Yankees pitcher Jordan Montgomery is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Also Friday, Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning National League Player of the Day honors.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2021. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Friday, May 21.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 9.0 |
| 2 | Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | pi sp | tb al | 8.7 |
| 3 | Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | sd nl | 7.7 |
| 4 | Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.4 |
| 5 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.4 |
| 6 | Rogers, Trevor 4311 | pi sp | fla nl | 7.0 |
| 7 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 6.7 |
| 8 | Woodruff, Brandon 3868 | pi sp | mil nl | 6.4 |
| 9 | Wheeler, Zack 3204 | pi sp | phi nl | 6.4 |
| 10 | Martinez, J.D. 2922 | dh | bos al | 6.2 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
Plus, Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, earning his first Player of the Game honor of 2021 Friday, has now earned Box-Toppers points in 19 straight seasons, the second-longest active streak and tied for the second-longest since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.
Player of the Day—Montgomery struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and no walks, in the 2-1 win over the White Sox. Montgomery did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the White Sox tied the game after he exited.
Montgomery earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 4.0 for the season, 43rd among all players and 17th among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer struck out 11 over 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run (none earned), two hits and four walks, in the 2-1 win over the Giants.
Bauer earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 7.4 for the season, rising to fourth place in season player rankings, second among NL pitchers, behind Yu Darvish of the Padres (7.7).
National League Batter of the Day—Jesse Winker of the Reds hit three solo home runs and went 4-for-4, scoring four times and driving in three runs, in the 9-4 win over the Brewers.
Box-Toppers season streaks
Here are the players who have earned Box-Toppers points in the most consecutive seasons. In 2020, Albert Pujols set the record for the longest such streak at 20 seasons. Friday, Miguel Cabrera extended his streak to 19 seasons, the second-longest active streak and tied for the second-longest streak since 1995. Players are listed by length of their streak. Also shown is the duration of their streak and their career Box-Toppers point (BTP) total. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.)Streak |
Player |
Pos |
Duration |
Career BTP |
|
| 1 | 20 | Albert Pujols* | 1b | 2001‑2020 | 202.8 |
| 2 | 19 | Jason Giambi | 1b | 1995‑2013 | 133.4 |
| 2 | 19 | Carlos Beltran | rf | 1999‑2017 | 108.6 |
| 2 | 19 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | 2001‑2019 | 203.4 |
| 2 | 19 | Miguel Cabrera* | 1b dh | 2003‑2021 | 154.9 |
| 6 | 18 | Jim Thome | 1b dh | 1995‑2012 | 146.7 |
| 6 | 18 | Chipper Jones | 3b | 1995‑2012 | 149.0 |
| 6 | 18 | Johnny Damon | lf | 1995‑2012 | 63.0 |
| 6 | 18 | Alex Rodriguez | 3b | 1996‑2013 | 187.0 |
| 10 | 17 | Mariano Rivera | pi cp | 1995‑2011 | 126.4 |
| 10 | 17 | Derek Jeter | ss | 1996‑2012 | 76.4 |
| 10 | 17 | Paul Konerko | 1b | 1998‑2014 | 100.7 |
| 10 | 17 | Tim Hudson | pi sp | 1999‑2015 | 157.0 |
| 10 | 17 | Torii Hunter | cf | 1999‑2015 | 115.9 |
| 10 | 17 | David Ortiz | dh | 2000‑2016 | 145.9 |
* Active streak of a player expected to be active in 2021.
American League Batter of the Day—Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers hit two home runs, including a grand slam, in the 7-5 win over the Royals. Cabrera went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in five runs.
Cabrera has now earned Box-Toppers points in 19 straight seasons with his first Player of the Game honor of 2021. He earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2003 with the Marlins. With the 1.5 Box-Toppers points earned Friday, Cabrera now has 154.9 career points, 22nd-most among all players since 1995, fourth among all batters. He trails 21st-ranked player Mike Mussina (155.6). Cabrera ranks seventh among active, signed players and second among active batters, behind Albert Pujols of the Dodgers (202.8).
Cabrera’s best season was 2013 with the Tigers when he had 16.9 Box-Toppers points, eighth among all players and first among AL batters. He also led AL batters in 2009 with the Tigers with 16.5 points. In 2019, he had 3.0 Box-Toppers points and in 2020, he had 2.5 points.
Cabrera’s streak of 19 straight seasons earning Box-Toppers points is the second-longest active streak behind Pujols, who has earned points in 20 straight seasons (2001-2020) and has a chance to extend that to 21 if he earns points in 2021. Cabrera is in a tie for the second-longest streak in Box-Toppers tracking history with three other players who achieved 19 season streaks—Jason Giambi, Carlos Beltran and CC Sabathia.
