Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners.
▪️ Box-Toppers points of the day’s top players.
▪️ Top 10 players in 2022 Box-Toppers points.
Astros pitcher Framber Valdez is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day on the regular season’s final day.
Valdez struck out 10 over five scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk, in the 3-2 win over the Phillies.
Valdez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 16.0 for the season, 14th among all players and fifth among American League pitchers.
National League Player of the Day—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw struck out nine over five innings, allowing one run, one hit and one walk, in the 6-1 win over the Rockies.
Kershaw earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 10.7 for the season, 46th among all players and 21st among NL pitchers.
Kershaw becomes the 54th and final player to reach 10.0 Box-Toppers points in 2022. It is his 12th season with 10.0 or more points. His best season was 2014 with the Dodgers, when he had 31.5 Box-Toppers points to lead all players. He has also led all players in 2011 when he had 26.1 points and 2013 when he had 24.8 points. In 2021, he had 13.4 points, 12th among NL pitchers.
There were 49 players with 10.0 points in 2021. This is the most players with 10.0 points since 2016, when there were also 54.
Kershaw now has 259.3 career Box-Toppers points, second among all players since player tracking began in 1995. He trails top-ranked player Randy Johnson (282.5) by 23.2 points. (It should be noted Johnson would have an estimated 380 points if his entire career from 1988 were tracked.) Kershaw leads active players and active NL pitchers in career points ahead of Mets pitcher Max Scherzer (236.3), who ranks fourth among all players since 1995.
National League Batter of the Day—Peyton Burdick of the Marlins homered and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 12-9 win over the Braves.
This was Burdick’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Burdick made his Major League debut Aug. 5 and was playing in his 32nd career game.
American League Batter of the Day—J.D. Martinez of the Red Sox hit two home runs, including a three-run shot, in the 6-3 win over the Rays. Martinez went 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in four runs.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2022. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Wednesday, Oct. 5. FINAL STANDINGS.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | hou al | 26.0 |
| 2 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp | ana al | 24.7 |
| 3 | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | pi sp | fla nl | 21.1 |
| 4 | Woodruff, Brandon 3868 | pi sp | mil nl | 20.8 |
| 5 | Cease, Dylan 4231 | pi sp | chi al | 20.4 |
| 6 | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | pi sp | sf nl | 19.8 |
| 7 | Urias, Julio 3652 | pi sp | lad nl | 19.4 |
| 8 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | 18.7 |
| 9 | Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | sd nl | 17.4 |
| 10 | Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | sd nl | 16.8 |
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Notable—Diamondbacks pitcher Merrill Kelly now has 11.0 Box-Toppers points in 2022 after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Kelly (6IP 4H R 2BB 7K ND in the 4-2 win over the Brewers) ranks 45th among all players and 20th among NL pitchers.
Also notable—Pirates pitcher Manny Banuelos earns Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors Wednesday for the first time in more than seven years.
Banuelos (1.2IP H 0R BB 3K W in the 5-3 win over the Cardinals) last earned Player of the Game honors July 2, 2015, when he was with the Braves. It was his Major League debut. It was also his Box-Toppers debut, the only other time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors and he earned NL Player of the Day honors that day.
Shohei Ohtani @Angels, 2nd in 2022 Box-Toppers points (24.7), fails to win Player of the Game honors Wednesday because LAA lost to OAK, despite +7.0 B-T game score (5IP H R BB 6K ND).
— Box-Toppers (@BoxToppers) October 6, 2022
Player of the Game—Ken Waldichuk @Athletics +7.0 (7IP 3H 0R BB 4K W).https://t.co/M3cRN7dgXw https://t.co/UGIJUnH3Yw
He now has 2.7 career Box-Toppers points.
Banuelos battled injuries, was out the Major Leagues from 2016 until 2019, when he appeared in 16 games for the White Sox. From 2020 on, he played in Taiwan and Mexico before returning to the Majors in 2022.
Debut—In addition to Burdick, three other players made their Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, each with their first career Player of the Game honor:
Athletics pitcher Ken Waldichuk (7IP 3H 0R BB 4K W in the 3-2 win over the Angels) made his Major League debut Sept. 1 and was playing in his seventh career game.
Twins pitcher Louie Varland (5IP 4H 0R 0BB 5K W in the 10-1 win over the White Sox) made his Major League debut Sept. 7 and was playing in his fifth career game.
Bubba Thompson of the Rangers (2B 2-3 R BI in the 4-2 win over the Yankees) made his Major League debut Aug. 4 and was playing in his 55th career game.
Scoring—Valdez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Kershaw earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day. Burdick and Martinez each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Player of the Game winners (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).Back to top
| 10/5 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +12.0 | HOU 3, PHI 2 | Framber Valdez, (W 17‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | |
| NL | +10.0 | LAD 6, COL 1 | Clayton Kershaw, (W 12‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |
| +7.0 | OAK 3, LAA 2 | Ken Waldichuk, (W 2‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +6.0 | MIN 10, CHW 1 | Louie Varland, (W 1‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | MIA 12, ATL 9 | Peyton Burdick, RF | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | CHC 15, CIN 2 | David Bote, 1B‑3B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | BOS 6, TB 3 | J.D. Martinez, DH | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +5.0 | CLE 9, KC 2 | Aaron Civale, (W 5‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||
| +5.0 | `ARI 4, MIL 2 | Merrill Kelly | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | ||
| +5.0 | `SF 8, SD 1 | Andrew Vasquez | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +4.0 | `SEA 5, DET 4 | Paul Sewald | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| +3.2 | TOR 5, BAL 1 | Yusei Kikuchi, (W 6‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | NYM 9, WSH 2 | Mark Canha, LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | BAL 5, TOR 4 | Bryan Baker, (S 1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +2.2 | PIT 5, STL 3 | Manny Bañuelos, (W 2‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| +1.0 | TEX 4, NYY 2 | Bubba Thompson, RF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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.
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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 in 2022 (’22). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’21-22), the period 2017-2022 (’17-22) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2022 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2021 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’22 | ’21‑22 | ’17‑22 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valdez, Framber 4048 | pi sp | hou al | 16.0 | 21.0 | 31.4 | 31.4 | +11.0 |
| Kelly, Merrill 4143 | pi sp | ari nl | 11.0 | 14.0 | 26.0 | 26.0 | +8.0 |
| Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 10.7 | 24.1 | 75.6 | 259.3 | -2.7 |
| Canha, Mark 3454 | lf | nym nl | 8.7 | 10.7 | 16.7 | 19.2 | +6.7 |
| Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 | pi sp | tor al | 5.7 | 11.7 | 17.4 | 17.4 | -0.3 |
| Civale, Aaron 4173 | pi sp | cle al | 5.0 | 16.7 | 22.4 | 22.4 | -6.7 |
| Martinez, J.D. 2922 | dh | bos al | 5.0 | 15.7 | 42.2 | 59.4 | -5.7 |
| Sewald, Paul 3940 | pi mr cp | sea al | 3.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 0.0 |
| Baker, Bryan 4710 | pi mr cp | bal al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
| Burdick, Peyton 4759 | rf | fla nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | +1.5 |
| Bote, David 4032 | 1b 3b 2b | chi nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 | +1.0 |
| Vasquez, Andrew 4091 | pi mr | sf nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +1.0 |
| Banuelos, Manny 3523 | pi mr sp | pit nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.7 | +1.0 |
| Thompson, Bubba 4760 | rf | tex al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
| Varland, Louie 4758 | pi sp | min al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
| Waldichuk, Ken 4757 | pi sp | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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