| American League | National League | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elected starting batters | Elected starting batters | |||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | |
| CA | Alejandro Kirk | Blue Jays | 3.0 | 179 | CA | Willson Contreras | Cubs | 3.0 | 170 | |
| 1B | Vladimir Guerrero Jr. | Blue Jays | 1.7 | 234 | 1B | Paul Goldschmidt | Cardinals | 4.5 | 95 | |
| 2B | # Jose Altuve | Astros | 2.0 | 257 | 2B | # Jazz Chisholm Jr. | Marlins | 1.5 | 351 | |
| 3B | Rafael Devers | Red Sox | 2.5 | 218 | 3B | Manny Machado | Padres | 5.5 | 67 | |
| SS | Tim Anderson | White Sox | 1.0 | 398 | SS | Trea Turner | Dodgers | 0.0 | 719 | |
| OF | # Mike Trout | Angels | 3.0 | 184 | OF | Ronald Acuna Jr. | Braves | 2.0 | 291 | |
| OF | Aaron Judge | Yankees | 6.5 | 43 | OF | Mookie Betts | Dodgers | 8.0 | 27 | |
| OF | Giancarlo Stanton | Yankees | 5.5 | 66 | OF | Joc Pederson | Giants | 4.2 | 108 | |
| DH | Shohei Ohtani | Angels | 17.0 | 1 | DH | # Bryce Harper | Phillies | 6.0 | 53 | |
| Reserves | Reserves | |||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | |
| C | Jose Trevino | Yankees | 1.0 | 493 | C | Travis d’Arnaud | Braves | 3.0 | 196 | |
| 1B | Luis Arraez | Twins | 4.5 | 98 | 1B | Pete Alonso | Mets | 9.2 | 17 | |
| 1B | Ty France | Mariners | 6.0 | 49 | 1B | C.J. Cron | Rockies | 7.0 | 345 | |
| 2B | Andres Gimenez | Guardians | 2.0 | 302 | 1B | Albert Pujols | Cardinals | 1.0 | 452 | |
| 3B | Jose Ramirez | Guardians | 9.7 | 13 | 2B | Jeff McNeil | Mets | 2.5 | 236 | |
| SS | Xander Bogaerts | Red Sox | 2.5 | 216 | 3B | Nolan Arenado | Cardinals | 4.0 | 115 | |
| SS | Corey Seager | Rangers | 2.5 | 231 | SS | Dansby Swanson | Braves | 3.7 | 140 | |
| OF | Andrew Benintendi | Royals | 1.0 | 412 | OF | Ian Happ | Cubs | 1.5 | 364 | |
| OF | Byron Buxton | Twins | 4.0 | 128 | OF | # Starling Marte | Mets | 0.0 | 720 | |
| OF | Julio Rodríguez | Mariners | 7.5 | 31 | OF | Kyle Schwarber | Phillies | 2.0 | 266 | |
| OF | # George Springer | Blue Jays | 3.5 | 154 | OF | Juan Soto | Nationals | 2.5 | 220 | |
| OF | Kyle Tucker | Astros | 3.5 | 148 | DH | * William Contreras | Braves | 0.0 | ||
| DH | # Yordan Alvarez | Astros | 5.2 | 73 | DH | Garrett Cooper | Marlins | 0.0 | 766 | |
| DH | Miguel Cabrera | Tigers | 1.0 | 408 | ||||||
| DH | J.D. Martinez | Red Sox | 2.5 | 215 | ||||||
| Pitchers | Pitchers | |||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | |
| SP | Paul Blackburn | Athletics | 4.0 | 134 | SP | Sandy Alcantara | Marlins | 12.7 | 5 | |
| CP | Emmanuel Clase | Guardians | 2.0 | 273 | CP | David Bednar | Pirates | 6.0 | 57 | |
| SP | # Gerrit Cole | Yankees | 11.4 | 8 | SP | # Corbin Burnes | Brewers | 10.4 | 10 | |
| SP | Nestor Cortes | Yankees | 9.4 | 16 | SP | Luis Castillo | Reds | 5.0 | 77 | |
| CP | Liam Hendriks | White Sox | 2.0 | 253 | CP | Edwin Diaz | Mets | 3.0 | 168 | |
| CP | Clay Holmes | Yankees | 3.0 | 189 | SP | # Max Fried | Braves | 12.0 | 7 | |
| SP | Alek Manoah | Blue Jays | 6.7 | 37 | SP | Tony Gonsolin | Dodgers | 8.7 | 22 | |
| SP | Shane McClanahan | Rays | 14.4 | 4 | CP | # Josh Hader | Brewers | 6.0 | 55 | |
| SP | Shohei Ohtani | Angels | 17.0 | 1 | CP | Ryan Helsley | Cardinals | 4.0 | 137 | |
| SP | Martin Perez | Rangers | 7.1 | 33 | SP | Clayton Kershaw | Dodgers | 6.0 | 46 | |
| CP | Jordan Romano | Blue Jays | 1.0 | 456 | CP | Joe Mantiply | Diamondbacks | 1.0 | 575 | |
| CP | Gregory Soto | Tigers | 3.0 | 183 | SP | Miles Mikolas | Cardinals | 6.7 | 42 | |
| SP | Framber Valdez | Astros | 8.0 | 26 | SP | Joe Musgrove | Padres | 12.4 | 6 | |
| SP | # Justin Verlander | Astros | 15.0 | 2 | SP | # Carlos Rodon | Giants | 10.7 | 9 | |
| CP | Devin Williams | Brewers | 1.0 | 435 | ||||||
