Oakland Athletics have most players on Box-Toppers Top 100 list

The Oakland Athletics, baseball’s best team at the All-Star break, has seven players on Box-Toppers Top 100 players list, the most of any team.

The list is led by Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw who has earned 18.1 Box-Toppers points this season and Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer with 16.1. Kershaw led all players in 2013 with 21.7 Box-Toppers points and Scherzer led all American League players in 2013 with 18.1.

Top 100 list 2014

Here is Box-Toppers Top 100, listing players with the highest Box-Toppers points totals at the All-Star break.

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	18.1
2	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	det al	16.1
3	Wainwright, Adam 2150	pi sp	stl nl	14.0
4	Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	13.5
5	Kazmir, Scott 1947	pi sp	oak al	13.1
6	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	12.8
7	Richards, Garrett 3042	pi sp	ana al	12.7
8	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	cin nl	12.7
9	Tanaka, Masahiro 3305	pi sp	nyy al	12.7
10	Tulowitzki, Troy 2308	ss	col nl	11.6
11	Teheran, Julio 3176	pi sp	atl nl	11.4
12	Lincecum, Tim 2288	pi sp	sf nl	10.4
13	Price, David 2593	pi sp	tb al	10.4
14	Kluber, Corey 3200	pi sp	cle al	10.4
15	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	lad nl	10.1
16	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	10.0
17	Abreu, Jose 3308	1b	chi al	9.5
18	Darvish, Yu 3003	pi sp	tex al	9.4
19	Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	9.0
20	Hutchison, Drew 3038	pi sp	tor al	9.0
21	Colon, Bartolo	pi sp	nym nl	8.7
22	Alvarez, Henderson 2951	pi sp	fla nl	8.7
23	Simon, Alfredo 2718	pi sp	cin nl	8.7
24	Hammel, Jason 2235	pi sp	oak al	8.7
25	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	8.7
26	Lohse, Kyle 1487	pi sp	mil nl	8.4
27	Ryu, Hyun-Jin 3139	pi sp	lad nl	8.4
28	Hughes, Phil 2272	pi sp	min al	8.4
29	Young, Chris 1933	pi sp	sea al	8.4
30	Kimbrel, Craig 2825	pi cp	atl nl	8.0
31	Lester, Jon 2173	pi sp	bos al	8.0
32	Encarnacion, Edwin 2098	1b dh lf	tor al	8.0
33	Freeman, Freddie 2887	1b	atl nl	7.7
34	Hudson, Tim 1231	pi sp	sf nl	7.7
35	Lackey, John 1640	pi sp	bos al	7.7
36	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	7.7
37	Chavez, Jesse 2780	pi sp	oak al	7.7
38	Beckett, Josh 1544	pi sp	lad nl	7.7
39	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	7.5
40	Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	7.0
