Here is a detailed look at Box-Toppers point leaders for 2022.
Detail leaders 2022
Here are Box-Toppers point leaders for 2022 broken down according to several factors, including by position and league. Included here are:▶︎ Overall top 10 leaders and top 10 American League and National League pitchers and batters.
▶︎ Top batters by position in each league—top 10 for outfielders, top five for all other positions.
▶︎ The top 10 biggest dippers and risers—the “dippers” are players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from 2019; the “risers” are players whose point total climbed the most from 2019.
▶︎ Top relief pitchers, including the top five AL and NL closing (CP) and middle relief (MR) pitchers.
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| 2022 OVERALL | 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 |
| 2022 AL PITCHERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | hou al | 26.0 |
| 2 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp | ana al | 24.7 |
| 3 | Cease, Dylan 4231 | pi sp | chi al | 20.4 |
| 4 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | 16.4 |
| 5 | Valdez, Framber 4048 | pi sp | hou al | 16.0 |
| 6 | McKenzie, Triston 4303 | pi sp | cle al | 15.7 |
| 7 | Javier, Cristian 4290 | pi sp | hou al | 15.7 |
| 8 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 15.4 |
| 9 | Cortes, Nestor 4160 | pi sp | nyy al | 15.4 |
| 10 | Ryan, Joe 4539 | pi sp | min al | 14.7 |
| 2022 AL BATTERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Judge, Aaron 3767 | rf cf | nyy al | 13.2 |
| 2 | Ramirez, Jose 3436 | 3b | cle al | 11.7 |
| 3 | Alvarez, Yordan 4209 | dh | hou al | 8.7 |
| 4 | Bregman, Alex 3721 | 3b | hou al | 8.7 |
| 5 | Springer, George 3337 | cf rf | tor al | 8.0 |
| 6 | Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | sea al | 8.0 |
| 7 | Raleigh, Cal 4481 | ca ph | sea al | 7.5 |
| 8 | Rodriguez, Julio 4590 | cf | sea al | 7.5 |
| 9 | Bogaerts, Xander 3383 | ss | bos al | 7.0 |
| 10 | France, Ty 4243 | 1b | sea al | 7.0 |
| 2022 NL PITCHERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | pi sp | fla nl | 21.1 |
| 2 | Woodruff, Brandon 3868 | pi sp | mil nl | 20.8 |
| 3 | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | pi sp | sf nl | 19.8 |
| 4 | Urias, Julio 3652 | pi sp | lad nl | 19.4 |
| 5 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | 18.7 |
| 6 | Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | sd nl | 17.4 |
| 7 | Darvish, Yu 3003 | pi sp | sd nl | 16.8 |
| 8 | Fried, Max 4011 | pi sp | atl nl | 16.0 |
| 9 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 16.0 |
| 10 | Burnes, Corbin 4029 | pi sp | mil nl | 15.4 |
| 2022 NL BATTERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Alonso, Pete 4118 | 1b | nym nl | 14.9 |
| 2 | Betts, Mookie 3404 | rf | lad nl | 11.7 |
| 3 | Canha, Mark 3454 | lf | nym nl | 8.7 |
| 4 | Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | lad nl | 8.5 |
| 5 | Tellez, Rowdy 4078 | 1b | mil nl | 8.2 |
| 6 | Riley, Austin 4144 | 3b | atl nl | 8.0 |
| 7 | Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 | 1b | stl nl | 7.5 |
| 8 | Muncy, Max 3969 | 3b | lad nl | 7.2 |
| 9 | Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | stl nl | 7.0 |
| 10 | Cron, C.J. 3338 | 1b | col nl | 7.0 |
| 2022 AL 1B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | France, Ty 4243 | 1b | sea al | 7.0 |
| 2 | Aguilar, Jesus 3787 | 1b dh | bal al | 7.0 |
| 3 | Arraez, Luis 4219 | 1b 2b | min al | 5.5 |
| 4 | Mountcastle, Ryan 4325 | 1b | bal al | 5.0 |
| 5 | Castro, Harold 4187 | ss 1b | det al | 5.0 |
| 2022 AL 2B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Story, Trevor 3607 | 2b | bos al | 7.0 |
