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Twins pitcher Bailey Ober is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, rising to sixth place in season player rankings.
Also Friday, Brenton Doyle of the Rockies extends his 2024 Box-Toppers points lead among National League batters after earning Player of the Game honors.
Read MoreRyan Mountcastle of the Orioles is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Mountcastle hit two doubles and went 3-for-6, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 17-5 win over the Yankees.
Read MoreWillson Contreras of the Cardinals is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Contreras hit two three-run home runs, going 2-for-5, scoring twice and driving in six runs, in the 16-8 win over the Dodgers.
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The New York Yankees and New York Mets lead Box-Toppers offseason rankings after landing the winter’s two biggest free agents.
The Yankees rank first after Carlos Rodon Thursday agreed to a free agent deal. Rodon earned 19.8 Box-Toppers points in 2022 with the Giants, sixth overall and third among National League pitchers. He ranked second among all free agents going into the 2023 season.
Read MoreGiants pitcher Alex Wood is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, two pitchers with the most Box-Toppers points in 2021 both failed to earn Player of the Game honors. Max Scherzer of the Dodgers (ranked first with 25.1 Box-Toppers points) and Gerrit Cole of the Yankees (ranked second with 22.4 points) both started but did not add to their Box-Toppers point total. With four days remaining in the regular season, it is now extremely unlikely Cole can catch Scherzer, who he trails by 2.7 points, making it extremely likely that Scherzer will be Box-Toppers’ 2021 Player of the Year.
Read MoreMarlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara is Box-Toppers Player of the Day in Wednesday’s spring training games.
Alcantara struck out nine over five scoreless innings, allowing three hits and no walks, in the 3-2 win over the Mets. Alcantara did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the Mets took the lead after he exited.
Read MoreThe Cleveland Indians had the most players—seven–among the top 100 in Box-Toppers’ 2018 player rankings at the All-Star break.
Five teams were tied for the second-most players with six players each among the top 100—the Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals, Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies and Seattle Mariners.
Read MoreFrancisco Lindor, Javier Baez and Willson Contreras are among the players rising onto Box-Toppers’ All-Star teams in the past week.
With Major League All-Star voting coming to a close today (Thursday, July 5), here is a look at who is leading at Box-Toppers points at each position in both leagues.
Read MoreRockies pitcher Tyler Anderson is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Wednesday, Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Read MoreAstros pitcher Charlie Morton is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fourth place in season player rankings.
Morton struck out 14 over seven innings, allowing one run, four hits and no walks, in the 6-1 win over the Rangers.
Read MoreNationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to first place in season player rankings.
Scherzer struck out 11 over seven innings, allowing one run, four hits and no walks, in the 3-1 win over the Diamondbacks.
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Marlins pitcher Dan Straily is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 5.0 |
| 2 | Vargas, Jason 2055 | pi sp | kc al | 5.0 |
| 3 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | bos al | 4.7 |
| 4 | Santana, Ervin 2005 | pi sp | min al | 4.7 |
| 5 | Harper, Bryce 3011 | rf | dc nl | 4.0 |
| 6 | Holland, Greg 2906 | pi cp | col nl | 4.0 |
| 7 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 3.7 |
| 8 | Chacin, Jhoulys 2711 | pi mr sp | sd nl | 3.7 |
| 9 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 3.4 |
| 10 | Morrison, Logan 2794 | 1b | tb al | 3.2 |
Straily struck out 14 over seven innings, allowing two runs on four hits, in the 6-3, 11-inning win over the Padres. Straily picked up a no decision and did not earn the win because the game was tied when he exited.
American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco struck out eight over eight scoreless innings, allowing three hits, in the 7-0 win over the White Sox.
Carrasco earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 3.7 for the season and rises to seventh place in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
National League Batter of the Day—Willson Contreras of the Cubs hit a grand slam, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in four runs, in the 12-8 win over the Reds.
This was Contreras’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Contreras made his Major League debut June 17, 2016, and was playing in his 91st career game. He is the 3,776th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
American League Batter of the Day—Chris Carter of the Yankees hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer in the 11-5 win over the Pirates.
Scoring—Straily earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Carrasco earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Contreras and Carter 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.
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.