| Worthy but unchosen | Worthy but unchosen | |||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | Pos | Player | Team | BTP | Rank | |
| 2B | Marcus Semien | Rangers | 6.0 | 51 | 2B | Brendan Rodgers | Rockies | 4.5 | 101 | |
| SS | Amed Rosario | Guardians | 4.5 | 100 | SS | Ha-Seong Kim | Padres | 4.0 | 126 | |
| CA | Jonah Heim | Rangers | 4.2 | 110 | CA | Tyler Stephenson | Reds | 4.0 | 127 | |
| OF | Taylor Ward | Angels | 4.9 | 86 | OF | Charlie Blackmon | Rockies | 5.5 | 68 | |
| SP | Dylan Cease | White Sox | 14.7 | 3 | OF | Mark Canha | Mets | 4.7 | 90 | |
| CP | Jorge Lopez | Orioles | 5.0 | 82 | ||||||
* Contreras has no ranking because he has yet to earn his first career Box-Toppers point.
A look at players added late to the All-Star roster
White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease is the most deserving player not selected to the 2022 Major League Baseball All-Star teams.
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 Sunday, July 17.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp dh | ana al | 17.0 |
| 2 | Verlander, Justin 2112 | pi sp | hou al | 15.0 |
| 3 | Cease, Dylan 4231 | pi sp | chi al | 14.7 |
| 4 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | 14.4 |
| 5 | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | pi sp | fla nl | 12.7 |
| 6 | Musgrove, Joe 3705 | pi sp | sd nl | 12.4 |
| 7 | Fried, Max 4011 | pi sp | atl nl | 12.0 |
| 8 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 11.4 |
| 9 | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | pi sp | sf nl | 10.7 |
| 10 | Burnes, Corbin 4029 | pi sp | mil nl | 10.4 |
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Cease has 14.7 Box-Toppers points in 2022, third among all players and third among American League pitchers.
Cease is the most egregious, obvious exclusion. Several other players led their positions in their league in Box-Toppers points, but were closer in point total to players who made the team. They include:
Marcus Semien of the Rangers, who leads American League second basemen with 6.0 Box-Toppers points.
Charlie Blackmon of the Rockies, who ranks second among National League outfielders with 5.5 points.
Jorge Lopez of the Orioles, who leads AL closing pitchers with 5.0 points.
Taylor Ward of the Angels, who ranks third among AL outfielders with 4.9 points.
Mark Canha of the Mets, who ranks third among NL outfielders with 4.7 points.
Amed Rosario of the Guardians, who leads AL shortstops with 4.5 points.
Brendan Rodgers of the Rockies, who leads NL second basemen with 4.5 points.
Jonah Heim of the Rangers, who leads AL catchers with 4.2 points.
Ha-Seong Kim of the Padres, who leads NL shortstops with 4.0 points
Tyler Stephenson of the Reds, who leads NL catchers with 4.0 points.
Major League Baseball’s 2022 All-Star Game is Tuesday, July 19, at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles.
Clayton Kershaw
Last year, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw was the most worthy but unchosen NL pitcher for the All-Star Game, based on Box-Toppers rankings. He had 11.4 Box-Toppers points at the 2021 break, seventh overall and fifth among NL pitchers.
This year, he’s an All-Star and is even slated to start the game in his home ballpark, but he is one of the least worthy of All-Stars based on his 2022 first half.
His 6.0 Box-Toppers points is 46th among all players and 18th among NL pitchers, behind a handful of NL pitchers who were not selected for the All-Star team, including Julio Urias of the Dodgers (9.7 points, sixth among NL pitchers), Kyle Wright of the Braves (9.7 points, seventh among NL pitchers), Yu Darvish of the Padres (9.1 points, eighth among NL pitchers), Aaron Nola of the Phillies (9.0 points, ninth among NL pitchers) and others.
