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Diamondbacks pitcher Patrick Corbin is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fifth place in season player rankings.
Corbin struck out 12 over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 2-1, 13-inning win over the Pirates. Corbin picked up a no-decision and did not earn the win because the game was in a scoreless tie when he exited.
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Mariners pitcher Ariel Miranda is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 12.7 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 10.0 |
| 3 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 9.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 5 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 6 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 7.4 |
| 7 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 7.4 |
| 8 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | ari nl | 7.0 |
| 9 | Wood, Alex 3246 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.0 |
| 10 | Vargas, Jason 2055 | pi sp | kc al | 7.0 |
Miranda pitched a complete-game, four-hitter in the 7-1 win over the Rays. Miranda allowed one run and one walk.
National League Player of the Day—Rockies pitcher Jeff Hoffman struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, three hits and no walks, in the 3-1 win over the Padres.
National League Batter of the Day—Ender Inciarte of the Braves homered and went 5-for-5, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 13-8 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Andrew Benintendi of the Red Sox hit two home runs and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 7-3 win over the Orioles.
This was Benintendi’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Benintendi made his Major League debut Aug. 2, 2016, and was playing in his 87th career game. He is the 3,815th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Rankings—Miguel Sano of the Twins rises to lead all batters in season Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Sano (HR 2-4 R 2BI in the 3-2 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.5 for the season. He rises to 11th in season player rankings, first among all batters, passing previous leader Aaron Judge of the Yankees. Though Judge also has 6.5 points on the season, Sano ranks higher because he has more 2016 points—3.0 vs. 0.0.
Notable—Odubel Herrera of the Phillies has earned Player of the Game honors for the second straight day Sunday. Herrera (HR 2-2B 3-4 2R 3BI in the 9-7 win over the Giants) also was Player of the Game Saturday in the 5-3 win over the Giants. Herrera has 2.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, both earned over the weekend.
Scoring—Miranda earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Hoffman earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Inciarte and Benintendi 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.
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.
| 6/4 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 11.0 | SEA 7, TB 1 | Ariel Miranda (W,6-2) | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |
| NL | 11.0 | COL 3, SD 1 | Jeff Hoffman (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| 8.0 | MIL 3, LAD 0 | Zach Davies (W,6-3) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | ATL 13, CIN 8 | Ender Inciarte, CF | 5 | 2 | 5 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | HOU 7, TEX 2 | Brad Peacock (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 6.0 | `DET 7, CHW 4 | Warwick Saupold | - | - | - | - | 4.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | BOS 7, BAL 3 | Andrew Benintendi, LF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | PIT 11, NYM 1 | Andrew McCutchen, CF | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | PHI 9, SF 7 | Odubel Herrera, CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | TOR 3, NYY 2 | Roberto Osuna (S,13) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | WSH 11, OAK 10 | Ryan Zimmerman, DH | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | CHC 7, STL 6 | Ian Happ, CF | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | CLE 8, KC 0 | Jason Kipnis, 2B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | MIA 6, ARI 5 | AJ Ramos (S,8) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | MIN 3, LAA 2 | Miguel Sano, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Sano, Miguel 3527 | 3b | min al | 6.5 | 9.5 | 15.5 | 15.5 | 3.5 |
| Miranda, Ariel 3738 | pi sp | sea al | 5.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 3.0 |
| Inciarte, Ender 3360 | cf | atl nl | 4.5 | 6.5 | 10.5 | 10.5 | 2.5 |
| Peacock, Brad 2968 | pi sp | hou al | 3.7 | 3.7 | 10.4 | 13.1 | 3.7 |
| Zimmerman, Ryan 2180 | 1b dh | dc nl | 3.5 | 5.0 | 24.7 | 59.8 | 2.0 |
| Hoffman, Jeff 3806 | pi sp | col nl | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Kipnis, Jason 2933 | 2b | cle al | 2.5 | 2.5 | 21.5 | 24.5 | 2.5 |
| McCutchen, Andrew 2637 | cf | pit nl | 2.0 | 9.0 | 40.5 | 55.9 | -5.0 |
| Herrera, Odubel 3449 | cf | phi nl | 2.0 | 5.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | -1.5 |
| Ramos, A.J. 3210 | pi cp | fla nl | 2.0 | 4.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | 0.0 |
| Happ, Ian 3798 | cf lf | chi nl | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Benintendi, Andrew 3815 | lf | bos al | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Davies, Zach 3581 | pi sp | mil nl | 1.0 | 7.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | -5.0 |
| Osuna, Roberto 3512 | pi cp | tor al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Saupold, Warwick 3636 | pi mr | det al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, maintaining his spot in third place in season player rankings.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 23.7 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 22.7 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 22.4 |
| 4 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 21.1 |
| 5 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 20.2 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 16.8 |
| 7 | Syndergaard, Noah 3472 | pi sp | nym al | 15.7 |
| 8 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 15.4 |
| 9 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 15.1 |
| 10 | Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 14.7 |
Also Tuesday, Cubs pitcher Jon Lester rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings and Blue Jays pitcher J.A. Happ rises to 10th after both earned Player of the Game honors.