41	Lynn, Lance 2992	pi sp	stl nl	7.0
42	Iwakuma, Hisashi 3048	pi sp	sea al	7.0
43	Zimmermann, Jordan 2612	pi sp	dc nl	7.0
44	Gonzalez, Gio 2626	pi sp	dc nl	7.0
45	Santana, Ervin 2005	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
46	Uehara, Koji 2802	pi cp	bos al	7.0
47	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	7.0
48	Shields, James 2157	pi sp	kc al	6.7
49	Kennedy, Ian 2723	pi sp	sd nl	6.7
50	Donaldson, Josh 3144	3b	oak al	6.5
51	Cespedes, Yoenis 3008	lf	oak al	6.5
52	McCutchen, Andrew 2637	cf	pit nl	6.5
53	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.4
54	McHugh, Collin 3316	pi sp	hou al	6.4
55	Colabello, Chris 3235	1b dh rf	min al	6.2
56	Gallardo, Yovani 2333	pi sp	mil nl	6.0
57	Collmenter, Josh 2863	pi sp	ari nl	6.0
58	Aybar, Erick 2416	ss	ana al	6.0
59	Duffy, Danny 2915	pi sp mr	kc al	6.0
60	Doolittle, Sean 3052	pi cp	oak al	6.0
61	Elias, Roenis 3309	pi sp	sea al	6.0
62	Buehrle, Mark 1407	pi sp	tor al	5.7
63	Wilson, C.J. 2074	pi sp	ana al	5.7
64	Fister, Doug 2688	pi sp	dc nl	5.7
65	Ross, Tyson 2840	pi sp	sd nl	5.7
66	Vogelsong, Ryan 1820	pi sp	sf nl	5.7
67	Hahn, Jesse 3354	pi sp	sd nl	5.7
68	Hunter, Torii 1190	rf	det al	5.5
69	Rizzo, Anthony 3063	1b	chi nl	5.5
70	Ramirez, Alexei 2537	ss	chi al	5.5
71	Morse, Michael 2020	lf	sf nl	5.5
72	Upton, Justin 2411	lf	atl nl	5.2
73	Masterson, Justin 2462	pi sp	cle al	5.0
74	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	stl nl	5.0
75	Bailey, Homer 2324	pi sp	cin nl	5.0
76	Holland, Greg 2906	pi cp	kc al	5.0
77	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	phi nl	5.0
78	Burnett, A.J. 1300	pi sp	phi nl	5.0
79	Vargas, Jason 2055	pi sp	kc al	5.0
80	Cashner, Andrew 2807	pi sp	sd nl	5.0
81	Wood, Travis 2777	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
82	Chapman, Aroldis 2826	pi cp	cin nl	5.0
83	Leake, Mike 2709	pi sp	cin nl	5.0
84	Porcello, Rick 2573	pi sp	det al	5.0
85	Smyly, Drew 3009	pi sp mr	det al	5.0
86	Cishek, Steve 2997	pi cp	fla nl	5.0
87	Perez, Martin 3213	pi sp	tex al	5.0
88	Roark, Tanner 3261	pi sp	dc nl	5.0
89	Volquez, Edinson 2220	pi sp	pit nl	5.0
90	Wacha, Michael 3276	pi sp	stl nl	5.0
91	Suzuki, Kurt 2344	ca	min al	5.0
92	Seager, Kyle 3031	3b	sea al	5.0
93	Koehler, Tom 3159	pi sp	fla nl	5.0
94	Dozier, Brian 3219	2b	min al	5.0
95	Robertson, David 2774	pi cp	nyy al	5.0
96	Tomlin, Josh 2771	pi sp cp	cle al	5.0
97	Rodriguez, Sean 2729	lf 1b 2b dh ph	tb al	5.0
98	Duda, Lucas 2818	1b	nym nl	5.0
99	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	5.0
100	Cobb, Alex 2916	pi sp	tb al	4.7