| 2 | Semien, Marcus 3302 | 2b | tex al | 7.0 |
| 3 | Arraez, Luis 4219 | 1b 2b | min al | 5.5 |
| 4 | Paredes, Isaac 4666 | 2b 1b 3b | tb al | 4.5 |
| 5 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 4.0 |
| 2022 AL SS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Bogaerts, Xander 3383 | ss | bos al | 7.0 |
| 2 | Bichette, Bo 4233 | ss | tor al | 6.5 |
| 3 | Rosario, Amed 3879 | ss | cle al | 6.0 |
| 4 | Castro, Harold 4187 | ss 1b | det al | 5.0 |
| 5 | Mateo, Jorge 4669 | ss | bal al | 5.0 |
| 2022 AL 3B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Ramirez, Jose 3436 | 3b | cle al | 11.7 |
| 2 | Bregman, Alex 3721 | 3b | hou al | 8.7 |
| 3 | Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | sea al | 8.0 |
| 4 | Donaldson, Josh 3144 | 3b | nyy al | 5.0 |
| 5 | Carpenter, Matt 2987 | 3b 1b rf | nyy al | 4.5 |
| 2022 AL CA | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Raleigh, Cal 4481 | ca ph | sea al | 7.5 |
| 2 | Haase, Eric 4461 | ca | det al | 5.0 |
| 3 | Melendez, MJ 4615 | ca dh lf | kc al | 4.5 |
| 4 | Heim, Jonah 4492 | ca | tex al | 4.2 |
| 5 | Perez, Salvador 2972 | ca dh | kc al | 4.0 |
| 2022 AL OF | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Judge, Aaron 3767 | rf cf | nyy al | 13.2 |
| 2 | Springer, George 3337 | cf rf | tor al | 8.0 |
| 3 | Rodriguez, Julio 4590 | cf | sea al | 7.5 |
| 4 | Verdugo, Alex 4129 | lf rf | bos al | 7.0 |
| 5 | Gurriel, Lourdes Jr. 4148 | lf | tor al | 6.5 |
| 6 | Arozarena, Randy 4331 | lf | tb al | 6.0 |
| 7 | Ward, Taylor 4345 | rf | ana al | 5.9 |
| 8 | Hernandez, Teoscar 3713 | rf | tor al | 5.5 |
| 9 | Buxton, Byron 3604 | cf dh | min al | 5.5 |
| 10 | Garcia, Adolis 4387 | rf cf | tex al | 5.0 |
| 2022 AL DH | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Alvarez, Yordan 4209 | dh | hou al | 8.7 |
| 2 | Aguilar, Jesus 3787 | 1b dh | bal al | 7.0 |
| 3 | Stanton, Giancarlo 2737 | dh | nyy al | 5.5 |
| 4 | Buxton, Byron 3604 | cf dh | min al | 5.5 |
| 5 | Martinez, J.D. 2922 | dh | bos al | 5.0 |
| 2022 NL 1B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Alonso, Pete 4118 | 1b | nym nl | 14.9 |
| 2 | Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | lad nl | 8.5 |
| 3 | Tellez, Rowdy 4078 | 1b | mil nl | 8.2 |
| 4 | Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 | 1b | stl nl | 7.5 |
| 5 | Cron, C.J. 3338 | 1b | col nl | 7.0 |
| 2022 NL 2B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Gorman, Nolan 4633 | 2b | stl nl | 5.0 |
| 2 | Cronenworth, Jake 4380 | 2b | sd nl | 4.5 |
| 3 | Rodgers, Brendan 4529 | 2b | col nl | 4.5 |
| 4 | Donovan, Brendan 4603 | ss 3b lf 2b | stl nl | 4.0 |
| 5 | Lux, Gavin 4247 | 2b | lad nl | 3.5 |
| 2022 NL SS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Lindor, Francisco 3586 | ss | nym nl | 6.7 |
| 2 | Alcantara, Sergio 4593 | 3b ss | ari nl | 6.5 |
| 3 | Adames, Willy 4041 | ss | mil nl | 5.9 |
| 4 | Swanson, Dansby 3751 | ss | atl nl | 5.7 |
| 5 | Kim, Ha-Seong 4373 | ss | sd nl | 5.0 |
| 2022 NL 3B | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Riley, Austin 4144 | 3b | atl nl | 8.0 |
| 2 | Muncy, Max 3969 | 3b | lad nl | 7.2 |
| 3 | Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | stl nl | 7.0 |
| 4 | Turner, Justin 2865 | 3b | lad nl | 6.5 |
| 5 | Alcantara, Sergio 4593 | 3b ss | ari nl | 6.5 |
| 2022 NL CA | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Realmuto, J.T. 3491 | ca | phi nl | 5.5 |
| 2 | d’Arnaud, Travis 3384 | ca | atl nl | 4.5 |
| 3 | Stephenson, Tyler 4384 | ca | cin nl | 4.0 |
| 4 | Ruiz, Keibert 4616 | ca | dc nl | 4.0 |
| 5 | Contreras, Willson 3776 | ca | chi nl | 3.0 |
| 2022 NL OF | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Betts, Mookie 3404 | rf | lad nl | 11.7 |
