Guthrie (W, 4-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Yankees | Brian McCann C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Padres | Kevin Gausman (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 4.1 | Dbacks | Brad Ziegler (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Phillies | Marlon Byrd RF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | White Sox | Adamn Dunn DH | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Mets | Bartolo Colon (W, 7-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 3.0 | Padres | Joaquin Benoit (W, 3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | Athletics | Sean Doolittle (S, 9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Reds | Skip Schumaker LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Nationals | Rafael Soriano (S, 15) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 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.
Dodgers' Hanley Ramirez tops players in Sunday, Oct. 6's NLDS games
Hanley Ramirez of the Dodgers is Sunday's Player of the Day in the two National League Division Series playoff games.
Ramirez scored three runs and went 3-for-4 in the 13-6 win over the Braves to take a 2-1 series lead for the Dodgers. Ramirez had 5.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranking 177th overall, second among all NL shortstops.
Marlon Byrd of the Pirates is Sunday's other Player of the Game. Byrd drove in two runs and went 2-for-3 in the 5-3 win over the Cardinals to take a 2-1 series lead for the Pirates. Byrd had 5.5 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranking 164th overall.
Coming Monday: All four League Division Series continue Monday. Three of the four series could be decided. Here are the pitching match-ups:
ALDS Game 3, Athletics at Tigers, series tied 1-1
Athletics: Jarrod Parker, 6.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 138th overall
Tigers: Anibal Sanchez, 17.1 Box-Toppers points, ranked seventh overall (see the top 10 Player Rankings list on the home page)
NLDS Game 4, Pirates lead Cardinals 2-1
Cardinals: Michael Wacha, 3.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 361st overall
Pirates: Charlie Morton, 3.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 344th overall
ALDS Game 3, Red Sox lead Rays 2-0
Red Sox: Clay Buchholz, 11.1 Box-Toppers points, ranked 41st overall
Rays: Alex Cobb, 9.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 58th overall
NLDS Game 4, Dodgers lead Braves 2-1
Braves: Freddy Garcia, 1.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 509th overall
Dodgers: Ricky Nolasco, 9.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 60th overall
In regular season games, 2.0 Box-Toppers points are awarded for Player of the Day, 1.7 for top player in the opposite league, 1.5 for top batter in each league and 1.0 for the top player in each of the other games. However, no Box-Toppers points are awarded during the postseason.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 1006 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 4.0 | Dodgers | Hanley Ramirez SS | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Pirates | Marlon Byrd RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rockies' Nicasio tops players for Saturday, Sept. 28; Cards' Wainwright rises to 2nd in Box-Toppers player rankings
Rockies pitcher Juan Nicasio is Saturday's Player of the Day, while Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright rises to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings on the penultimate (and next-to-last) day of the season.
Nicasio pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings and struck out seven in the 1-0 win over the Dodgers. The Rockies spoiled Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke's chance of scoring 20.0 Box-Toppers points for the season. Greinke, who started the game and pitched well (6IP 1R 7K), picked up the loss, earned no Box-Toppers points and ends his season with 19.4 points, falling from second to third place in player rankings.
Wainwright, meanwhile, passes Greinke in Box-Toppers player rankings, rising from third to second (see the updated top 10 list on the home page). Wainwright (5.1IP 0R 5K in 6-2 win vs. Cubs) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Game, giving him 20.2 for the season. He and Box-Toppers points leader, Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers, are the only two players with 20.0 Box-Toppers points this season (in 2012, there were three). This is Wainwright's highest season total in Box-Toppers points, passing 2010, when he scored 19.7.
Indians pitcher Scott Kazmir is American League Player of the Day. Kazmir struck out 11 over six innings in the 5-1 win over the Twins. Kazmir earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 12.8 for the season and putting him in 29th place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Brad Miller of the Mariners is AL Batter of the Day. Miller hit two homers, including a grand slam in the 7-5 win over the Athletics.
Marlon Byrd of the Pirates is National League Batter of the Day. Byrd homered and went 3-for-4 in the 8-3 win over the Reds.
Notables: Rangers pitcher Dan Haren rises to 52nd place in Box-Toppers rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. Haren (7IP 0R W in 7-4 win vs. Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.4 for the season.
Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte earned Player of the Game honors in his final career start. Pettitte (CG 1R W in 2-1 win vs. Astros) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season, but giving him 138.5 for his career since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began), putting him in 19th place on the all-time (since 1995) list.
Nicasio receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kazmir receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Miller and Byrd 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 928 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 8.1 | Rockies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Juan Nicasio (W, 9-9) | 5.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 7.1 | Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Adam Wainwright (W, 19-9) | 5.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | |||
| 7.0 | Nationals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Dan Haren (W, 10-14) | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | |||
| AL | 7.0 | Indians | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Scott Kazmir (W, 10-9) | 6.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | Mariners | Brad Miller SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 5.0 | Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Andy Pettitte (W, 11-11) | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | |||
| 3.1 | Blue Jays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | J.A. Happ (W, 5-7) | 7.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |||
| 3.1 | Orioles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Kevin Gausman (W, 3-5) | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 3.1 | `Marlins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A.J. Ramos | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Pirates | Marlon Byrd RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | `Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jimmy Nelson | 5.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 3.0 | Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Luis Garcia (W, 1-1) | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |||
| 2.0 | Padres | Reymond Fuentes CF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | `Rangers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Robbie Ross (H, 14) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |||
| 1.0 | White Sox | Marcus Semien SS, 3B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 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.