BTP: Box-Toppers points

Pitcher Scott Kazmir leads the seven Athletics on the top 100 list, he has 13.1 Box-Toppers points and is in fifth place overall (second among AL pitchers). The other Athletics players are:

• Jason Hammel, starting pitcher, in 24th place with 8.7. (Hammel earned all 8.7 Box-Toppers points with the Cubs, prior to being traded to the Athletics.)

• Jesse Chavez, starting pitcher, in 37th place with 7.7.

• Sonny Gray, starting pitcher, in 47th place with 7.0.

• Josh Donaldson, third base, in 50th place with 6.5.

• Yoenis Cespedes, left field, in 51st place with 6.5.

• Sean Doolittle, closing pitcher, in 60th place with 6.0.

Athletics players have accumulated 79.0 Box-Toppers points this season, the most of any team. The Los Angeles Dodgers, in second place, have 69.7.

While the addition of Hammel gives the Athletics seven players in the top 100, they would still have the most players on the list without him, with six. No other team has more than five players on the list. There are five teams with five players each—the Atlanta Braves, the Cincinnati Reds, the Washington Nationals, the Detroit Tigers and the Seattle Mariners.

All but one team is represented on the top 100 list. The only team without a member is the Baltimore Orioles. That team’s leader in Box-Toppers points, Nelson Cruz, designated hitter and left fielder, has 4.5 points, in 109th place. The Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies both have one player on the top 100 list.

Pitchers dominate the top 100 list, with 80 members—73 of them starting pitchers. Box-Toppers tends to favor pitchers over batters, especially in the short-term. Star pitchers tend to rack up points in quick batches while batters tend to pick up points steadily over long periods of time. For example, the Box-Toppers “all-time” top 100 list has 45 batters and 55 pitchers (the “all-time” list tracks players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began).

Here is a breakdown of the top 100 list by position:

• Starting pitchers 73

• Closing pitchers 7

• First base 7

• Outfield 6 (4 LF, 1 CF, 1 RF)

• Shortstop 3

• Third base 2

• Second base 1

• Catcher 1

Here are some notable players’ statuses in the top 100.

• Last year’s Cy Young Award winners are ranked No. 1 and 2. Kershaw, the reigning National League winner, is in first place with 18.1 Box-Toppers points and Scherzer, the reigning AL winner, is in second place with 16.1.

• Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies leads all NL batters and is in 10th place overall, with 11.6 Box-Toppers points.

• Jose Abreu of the White Sox leads all AL batters and is in 17th place overall, with 9.5 Box-Toppers points.

• Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, 2013’s AL Most Valuable Player is in 39th place overall with 7.5 Box-Toppers points. He ranks third among AL batters.

• Pitcher Jose Fernandez of the Marlins, 2013’s NL Rookie of the Year is in 40th place overall with 7.0 Box-Toppers points. However, Fernandez is injured and now out for the rest of the season.

• Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates, 2013’s NL MVP, is in 52nd place overall with 6.5 Box-Toppers points (already more than the 6.0 he earned last season, when he ranked 22nd among NL batters). McCutchen currently ranks third among NL batters.

• Pitcher Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals, who started the All-Star Game for the NL, is ranked third overall with 14.0 Box-Toppers points. He ranks second among NL pitchers.

• Pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Mariners, who started the All-Star Game for the AL, is ranked sixth overall with 12.8 Box-Toppers points. He ranks third among AL pitchers.

• Wil Myers of the Rays, 2013’s AL Rookie of the Year has 1.0 Box-Toppers point and is not on this year’s top 100. (He had 3.5 Box-Toppers points in 2013.)

• Pitcher Chris Archer of the Rays, who led AL Rookies in Box-Toppers points in 2013, is in 53rd place with 6.4 Box-Toppers points. (Last season, he had 11.7 Box-Toppers points.)

So far this season, 578 players have earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors and so have at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point. Eighty new players have earned Player of the Game honors for the first time this season, making their Box-Toppers debut.

 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.

What are those numbers after players' names?

A look at top 100 players in Box-Toppers points in 2013

With the baseball season in the middle of the All-Star break, let's also pause and look at Box-Toppers top 100 players for the season so far.

Diamondbacks pitcher Patrick Corbin leads the list with 14.4 Box-Toppers points. And Indians pitcher Justin Masterson leads among American League players with 13.7. 

Other notable players on the list: 

• Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, 2012 AL MVP and Triple Crown winner, in third place overall with 13.4 Box-Toppers points.
• Matt Harvey of the Mets, starting pitcher for the National League in the All-Star Game, eighth place, 11.0 points. 
• Chris Davis of the Orioles, 37 home runs at the All-Star break, 15th place, 10.2 points. 
• Max Scherzer of the Tigers, starting pitcher for the AL in the All-Star Game, 18th place, 9.7 points. 
• Bryce Harper of the Nationals, 2012 NL Rookie of the Year, 37th place, 6.9 points. 
• R.A. Dickey of the Blue Jays, 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner, 38th place, 6.7 points.
• Buster Posey of the Giants, 2012 NL MVP, 56th place, 6.0 points.