| 2 | Canha, Mark 3454 | lf | nym nl | 8.7 |
| 3 | Blackmon, Charlie 2891 | rf dh ph | col nl | 6.5 |
| 4 | O’Neill, Tyler 4074 | lf | stl nl | 6.0 |
| 5 | Renfroe, Hunter 3749 | rf | mil nl | 5.5 |
| 6 | Pederson, Joc 3621 | rf | sf nl | 5.2 |
| 7 | Grichuk, Randal 3474 | rf cf | col nl | 5.0 |
| 8 | Thompson, Trayce 4567 | lf | lad nl | 5.0 |
| 9 | Varsho, Daulton 4398 | cf rf | ari nl | 4.5 |
| 10 | Reynolds, Bryan 4169 | cf dh | pit nl | 4.0 |
| 2022 NL DH | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Blackmon, Charlie 2891 | rf dh ph | col nl | 6.5 |
| 2 | Harper, Bryce 3011 | dh | phi nl | 6.0 |
| 3 | Cruz, Nelson Ramon 2224 | dh | dc nl | 5.5 |
| 4 | Drury, Brandon 3744 | dh | sd nl | 4.5 |
| 5 | Reynolds, Bryan 4169 | cf dh | pit nl | 4.0 |
| 2022 DIPPERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | nym nl | -15.1 |
| 2 | DeSclafani, Anthony 3441 | pi sp | sf nl | -12.7 |
| 3 | Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | pi sp | tb al | -12.7 |
| 4 | Buehler, Walker 3943 | pi sp | lad nl | -12.7 |
| 5 | Marquez, German 3788 | pi sp | col nl | -12.7 |
| 6 | Castellanos, Nicholas 3349 | rf | phi nl | -11.5 |
| 7 | Tatis, Fernando Jr. 4101 | ss | sd nl | -10.2 |
| 8 | Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480 | pi sp | det al | -10.0 |
| 9 | Miley, Wade 3006 | pi sp | chi nl | -9.7 |
| 10 | Flexen, Chris 4368 | pi sp | sea al | -9.7 |
| 2022 RISERS | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | hou al | +26.0 |
| 2 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | +14.7 |
| 3 | Wright, Kyle 4349 | pi sp | atl nl | +14.4 |
| 4 | Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | +13.4 |
| 5 | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | pi sp | stl nl | +12.1 |
| 6 | Ryan, Joe 4539 | pi sp | min al | +12.0 |
| 7 | Alonso, Pete 4118 | 1b | nym nl | +11.9 |
| 8 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | +11.7 |
| 9 | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | pi sp | fla nl | +11.4 |
| 10 | Kirby, George 4595 | pi sp | sea al | +11.4 |
| 2022 AL CP | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Barlow, Scott 3981 | pi cp | kc al | 7.0 |
| 2 | Pressly, Ryan 3186 | pi cp | hou al | 6.0 |
| 3 | Hendriks, Liam 3339 | pi cp | chi al | 5.0 |
| 4 | Lopez, Jorge 4060 | pi cp | min al | 5.0 |
| 5 | Soto, Gregory 4371 | pi cp | det al | 5.0 |
| 2022 AL MR | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Thielbar, Caleb 3272 | pi mr | min al | 5.7 |
| 2 | Krehbiel, Joey 4562 | pi mr | bal al | 5.7 |
| 3 | Hearn, Taylor 4604 | pi mr | tex al | 5.0 |
| 4 | Martin, Davis 4657 | pi sp mr | chi al | 5.0 |
| 5 | Vespi, Nick 4619 | pi mr | bal al | 5.0 |
| 2022 NL CP | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Bard, Daniel 2657 | pi cp | col nl | 8.0 |
| 2 | Diaz, Edwin 3690 | pi cp | nym nl | 7.0 |
| 3 | Hader, Josh 3881 | pi cp | sd nl | 6.0 |
| 4 | Bednar, David 4499 | pi cp | pit nl | 6.0 |
| 5 | Helsley, Ryan 4589 | pi cp | stl nl | 6.0 |
| 2022 NL MR | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Crowe, Wil 4486 | pi cp mr sp | pit nl | 4.0 |
| 2 | Crismatt, Nabil 4449 | pi mr | sd nl | 4.0 |
| 3 | Ottavino, Adam 3054 | pi mr cp | nym nl | 3.0 |
| 4 | Rogers, Tyler 4251 | pi mr | sf nl | 3.0 |
| 5 | Oviedo, Johan 4442 | pi sp mr | pit nl | 3.0 |
What are those numbers after players' names?
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
➜ Players are listed by the position they predominantly played when they earned Box-Toppers points (by earning Player of the Game honors).
➜ Players are listed with the team on which they finished the season. Some players played on two or more teams in a single season.