Player of the Day—Fernandez pitched eight scoreless innings, striking out 12 and allowing three hits and no walks, in the 1-0 win over the Nationals.
Fernandez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 22.4 for the season. He moves to within 0.3 points of second-place player, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22.7) and within 1.3 points of season Box-Toppers points leader, Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer (23.7). That means with one or two more starts remaining this season, Fernandez has a chance to rise to the overall lead for the first time this year.
American League Player of the Day—Tigers pitcher Matt Boyd struck out seven over eight innings, allowing one run, three hits and one walk, in the 8-1 win over the Twins.
National League Batter of the Day—Odubel Herrera of the Phillies homered and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 7-6 win over the White Sox.
American League Batter of the Day—Nomar Mazara of the Rangers homered and went 2-for-3, driving in two runs, in the 5-4 win over the Angels.
Rankings—Two players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday:
Lester now also has 142.2 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 26th place among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. He passes Giants pitcher Jake Peavy (141.8) on the “all-time” list and now trails 25th-ranked player, Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels (143.0). Lester now ranks 10th among all active players in career points, seventh among active pitchers.
Debut—Giants pitcher Steven Okert made his Box-Toppers debut Tuesday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Okert (1.2IP H 0R 0BB 3K ND in the 2-0 win over the Dodgers) made his Major League debut April 19 and was playing in his 14th career game. He is the 3,745th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Fernandez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Boyd earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Herrera and Mazara 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.
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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 9/20 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 17.0 | MIA 1, WSH 0 | Jose Fernandez (W,16-8) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | |
| AL | 9.0 | DET 8, MIN 1 | Matt Boyd (W,6-4) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
| 7.2 | HOU 2, OAK 1 (10) | Chris Devenski (W,4-4) | - | - | - | - | 3.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 6.1 | `NYY 5, TB 3 | Michael Pineda | - | - | - | - | 5.1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 4.2 | CLE 2, KC 1 | Andrew Miller (W,9-1) | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.1 | BOS 5, BAL 2 | Eduardo Rodriguez (W,3-7) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | PHI 7, CHW 6 | Odubel Herrera, CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | STL 10, COL 5 | Randal Grichuk, CF | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | SD 5, ARI 2 | Adam Rosales, 2B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | CHC 6, CIN 1 | Jon Lester (W,18-4) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 3.2 | `SF 2, LAD 0 | Steven Okert (H,2) | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 5, NYM 4 | Adonis Garcia, 3B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | PIT 6, MIL 3 | Tony Watson (S,14) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | TEX 5, LAA 4 | Nomar Mazara, RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | TOR 10, SEA 2 | J.A. Happ (W,20-4) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| `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 | +/- |
| Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 22.4 | 27.1 | 53.1 | 53.1 | 17.7 |
| Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 21.1 | 33.1 | 79.3 | 142.2 | 9.1 |
| Happ, J.A. 2536 | pi sp | tor al | 14.7 | 27.8 | 43.2 | 51.2 | 1.6 |
| Mazara, Nomar 3614 | rf lf | tex al | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 |
| Boyd, Matt 3550 | pi sp | det al | 6.1 | 7.1 | 7.1 | 7.1 | 5.1 |
| Pineda, Michael 2841 | pi sp | nyy al | 6.0 | 16.7 | 34.1 | 34.1 | -4.7 |
| Miller, Andrew 2436 | pi cp | cle al | 6.0 | 10.0 | 14.0 | 21.0 | 2.0 |
| Garcia, Adonis 3613 | 3b | atl nl | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Watson, Tony 3215 | pi cp | pit nl | 4.0 | 5.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 3.0 |
| Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 | pi sp | bos al | 3.7 | 9.7 | 9.7 | 9.7 | -2.3 |
| Devenski, Chris 3702 | pi mr sp | hou nl | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| Herrera, Odubel 3449 | cf | phi nl | 3.5 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.5 | -0.5 |
| Grichuk, Randal 3474 | cf | stl nl | 1.0 | 10.5 | 10.5 | 10.5 | -8.5 |
| Rosales, Adam 2647 | 2b | sd nl | 1.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 11.7 | -1.0 |
| Okert, Steven 3745 | pi mr | sf nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Reds pitcher Mike Leake is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Leake allowed one run over eight innings, striking out six and allowing four hits, in the 9-1 win over the Cubs.