Two teams each have seven players on the Top 100 list—the Atlanta Braves and the Cincinnati Reds. The Detroit Tigers have five players on the list, the most of any AL team. 

All 30 teams are represented on the list. However, one team, the Houston Astros, has only one player on the list, closing pitcher Jose Veras (6.0 points, in 61st place). The Astros have the fewest wins in baseball and the lowest team Box-Toppers points total.

Box-Toppers tends to favor pitchers over batters. And because of this, a vast majority of players (74) on the top 100 list are pitchers. Here is the breakdown of players on the list by their primary position:

• Starting pitchers: 65
• Closing pitchers: 8
• Third basemen: 6
• Outfielders: 6
• First basemen: 4
• Second basemen: 4
• Catchers: 4
• Designated hitters: 2
• Middle relief pitchers: 1
• Shortstops: 0

While pitchers dominate Box-Toppers points, their domination diminishes slightly over time. On the top 100 player list of all-time (since 1995), there are 53 pitchers, far fewer than the 74 on the top 100 list for this season. We will take a look at the top 100 Box-Toppers players of all-time (since 1995) in a future Box-Toppers post. 

Box-Toppers points reward players who most help their team win the most games. Top players from the winning team of each game are determined by a formula using standard box score statistics. These top players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game. Among each day's top players, bonus points are awarded for the top players and batters of the day in each league. Players accumulate points through the season to provide a data point for comparison, such as determining which players are most worthy as All-Stars or for postseason awards. 

What are those numbers after players' names?

How does Box-Toppers scoring work?

