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The Los Angeles Dodgers are the top-ranked team in Box-Toppers’ 2022 preseason rankings. They also ended 2021 as Box-Toppers’ top-ranked team.
Meanwhile, the New York Mets made the biggest offseason improvement in players’ accumulated Box-Toppers points, while the Oakland Athletics saw the biggest decline.
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The Atlanta Braves hold the Box-Toppers points advantages over the Houston Astros in the 2021 World Series.
The Braves accumulated more total Box-Toppers points during the season than the Astros, their likely starting lineup for the Fall Classic has more Box-Toppers points than the Astros and their starting batting lineup and probable top four starting pitchers also outdistance the Astros in points.
Read MoreAthletics pitcher Sean Manaea is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Manaea struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, five hits and one walk, in the 3-1 win over the White Sox.
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The Los Angeles Dodgers rise to a commanding lead in Box-Toppers weekly team rankings report on the strength of the players they acquired prior to Friday’s trade deadline.
Meanwhile, the Chicago White Sox fall from first to second in team rankings but maintain their lead among American League teams.
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The Chicago White Sox regain the lead in the first Box-Toppers team rankings report after the All-Star break.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Dodgers regain the Box-Toppers team rankings lead among National League teams and the Atlanta Braves are the hottest team since the All-Star break.
Read MoreYankees pitcher Gerrit Cole is Tuesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Tuesday, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, the active leader in career Box-Toppers points earned his first points of the 2021 season as National League Player of the Day.
Read MoreAthletics pitcher Homer Bailey is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Astros pitcher Gerrit Cole increased his lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors. Cole now has 29.2 Box-Toppers points for the season, the eighth-highest single-season total since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.
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Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 18.7 |
| 3 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 16.4 |
| 4 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | cle al | 16.2 |
| 5 | Cueto, Johnny 2400 | pi sp | sf nl | 14.4 |
| 6 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 14.1 |
| 7 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.1 |
| 8 | Lester, Jon 2173 | pi sp | chi nl | 13.4 |
| 9 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 11.7 |
| 10 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 11.0 |
Iwakuma pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out eight and allowing five hits and one walk, in the 3-0 win over the Tigers.
Iwakuma earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, most of any of the nine who earned Player of the Game honors Monday. Iwakuma ranks 85th among all players, 29th among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Yasmani Grandal of the Dodgers homered, doubled and went 2-for-3, scoring three times and driving in one run, in the 9-4 win over the Phillies.
American League Batter of the Day—Stephen Vogt of the Athletics homered and went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 3-2 win over the Orioles.
National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Monday because the NL Player of the Day was batter Yasmani Grandal.
Debut—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in their careers they earned Player of the Game honors:
Scoring—Iwakuma earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Grandal earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Vogt 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 8/8 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 9.0 | SEA 3, DET 0 | Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 13-7) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| 7.0 | MIN 3, HOU 1 | Tyler Duffey (W, 7-8) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | OAK 3, BAL 2 | Stephen Vogt (C) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| NL | 3.0 | LAD 9, PHI 4 | Yasmani Grandal (C) | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | SF 8, MIA 7 (14) | George Kontos (W, 3-2) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 4, MIL 3 (12) | Brandon Cunniff (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | TOR 7, TB 5 | Devon Travis (2B) | 5 | 2 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | `STL 5, CIN 4 | Matt Bowman | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | TEX 4, COL 3 | Elvis Andrus (SS) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| `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 | +/- |
| Iwakuma, Hisashi 3048 | pi sp | sea al | 6.0 | 19.1 | 54.2 | 54.2 | -7.1 |
| Grandal, Yasmani 3058 | ca | lad nl | 5.7 | 7.7 | 15.7 | 15.7 | 3.7 |
| Andrus, Elvis 2582 | ss | tex al | 5.7 | 5.7 | 13.2 | 16.2 | 5.7 |
| Duffey, Tyler 3558 | pi sp | min al | 5.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 |
| Vogt, Stephen 3503 | ca 1b | oak al | 4.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 1.5 |
| Kontos, George 3106 | pi cp mr | sf nl | 3.0 | 5.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 1.0 |
| Travis, Devon 3436 | 2b | tor al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | -2.0 |
| Bowman, Matt 3699 | pi mr | stl nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Cunniff, Brandon 3698 | pi mr | atl nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to third in season player rankings.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 20.0 |
| 2 | Fernandez, Jose 3147 | pi sp | fla nl | 14.4 |
| 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 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 10.7 |
| 7 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.7 |
| 8 | Salazar, Danny 3223 | pi sp | cle al | 10.5 |
| 9 | Hamels, Cole 2135 | pi sp | tex al | 10.4 |
| 10 | Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 10.4 |
Scherzer struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, three hits and two walks, in the 6-1 win over the Mets.
Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 14.0 for the season, rising from fifth to third in player rankings, behind two other National League pitchers, Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (20.0) and Jose Fernandez of the Marlins (14.4).