American League Player of the Day—Michael Brantley of the Indians homered, doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 7-5 win over the Brewers.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 15.0 |
| 2 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 14.4 |
| 3 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 14.4 |
| 4 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 13.4 |
| 5 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 13.1 |
| 6 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 12.7 |
| 7 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 12.0 |
| 8 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 12.0 |
| 9 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 12.0 |
| 10 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 11.7 |
National League Batter of the Day—Odubel Herrera of the Phillies hit a walk-off, pinch-hit, 10th-inning single in the 5-4 win over the Rays.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Wednesday because the overall AL Player of the Day was a batter (Michael Brantley).
Notable—Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn became the 17th player with 10 or more Box-Toppers points this season after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Lynn (6IP 5H 2R 8K ND in the 3-2 win over the White Sox) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.4 for the season. He ranks 15th among all players this season and ninth among NL pitchers.
Debut—Athletics pitcher Fernando Rodriguez made his Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Rodriguez (1IP 0H 0R K W in the 4-3, 10-inning win over the Blue Jays) made his Major League debut May 2, 2009, and was playing in his 154th career game. He is the 3,537th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Leake earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Brantley earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Herrera earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 7/22 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | Reds | Mike Leake (W,8-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | |
| 6.0 | Dodgers | Mike Bolsinger (W,5-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| AL | 5.0 | Indians | Michael Brantley, CF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Rangers | Rougned Odor, 2B | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | Marlins | Jose Fernandez (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 11 | ||
| 4.2 | Royals | Edinson Volquez (W,9-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | Tigers | Nick Castellanos, 3B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | `Cardinals | Lance Lynn | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 4.0 | Giants | Matt Cain (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | Nationals | Drew Storen (S,29) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.2 | `Cubs | Pedro Strop | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Astros | Preston Tucker, LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Angels | Johnny Giavotella, 2B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Athletics | Fernando Rodriguez (W,1-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1.0 | Yankees | Mark Teixeira, 1B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 1.0 | Phillies | Odubel Herrera, PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez is Saturday’s Player of the Day and rises to the top of Box-Toppers player rankings.
Hernandez struck out 12 over seven innings, allowing one run and two hits, in the 3-1 win over the Rangers. Hernandez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season, passing previous points leader, Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir, who has 3.7.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 4.0 |
| 2 | Kazmir, Scott 1947 | pi sp | oak al | 3.7 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 3.0 |
| 4 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 3.0 |
| 5 | Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | cle al | 3.0 |
| 6 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 2.7 |
| 7 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 2.7 |
| 8 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 2.7 |
| 9 | Donaldson, Josh 3144 | 3b dh | tor al | 2.5 |
| 10 | Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | rf | fla nl | 2.5 |
Hernandez had a Box-Toppers game score of +12, tied with Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, who was Player of the Game in the 9-0 win over the Rays. However, Hernandez won Player of the Day honors on a tie-breaker—he had more strikeouts than Tanaka Saturday (12 vs. 8).
National League Player of the Day—Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out eight in the 5-4 win over the Marlins. deGrom earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 3.7 for the season. He rises to seventh place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
American League Batter of the Day—Adam LaRoche of the White Sox homered, doubled and went 3-for-5 with two runs and four RBIs in the 12-3 win over the Tigers.
National League Batter of the Day—Odubel Herrera of the Phillies went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs and an RBI, in the 5-3 win over the Nationals. This was Herrera’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut April 6 and was playing in his 12th career game. He is the 3,449th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Notables—Josh Donaldson of the Blue Jays rose to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Saturday. Donaldson (HR 3-4 2R BI in the 6-5 win over the Braves) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.5 for the season.
Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers earned just his third Player of the Game honor Saturday in his third season in baseball. While Puig is considered one of the game’s rising stars and an All-Star, he has so far only rarely earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors and now has 3.5 Box-Toppers points since his Box-Toppers debut on June 4, 2013. On Saturday, Puig went 2-for-3 with a double, a run and an RBI in the 6-3 win over the Rockies. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point and has that 1.0 point for the season. That equals his 2014 total of 1.0 Box-Toppers point—he was Player of the Game once in 2014, on May 12.
Scoring—Hernandez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and deGrom earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. LaRoche and Herrera each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’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
| 4/18 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | Mariners | Felix Hernandez (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 | |
| 13.0 | Yankees | Masahiro Tanaka (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||
| NL | 9.0 | Mets | Jacob deGrom (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| 8.0 | Pirates | Jeff Locke (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 8.0 | Astros | Dallas Keuchel (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 7.0 | `Cubs | Kyle Hendricks | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 5.2 | Giants | Chris Heston (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 4.2 | Athletics | Jesse Chavez (S, 1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | White Sox | Adam LaRoche 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Indians | Danny Salazar (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 3.0 | Cardinals | Carlos Martinez (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Orioles | Zach Britton (S, 4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Phillies | Odubel Herrera CF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Josh Donaldson DH | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Dodgers | Yasiel Puig RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 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.