Notable—Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg now has 133.8 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Strasburg (5.1IP H 0R 4BB 4K W in the 4-2 win over the Orioles) rises to 32nd place in career points among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his 1.0 point earned Friday, he passes Jason Giambi (133.4) on the “all-time” list and now trails Andy Pettitte (138.5).
Strasburg ranks ninth among active, signed players in career points, fourth among active NL pitchers—third among active Nationals pitchers, behind Max Scherzer (207.9) and Jon Lester (176.3). This is Strasburg’s first Box-Toppers point of 2021 and his first since 2019, after earning no points in 2020, appearing in only two games due to injury.
Debut—Athletics pitcher James Kaprielian made his Box-Toppers debut Friday with his first career Player of the Game honor.
Kaprielian (5.2IP 4H 2R BB 9K ND in the 8-4 win over the Angels) made his Major League debut Aug. 16, 2020, and was playing in his fourth career game.
Scoring—Montgomery earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Bauer earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Winker and Cabrera each earn 1.5 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.
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Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners
Here is the top player from each of the day’s games listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (BTG).| 5/21 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +14.0 | `NYY 2, CHW 1 | Jordan Montgomery | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| NL | +10.1 | LAD 2, SF 1 | Trevor Bauer, (W 5‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 11 | |
| +8.0 | COL 7, ARI 1 | German Márquez, (W 3‑4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | ||
| BAT | +7.0 | CIN 9, MIL 4 | Jesse Winker, LF | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +6.0 | ATL 20, PIT 1 | Ian Anderson, (W 4‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| +6.0 | MIN 10, CLE 0 | Randy Dobnak, (W 1‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| +5.2 | `OAK 8, LAA 4 | James Kaprielian | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | DET 7, KC 5 | Miguel Cabrera, 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | SD 16, SEA 1 | Jake Cronenworth, 2B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +5.0 | TB 9, TOR 7 (F/12) | Brandon Lowe, 2B | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.1 | WSH 4, BAL 2 | Stephen Strasburg, (W 1‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | ||
| +3.0 | TEX 7, HOU 5 (F/10) | Adolis García, CF | 5 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | BOS 11, PHI 3 | Rafael Devers, 3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | `NYM 6, MIA 5 (F/12) | Marcus Stroman | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | ||
| +2.0 | CHC 12, STL 3 | Anthony Rizzo, 1B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
AL—Overall American League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
NL—Overall National League Player of the Day, worth 1.7 total Box-Toppers points.
BAT—Top AL or NL Batter of the Day, worth 1.5 total Box-Toppers points.
All other players listed here earn Player of the Game honors, worth 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
` Pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s Player of the Game winners
Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Player of the Game winners. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’21). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’20-21), the period 2016-2021 (’16-21) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2021 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2020 total (+/-).| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’21 | ’20‑21 | ’16‑21 | Career | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bauer, Trevor 3065 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.4 | 17.4 | 66.7 | 84.8 | ‑2.6 |
| Montgomery, Jordan 3814 | pi sp | nyy al | 4.0 | 5.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | +3.0 |
| Stroman, Marcus 3327 | pi sp | nym nl | 4.0 | 4.0 | 26.4 | 42.8 | +4.0 |
| Anderson, Ian 4312 | pi sp | atl nl | 3.0 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.7 | +0.3 |
| Devers, Rafael 4038 | 3b | bos al | 3.0 | 5.5 | 17.5 | 17.5 | +0.5 |
| Cronenworth, Jake 4380 | 2b ph | sd nl | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
| Garcia, Adolis 4387 | cf dh | tex al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
| Winker, Jesse 3988 | lf dh | cin nl | 2.5 | 4.5 | 11.0 | 11.0 | +0.5 |
| Marquez, German 3788 | pi sp | col nl | 2.0 | 5.0 | 32.1 | 32.1 | ‑1.0 |
| Cabrera, Miguel 1776 | 1b dh | det al | 1.5 | 4.0 | 22.0 | 154.9 | ‑1.0 |
| Dobnak, Randy 4263 | pi sp | min al | 1.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | ‑2.0 |
| Lowe, Brandon 4108 | 2b rf | tb al | 1.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +0.0 |
| Strasburg, Stephen 2736 | pi sp | dc nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 66.0 | 133.8 | +1.0 |
| Rizzo, Anthony 3063 | 1b | chi nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 35.0 | 59.0 | +1.0 |
| Kaprielian, James 4416 | pi sp | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
Box-Toppers
Tracking who most helps their teams win the most games, based on box score stats. A method to measure & compare baseball's top players.
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.