Top 100 players for 2013

RANK	PLAYER	POS	TEAM	BTP
1	Corbin, Patrick 3027	pi sp	ari nl	14.4
2	Masterson, Justin 2462	pi sp	cle al	13.7
3	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	3b	det al	13.4
4	Moore, Matt 2975	pi sp	tb al	13.1
5	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	12.7
6	Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	11.7
7	Wainwright, Adam 2150	pi sp	stl nl	11.7
8	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	stl nl	11.4
9	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	11.0
10	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	10.7
11	Zimmermann, Jordan 2612	pi sp	dc nl	10.7
12	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	lad nl	10.7
13	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	10.4
14	Lynn, Lance 2992	pi sp	stl nl	10.4
15	Davis, Chris 2478	1b	bal al	10.2
16	Buchholz, Clay 2363	pi sp	bos al	10.1
17	Darvish, Yu 3003	pi sp	tex al	10.0
18	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	det al	9.7
19	Iwakuma, Hisashi 30488	pi sp	sea al	9.7
20	Goldschmidt, Paul 2935	1b	ari nl	9.7
21	Gonzalez, Carlos 2460	lf	col nl	9.5
22	Lee, Cliff 1798	pi sp	phi nl	9.4
23	Gonzalez, Gio 2626	pi sp	dc nl	8.7
24	Latos, Mat 2644	pi sp	cin nl	8.7
25	Ortiz, David	dh	bos al	8.2
26	Verlander, Justin 2112	pi sp	det al	8.0
27	Liriano, Francisco 2104	pi sp	pit nl	8.0
28	Sanchez, Anibal 2187	pi sp	det al	8.0
29	Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	8.0
30	Holland, Derek 2634	pi sp	tex al	7.7
31	Saunders, Joe 2214	pi sp	sea al	7.7
32	Minor, Mike 2894	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
33	McCann, Brian 2179	ca	atl nl	7.0
34	Kipnis, Jason 2933	2b	cle al	7.0
35	Cano, Robinson 2092	2b	nyy al	7.0
36	Stults, Eric 2352	pi sp	sd nl	7.0
37	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf	dc nl	6.9
38	Dickey, R.A. 1734	pi sp	tor al	6.7
39	Kuroda, Hiroki 2401	pi sp	nyy al	6.7
40	Colon, Bartolo	pi sp	oak al	6.7
41	Cobb, Alex 2916	pi sp	tb al	6.7
42	Zimmerman, Ryan 2180	3b	dc nl	6.7
43	Freeman, Freddie 2887	1b	atl nl	6.5
44	Cuddyer, Michael 1826	rf	col nl	6.5
45	Donaldson, Josh 3144	3b	oak al	6.5
46	Slowey, Kevin 2377	pi sp	fla nl	6.4
47	Alvarez, Pedro 2817	3b	pit nl	6.2
48	Wilson, C.J. 2074	pi sp	ana al	6.1
49	Chapman, Aroldis 2826	pi cp	cin nl	6.0
50	Samardzija, Jeff 2495	pi sp	chi nl	6.0
51	Bailey, Homer 2324	pi sp	cin nl	6.0
52	Hellickson, Jeremy 2778	pi sp	tb al	6.0
53	Peavy, Jake 1635	pi sp	chi al	6.0
54	Gee, Dillon 2808	pi sp	nym nl	6.0
55	Arroyo, Bronson 1375	pi sp	cin nl	6.0
56	Posey, Buster 2745	ca	sf nl	6.0
57	Carpenter, Matt 2987	2b	stl nl	6.0
58	Holland, Greg 2906	pi cp	kc al	6.0
59	Perkins, Glen 2506	pi cp	min al	6.0
60	Johnson, Jim 2417	pi cp	bal al	6.0
61	Veras, Jose 2464	pi cp	hou al	6.0
62	Ryu, Hyun-Jin 3139	pi sp	lad nl	6.0
63	Teheran, Julio 3176	pi sp	atl nl	6.0
64	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	phi nl	5.7
65	Beltre, Adrian 1141	3b	tex al	5.7
66	Lincecum, Tim 2288	pi sp	sf nl	5.7
67	Encarnacion, Edwin 2098	1b dh	tor al	5.7
68	Hudson, Tim 1231	pi sp	atl nl	5.7
69	Leake, Mike 2709	pi sp	cin nl	5.7
70	Lester, Jon 2173	pi sp	bos al	5.7
71	Feldman, Scott 2632	pi cp	bal al	5.7
72	Smyly, Drew 3009	pi cp mr	det al	5.7
73	Grilli, Jason 2209	pi cp	pit nl	5.7
74	Butler, Billy 2330	dh	kc al	5.5
75	Arencibia, J.P. 2781	ca	tor al	5.5
76	Jimenez, Ubaldo 2349	pi sp	cle al	5.4
77	Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	5.0
78	Medlen, Kris 2596	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
79	Phillips, Brandon 1691	2b	cin nl	5.0
80	Mauer, Joe 1869	ca	min al	5.0
81	Vargas, Jason 2055	pi sp	ana al	5.0
82	Jackson, Edwin 1812	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
83	Wood, Travis 2777	pi sp	chi nl	5.0
84	Santana, Ervin 2005	pi sp	kc al	5.0
85	Griffin, A.J. 3074	pi sp	oak al	5.0
86	Soriano, Alfonso 1445	lf	chi nl	5.0
87	Venable, Will 2621	rf	sd nl	5.0
88	Frazier, Todd 2929	3b	cin nl	5.0
89	Collmenter, Josh 2863	pi mr sp	ari nl	5.0
90	Peralta, Wily 3123	pi sp	mil nl	5.0
91	Straily, Dan 3080	pi sp	oak al	5.0
92	Locke, Jeff 3133	pi sp	pit nl	5.0
93	Kluber, Corey 3200	pi sp	cle al	5.0
94	Sabathia, C.C. 1492	pi sp	nyy al	4.7
95	Gallardo, Yovani 2333	pi sp	mil nl	4.7
96	Maholm, Paul 2078	pi sp	atl nl	4.7
97	Garza, Matt 2343	pi sp	chi nl	4.7
98	Nolasco, Ricky 2125	pi sp	lad nl	4.7
99	De La Rosa, Jorge 1970	pi sp	col nl	4.7
100	Pollock, A.J. 3142	cf	ari nl	4.7

BTP: Box-Toppers points for 2013