Scherzer also now has 120.0 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 38th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. He passes Cliff Lee (119.1) on the “all-time” list and now trails 37th-ranked player Gary Sheffield (124.1).
In addition, Scherzer ranks third among all players in Box-Toppers points since the start of 2015 with 35.0, trailing Kershaw (45.7) and Jake Arrieta of the Cubs (39.8). He ranks second among all players in Box-Toppers points since the start of 2011 with 99.6, behind only Kershaw (145.8).
American League Player of the Day—Yankees closing pitcher Aroldis Chapman pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing no runs or hits and striking out four, in the 7-6, 11-inning win over the Indians.
National League Batter of the Day—Josh E. Bell of the Pirates hit a pinch-hit grand slam in the 12-6 win over the Cubs.
This was Bell’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Bell made his Major League debut July 8 and was playing in his second career game. He is the 3,682nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
American League Batter of the Day—Stephen Vogt of the Athletics homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 3-2 win over the Astros.
Debut—Cheslor Cuthbert of the Royals made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Cuthbert (2B 2-4 R 2BI in the 5-3 win over the Mariners) made his Major League debut July 7, 2015, and was playing in his 74th career game. He is the 3,683rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Chapman earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Bell and Vogt each earn 1.5 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
| 7/9 | Score | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 10.0 | DC 6/NYM 1 | Max Scherzer (W,10-6) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 9 | |
| 6.0 | STL 8/MIL 1 | Carlos Martinez (W,8-6) | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 11 | ||
| AL | 5.1 | NYY 7/CLE 6 | Aroldis Chapman (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| BAT | 5.0 | PIT 12/CHC 6 | Josh Bell, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | MIN 8/TEX 6 | Eddie Rosario, LF | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | BOS 4/TB 1 | Rick Porcello (W,11-2) | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 3.2 | MIA 4/CIN 2 | Adam Conley (W,6-5) | - | - | - | - | 5.2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | OAK 3/HOU 2 | Stephen Vogt, C | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | COL 8/PHI 3 | Tony Wolters, C | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | `DET 3/TOR 2 | Matt Boyd | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3.0 | LAD 4/SD 3 | Kenley Jansen (S,26) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.1 | SF 4/ARI 2 | George Kontos (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | CHW 5/ATL 4 | Todd Frazier, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | KC 5/SEA 3 | Cheslor Cuthbert, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | BAL 3/LAA 2 | Brad Brach (W,6-1) | - | - | - | - | 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. | ||||||||||||||
| Player of Game | Pos | Team | 16 | 15-16 | 11-16 | Career | +/- |
| Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 14.0 | 35.0 | 99.6 | 120.0 | -7.0 |
| Conley, Adam 3594 | pi sp | fla nl | 6.7 | 9.7 | 9.7 | 9.7 | 3.7 |
| Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 4.7 | 18.4 | 19.4 | 19.4 | -9.0 |
| Chapman, Aroldis 2826 | pi cp | nyy al | 4.7 | 12.7 | 42.7 | 43.7 | -3.3 |
| Frazier, Todd 2929 | 3b | chi al | 4.2 | 13.1 | 27.1 | 27.1 | -4.7 |
| Porcello, Rick 2573 | pi sp | bos al | 4.0 | 8.0 | 29.7 | 38.7 | 0.0 |
| Jansen, Kenley 2871 | pi cp | lad nl | 4.0 | 8.0 | 34.4 | 34.4 | 0.0 |
| Vogt, Stephen 3503 | ca 1b | oak al | 2.5 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 0.0 |
| Wolters, Tony 3668 | ca | col nl | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
| Brach, Brad 3374 | pi mr | bal al | 2.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | -1.0 |
| Kontos, George 3106 | pi cp mr | sf nl | 2.0 | 4.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 0.0 |
| Bell, Josh E. 2789 | ph | pit nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Rosario, Eddie 3542 | lf | min al | 1.0 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | -0.5 |
| Boyd, Matt 3550 | pi sp | det al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Cuthbert, Cheslor 3683 | 3b | kc al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Wellington Castillo of the Diamondbacks is Box-Toppers spring training Player of the Day for Monday.
Castillo hit a two-run homer and two doubles, going 3-for-4 and driving in five runs, in the 10-8 win over the Mariners. Castillo had 3.5 Box-Toppers points in 2015, a season he spent with the Cubs, Mariners and Diamondbacks, but he scored all his Box-Toppers points with the Diamondbacks.
American League Player of the Day—Stephen Vogt of the Athletics hit two home runs, including a three-run shot, going 2-for-3, in the 6-4 win over the Royals. Vogt had 2.5 Box-Toppers points in 2015 with the Athletics.