➜ DIPPERS: Players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from one season to the next, ranked by biggest point decline.
➜ RISERS: Players whose Box-Toppers point total increased most from one season to the next, ranked by biggest point increase.
➜ Note: If players have the same Box-Toppers point total, ties are broken based on which player had more Box-Toppers points in the previous season (or the previous season before that—and so on, if those point totals are tied).
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The chart accompanying this post shows points leaders for the season by several different categories and classifications, including:
Overall top 10 leaders and top 10 American League and National League pitchers and batters.
Top batters by position in each league—top 10 for outfielders, top five for all other positions.
The top 10 biggest dippers and risers—the "dippers" are players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from 2021; the "risers" are players whose point total climbed the most from 2021.
Top relief pitchers, including the top five AL and NL closing (CP) and middle relief (MR) pitchers.
Highlights include:
Top overall player for 2022—Astros pitcher Justin Verlander is Box-Toppers 2022 Player of the Year, leading all players with 26.0 Box-Toppers points for the season. He also led American League pitchers.
Verlander took the season points lead on Aug. 4 and held it for 56 days—the longest stretch any player held an uninterrupted lead in 2022—before losing the lead on the final Thursday of the season, Sept. 29, when Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani passed him with 24.7 Box-Toppers points to Verlander’s 24.0. However, Verlander retook the lead for good on the next-to-last day of the season, Oct. 4, with 26.0 points. Ohtani finished second overall and second among AL pitchers with 24.7 points.
Verlander won Player of the Year honors 10 years after he did it the first time in 2012, when he led all players with 24.8 Box-Toppers points when he was with the Tigers. Verlander is the fifth player to win multiple Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors since tracking began in 1995, joining Randy Johnson (who has six), Johan Santana (three), Clayton Kershaw (three) and Max Scherzer (two). The 10-year gap between wins is the largest, beating the five-year gap between Scherzer’s wins in 2016 and 2021. There was a seven-year gap between Randy Johnson’s first and last Player of the Year honor (1995 and 2002), but he won four in the intervening years.
Top NL pitcher for 2022—Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara led NL pitchers in 2022 with 21.1 Box-Toppers points, third overall.
Top overall batters for 2022—Pete Alonso of the Mets led NL batters with 14.9 Box-Toppers points. Aaron Judge of the Yankees led AL batters with 13.2 points.
Top batters by position—The chart shows the top AL and NL batters by position, including the top five first basemen, second basemen, shortstops, third basemen, catchers and designated hitters in both the AL and NL. Also shown are the top 10 outfielders in each league.
Dippers—These are the players whose Box-Toppers point total declined most from 2021 to 2022. Mets pitcher Max Scherzer had the biggest decline of 15.1 points. He led all players in 2021 with 25.1 Box-Toppers points (with the Nationals and Dodgers) and earned 10.0 in 2022 with the Mets. While the 10.0 points in 2022 was 24th among NL pitchers, the 15.1-point decline from 2021 was largest among all players.
Risers—These are the players whose Box-Toppers point total increased most from 2021 to 2022. Box-Toppers Player of the Year Verlander had the biggest increase of 26.0 points, earning 0.0 points in 2021 (when he was out recovering from Tommy John surgery) and earning 26.0 in 2022.
Verlander’s 26.0-point gain breaks the record for most points gained from one season to the next, set by Blake Snell of the Rays in 2018, who gained 22.2 points, earning 5.0 points in 2017 and 27.2 in 2018. (Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.)
Relief pitchers—The chart shows the top five closing and relief pitchers in both the AL and NL for 2022. Daniel Bard of the Rockies led NL closing pitchers with 8.0 Box-Toppers points. Scott Barlow of the Royals led AL closers with 7.0 points. Caleb Thielbar of the Twins led AL middle relievers with 5.7 points. And Wil Crowe of the Pirates led NL middle relievers with 4.0 points.
Box-Toppers has tracked each game played since the start of the 1995 season. A season-by-season look at Box-Toppers’ detail leaders for all 28 seasons—a sprawling, scrolling chart—can be found at this link. Like the chart here, it shows the top groups of players at different positions and by different categories or classifications, but this chart shows every season from 1995 to 2022. For example, who was the top AL first baseman in 1996? Who was the top NL closing pitcher in 1999? Whose Box-Toppers point total rose the most from 2004 to 2005? And who was the top NL second baseman in 2008? It’s all there.
(Answers, by the way are: Mo Vaughn of the Red Sox with 18.6 points, Billy Wagner of the Astros with 15.0 points, Dontrelle Willis of the Marlins, who rose 12.7 points from 2004 to 2005 and Chase Utley of the Phillies with 12.0 points.)
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.