| 4/22 | Score | Game | Player of the Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 13.0 | `MIA 6, SD 3 (F/11) | Dan Straily | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 | |
| AL | 12.0 | CLE 7, CHW 0 | Carlos Carrasco (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | CHC 12, CIN 8 | Willson Contreras, C | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | STL 4, MIL 1 | Lance Lynn (W,2-1) | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| 6.0 | `PHI 4, ATL 3 (F/10) | Jerad Eickhoff | - | - | - | - | 5.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| 5.1 | WSH 3, NYM 1 | Gio Gonzalez (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 6.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 4.1 | TB 6, HOU 3 | Austin Pruitt (W,2-0) | - | - | - | - | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 4.0 | COL 12, SF 3 | Mark Reynolds, 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | ARI 11, LAD 5 | Yasmany Tomas, LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | NYY 11, PIT 5 | Chris Carter, PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.1 | OAK 4, SEA 3 | Ryan Madson (S,1) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | LAA 5, TOR 4 | Andrelton Simmons, SS | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | `TEX 2, KC 1 | Nick Martinez | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 1.0 | DET 5, MIN 4 | Nicholas Castellanos, 3B | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | BAL 4, BOS 2 | Jonathan Schoop, 2B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’17 | ’16-17 | ’12-17 | Career | +/- |
| Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | cle al | 3.7 | 16.1 | 44.8 | 50.2 | -8.7 |
| Straily, Dan 3080 | pi sp | fla nl | 3.0 | 10.0 | 20.7 | 20.7 | -4.0 |
| Lynn, Lance 2992 | pi sp | stl nl | 2.7 | 2.7 | 58.6 | 58.6 | 2.7 |
| Reynolds, Mark 2297 | 1b | col nl | 2.5 | 6.5 | 21.2 | 53.9 | -1.5 |
| Schoop, Jonathan 3307 | 2b | bal al | 2.0 | 6.5 | 11.5 | 11.5 | -2.5 |
| Pruitt, Austin 3773 | pi cp mr | tb al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Carter, Chris 2828 | 1b ph | nyy al | 1.5 | 11.0 | 29.9 | 30.9 | -8.0 |
| Contreras, Willson 3776 | ca | chi nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Eickhoff, Jerad 3566 | pi sp | phi nl | 1.0 | 9.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | -7.0 |
| Tomas, Yasmany 3489 | lf | ari nl | 1.0 | 8.7 | 12.2 | 12.2 | -6.7 |
| Gonzalez, Gio 2626 | pi sp | dc nl | 1.0 | 7.0 | 58.1 | 87.5 | -5.0 |
| Castellanos, Nick 3349 | 3b | det al | 1.0 | 6.5 | 14.7 | 14.7 | -4.5 |
| Madson, Ryan 1841 | pi cp | oak al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 24.7 | -2.0 |
| Simmons, Andrelton 3165 | ss | ana al | 1.0 | 2.5 | 8.0 | 8.0 | -0.5 |
| Martinez, Nick 3430 | pi sp | tex al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 1.0 |
Chicago Cubs seem likely to end their 108-year World Series drought, holding Box-Toppers-point edges in most categories, but the Cleveland Indians have been resilient when outmatched this postseason.
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Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman and Dodgers reliever Joe Blanton are Box-Toppers’ top players in Tuesday’s two National League Division Series games.
Chapman is Box-Toppers Player of the Game as the Cubs eliminate the Giants in the best-of-five game series, 3-1, with a four-run, ninth-inning comeback.
Chapman pitched a scoreless ninth inning, striking out the side and allowing no hits and no walks. He earned the save.
Chapman had 7.4 Box-Toppers points during the regular season, 104th among all players, 33rd among NL pitchers and second among NL closers, behind Jeurys Familia of the Mets (8.0).
Chapman led all Cubs players with a Box-Toppers game score of +4.0. Willson Contreras led all Cubs batters with a Box-Toppers game score of +2.0 (1-1 2BI). Cubs starting pitcher John Lackey had a Box-Toppers game score of −7.0 (4IP 7H 3R 2BB 4K ND).
Meanwhile, Giants starting pitcher Matt Moore held a commanding lead as Box-Toppers Player of the Game going into the ninth inning. Moore had the highest Box-Toppers game score of any player on either team, +11.0 (8IP 2H 2R 2BB 10K ND). But Moore lost his Player of the Game lead when the Cubs went ahead in the ninth and won the game.
The Cubs eliminate the Giants in four games, 3-1. The Cubs were the runaway leader in Box-Toppers team rankings, leading nearly all the season with 139.5 Box-Toppers points. The Giants were the lowest-ranking team to qualify for the postseason, ranked 10th with 112.7.
This also ends the Giants’ streak of winning the World Series in even-numbered years after winning in 2010, 2012 and 2014.
The Cubs now advance to the best-of-seven game National League Championship Series beginning Saturday in Chicago against either the Dodgers or the Nationals.
Dodgers middle reliever Joe Blanton is Box-Toppers Player of the Game Tuesday as the Dodgers even the best-of-five game NL Division Series against the Nationals at two games apiece.
Blanton pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing no hits, no walks, striking out two and earning the win.
Blanton had no Box-Toppers points during the regular season. He had 3.0 points in 2015 with the Royals and the Pirates. His best year was 2012 with the Phillies and Dodgers when he had 9.4.
Blanton had the highest Box-Toppers game score among Dodgers players (+3.0). He qualified to be Player of the Game because, though he pitched fewer than the required three innings, he did earn the win. Top Dodgers batter was Adrian Gonzalez, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +1.0 (HR 1-3 R 2BI). Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw seemed on track to earn Player of the Game honors until the seventh inning when the Nationals scored three runs and tied the game. Kershaw ended with a Box-Toppers game score of −1.8 (6.2IP 7H 5R 2BB 11K ND). Nationals top player was Daniel Murphy, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.0 (2-3 4BI).
The Dodgers and Nationals face off in the deciding Game 5 of the NLDS Thursday in Washington.
There are no games Wednesday.
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
| BTG | Game | Player of Game | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| 4.0 | CHC 6, SF 5 | Aroldis Chapman (S,3) | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 3.1 | LAD 6, WSH 5 | Joe Blanton (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| BTG: Box-Toppers game score | |||||||||||||
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.