Scoring—No Box-Toppers points are awarded in spring training games, but if it were the regular season, Castillo would earn 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Vogt would earn 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) would 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
| 3/7 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 5.0 | Dbacks | Wellington Castillo C | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| AL | 5.0 | Athletics | Stephen Vogt DH | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 5.0 | Nationals | Clint Robinson DH | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 5.0 | `Royals | Kris Medlen | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | Rangers | Ryan Rua PH-DH | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | White Sox | Steve Lombardozzi 2B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Astros | Cesar Valdez (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.1 | Twins | Trevor May (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Indians | Giovanny Urshela 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Reds | Adam Duvall LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Cardinals | Stephen Piscotty RF | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Mets | Lucas Duda 1B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Padres | Derek Norris C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | `Phillies | Vince Velásquez | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | Roberto Osuna (SV, 1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | Rays | Logan Forsythe 2B | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Rockies | Mark Reynolds 1B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| ` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Pirates pitcher Francisco Liriano is Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Monday, Cardinals pitcher John Lackey now has 102.8 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 57th among all players since 1995.
Player of the Day—Liriano pitched eight scoreless innings, striking out 12 and allowing two hits, in the 11-0 win over the White Sox.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 12.4 |
| 2 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 12.0 |
| 3 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 11.0 |
| 4 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 11.0 |
| 5 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.4 |
| 6 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 10.1 |
| 7 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 |
| 8 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 9.7 |
| 9 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 9.4 |
| 10 | Heston, Chris 3437 | pi sp | sf nl | 8.7 |
Liriano is the season’s highest-ranked among the 14 who earned Player of the Game honors Monday. Liriano earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.4 for the season. He ranks 19th among all players and 10th among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Tigers pitcher Anibal Sanchez pitched a complete game shutout, striking out seven and allowing two hits, in the 6-0 win over the Reds.
American League Batter of the Day—Stephen Vogt of the Athletics hit a grand slam and went 3-for-5, driving in five total runs, in the 9-1 win over the Padres.
This was Vogt’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut April 6, 2012, and was playing in his 211th career game. He is the 3,503rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—There was no NL Batter of the Day for Monday because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors.
Notable—Cardinals pitcher John Lackey rose to 57th place among all players since 1995 after earning Player of the Game honors Monday. Lackey (8IP 5H 2R 6K W in the 3-2 win over the Twins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 102.8 for his career. With his point Monday, Lackey passes three players on Box-Toppers “all-time” list: Ken Griffey Jr. (102.2), Miguel Tejada (102.3) and Aramis Ramirez (102.3). He trails 56th-place player Jamie Moyer (104.0). Lackey has 4.7 Box-Toppers points on the season and ranks 20th among NL pitchers.
Debut—Diamondbacks pitcher Robbie Ray also made his Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Ray (7IP 2H 0R 3K W in the 7-3 win over the Angels) made his Major League debut May 6, 2014, and was playing in his 13th career game. He is the 3,502nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Liriano earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Sanchez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Vogt earns 1.5 Box-Toppers 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.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 6/15 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 17.0 | Pirates | Francisco Liriano (W, 4-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
| AL | 14.0 | Tigers | Anibal Sanchez (W, 5-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| 12.0 | Orioles | Wei-Yin Chen (W, 3-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 11.0 | `Mets | Noah Syndergaard | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11 | ||
| 6.0 | Dbacks | Robbie Ray (W, 2-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 5.0 | Marlins | Tom Koehler (W, 5-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Athletics | Stephen Vogt C | 5 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Astros | George Springer RF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Cardinals | John Lackey (W, 5-4) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | Mariners | Taijuan Walker (W, 4-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 4.0 | Rangers | Yovani Gallardo (W, 6-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 2.0 | Royals | Mike Moustakas 3B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Rays | Evan Longoria 3B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Braves | Williams Perez (W, 3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Athletics pitcher Sonny Gray is Saturday's Player of the Day in the two American League Division Series playoff games.
Gray pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out nine in the 1-0 win over the Tigers to tie the series at 1-1. Gray picked up a no decision because he left the game in a scoreless tie after eight innings, but the Athletics scored on Stephen Vogt's bases-loaded walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth.
Gray had 4.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranked 272nd overall.
Jacob Ellsbury of the Red Sox is Saturday's other Player of the Game. Ellsbury scored three runs and went 3-for-4 in the 7-4 win over the Rays, to lead that series 2-0. Ellsbury had 5.5 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, ranked 161st overall.
Coming Sunday: The two NLDS series continue Sunday. Here are the pitching match-ups:
Cardinals: Joe Kelly, 4.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 264th overall
Pirates: Francisco Liriano, 16.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked ninth overall (see the top 10 Player Rankings list on the home page)
Braves: Julio Teheran, 13.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 23rd overall
Dodgers: Hyun-Jin Ryu, 9.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 61st 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 and 1.5 for top batter in each league. However, no Box-Toppers points are awarded during the postseason.
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 1005 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 11.0 | `Athletics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Sonny Gray | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 |
| BAT | 3.0 | Red Sox | Jacoby Ellsbury CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 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.
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.