The Chicago Cubs kept the top spot in Box-Toppers team rankings and were also the hottest team of the week.
Team rankings
Here are Box-Toppers' team rankings, through the games of Thursday, Aug. 11. The column BTP shows the number of Box-Toppers points players on the team have accumulated so far this season. The column BTP/wk shows have many points teams accumulated from Aug. 5 to Aug. 11. The column Wk ago shows the team's rank as of Aug. 4.| 8/11 | Teams | BTP | BTP/wk | Wk ago |
| 1 | Cubs | 99.1 | 7.7 | 1 |
| 2 | Dodgers | 96.4 | 5.2 | 2 |
| 3 | Red Sox | 91.6 | 2.7 | 3 |
| 4 | Rangers | 87.4 | 6.0 | 8 |
| 5 | Indians | 86.7 | 4.9 | 7 |
| 6 | Nationals | 86.6 | 3.5 | 4 |
| 7 | Blue Jays | 86.5 | 3.7 | 5 |
| 8 | Giants | 85.0 | 3.0 | 6 |
| 9 | Mets | 80.8 | 1.0 | 9 |
| 10 | Orioles | 80.5 | 3.5 | 10 |
| 11 | Tigers | 77.1 | 2.0 | 11 |
| 12 | Marlins | 74.3 | 3.5 | 12 |
| 13 | Cardinals | 69.4 | 4.0 | 13 |
| 14 | Astros | 69.2 | 4.2 | 14 |
| 15 | Phillies | 67.3 | 2.5 | 15 |
| 16 | Rockies | 63.9 | 2.0 | 16 |
| 17 | Mariners | 63.3 | 7.5 | 20 |
| 18 | Royals | 62.8 | 4.0 | 17 |
| 19 | Pirates | 62.2 | 4.0 | 18 |
| 20 | White Sox | 58.3 | 2.0 | 19 |
| 21 | Angels | 55.1 | 1.0 | 21 |
| 22 | Twins | 54.9 | 3.0 | 22 |
| 23 | Yankees | 51.9 | 5.0 | 24 |
| 24 | Dbacks | 50.6 | 6.0 | 25 |
| 25 | Rays | 50.2 | 2.0 | 23 |
| 26 | Brewers | 48.5 | 4.5 | 26 |
| 27 | Reds | 44.0 | 2.0 | 27 |
| 28 | Athletics | 43.2 | 3.5 | 28 |
| 29 | Braves | 42.5 | 3.0 | 29 |
| 30 | Padres | 39.1 | 2.0 | 30 |
Meanwhile, the Boston Red Sox, despite slumping recently and despite being in third place in their division, remain the top-ranked American League team in Box-Toppers team rankings.
Cubs players have accumulated 99.1 Box-Toppers points this season, picking up 7.7 points in the past week, most of any team. The Cubs also have baseball’s best winning percentage (.637). The Cubs are led by pitcher Jon Lester (13.4 Box-Toppers points). Top batter is Kris Bryant (7.0 points). Twenty-two different Cubs players have earned Player of the Game honors so far this season.
Five Cubs starting pitchers have 9.0 or more Box-Toppers points this season:
- Lester, 13.4, ranked eighth among all players.
- John Lackey, 12.4, ranked 11th.
- Jake Arrieta, 11.7, ranked 12th.
- Kyle Hendricks, 9.7, ranked 23rd.
- Jason Hammel, 9.0, ranked 29th.
The Cubs extended their lead over the second-place team, Los Angeles Dodgers. Last week, the Cubs led by 0.2 points, this week they lead by 2.7. Dodgers players have accumulated 96.4 Box-Toppers points this season, including 5.2 over the past week.
The Red Sox maintain their spot atop AL teams with 91.6 Box-Toppers points, picking up 2.7 in the past week. The Red Sox also maintain their overall rank of third place.
The Red Sox picked up a lot of ground in July by acquiring players with high Box-Toppers point totals. However, since their acquisitions, those players have not contributed much to the Red Sox by earning Player of the Game honors.
For example, both the Red Sox top pitcher and top batter have not earned Box-Toppers points since being acquired by Boston. The Red Sox are led by pitcher Drew Pomeranz (10.4 Box-Toppers points, all of which were earned while he was with the Padres). Top batter is Aaron Hill (5.5 points, all of which were earned while he was with the Brewers). Twenty-eight different Red Sox players have earned Player of the Game honors so far this season.
While the Red Sox have more Box-Toppers points than any AL team, the team ranks fifth among AL teams in winning percentage (.540) and is in third place in the AL East, three games behind the Toronto Blue Jays.
The San Diego Padres remain in 30th and last place among all teams with 39.1 Box-Toppers points, picking up 2.0 points in the past week.
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.