Still, as I said last year when he wasn’t selected, Kershaw is one of those players who should be named an All-Star even when he’s having a subpar season. He’s accomplished enough in the past to earn a lifetime pass. He ranks second in career Box-Toppers points since 1995, when player tracking began (254.6), which is most among all active players. He ranks fourth among NL pitchers over 2017-22 (70.9 points).
Shane McClanahan
Rays pitcher Shane McClanahan is starting for the American League. His 14.4 Box-Toppers points in 2022 ranks fourth among all players and fourth among AL pitchers, behind All-Stars Shohei Ohtani of the Angels (17.0) and Justin Verlander of the Astros (15.0) and non-All-Star Dylan Cease (14.7).
Key worthy but unchosen players
Marcus Semien of the Rangers ranks sixth among AL batters with 6.0 Box-Toppers points and leads AL second basemen. But two other AL second basemen were named to the All-Star team—Jose Altuve of the Astros (2.0 points) and Andres Gimenez of the Guardians (2.0 points).
Charlie Blackmon of the Rockies ranks eighth among NL batters with 5.5 Box-Toppers points, second among NL outfielders. But six NL outfielders with fewer points were selected as All-Stars—Joc Pederson of the Giants (4.2) and Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves (2.0) were elected by fan vote. Juan Soto of the Nationals (2.5), Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies (2.0), Ian Happ of the Cubs (1.5) and Starling Marte of the Mets (0.0 points in 2022) were selected as NL outfield reserves. Mookie Betts of the Dodgers, who leads NL outfielders with 8.0 Box-Toppers points, was voted an NL outfield All-Star.
Box-Toppers leaders
Most players who made the All-Star teams are worthy as measured by Box-Toppers points. All Box-Toppers category leaders made the team:
AL pitchers—Shohei Ohtani of the Angels, 17.0 points, ranked first overall.
AL batters—Ohtani again, 17.0 points.
NL pitchers—Sandy Alcantara of the Marlins, 12.7 points, ranked fifth overall.
NL batters—Pete Alonso of the Mets, 9.2 points, 17th overall.
However, among the category leaders, only one is starting in the All-Star Game—Ohtani as AL designated hitter. Ohtani, who also leads AL pitchers, was also selected as an AL All-Star pitcher, the second year in a row he’s been chosen as both All-Star batter and pitcher.
No points
There are several players named All-Stars who have yet to earn Box-Toppers points in 2022:
Trea Turner of the Dodgers, voted NL starting shortstop. He has 16.7 career Box-Toppers points, including 2.5 in 2021.
Starling Marte of the Mets, selected as NL outfield reserve. He has 24.5 career Box-Toppers points, including 2.5 in 2021 with the Marlins and Mets.
William Contreras of the Braves, selected as NL designated hitter reserve. Contreras has played in 102 games since making his Major League debut July 24, 2020, but has yet to earn his first career Box-Toppers Player of the Game honor, so has 0.0 career Box-Toppers points.
Legacy selections
Two players were chosen as legacy selections for the All-Star Game for their career contributions to baseball:
Albert Pujols of the Cardinals, in his final season at 42, has just 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 2022, but leads batters in career Box-Toppers points since 1995 with 205.8, seventh among all players. Pujols has earned Box-Toppers points in 22 straight seasons, the longest streak since player tracking began in 1995. He also led NL batters in Box-Toppers points in five different seasons, the most times any batter has led a league in season points.
Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers, 39, who says he will retire after 2023, also has just 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 2022, but ranks second among active batters in career points (159.4), behind Pujols. Cabrera ranks 19th among all players in career points since 1995, fourth among all batters. He led AL batters in Box-Toppers points in two seasons with the Tigers—2009 (16.5) and 2013 (16.9).
Late added players
(Edited Tuesday afternoon, July 19)
Players keep getting added to the All-Star roster as the game approaches and starters and reserves opt out. Here’s a look at those late added players:
Santiago Espinal of the Blue Jays, 1.5 Box-Toppers points in 2022, 14th among AL second basemen.
Freddie Freeman of the Dodgers, 6.0 Box-Toppers points in 2022, third among NL second basemen.
Jake Cronenworth of the Padres, 3.5 Box-Toppers points in 2022, fourth among NL second basemen.
Austin Riley of the Braves, 4.5 Box-Toppers points in 2022, third among NL third basemen.
Tyler Anderson of the Dodgers, 7.0 Box-Toppers points, 14th among NL pitchers.
Freeman, in particular, is a justifiable add. He was the highest-ranking NL batter (fifth) not to make the All-Star teams. Riley ranked 14th among NL batters. Anderson is a fairly low-ranked NL pitcher, ranked behind a handful of NL pitchers with more Box-Toppers points. Espinal ranks behind nearly a dozen AL second basemen not chosen for the All-Star Game.
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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