| AL PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | NL PITCHERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |||
| 1 | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | pi sp | tor al | 20.1 | 1 | Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | 21.1 | |
| 2 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp dh | ana al | 19.4 | 2 | Luzardo, Jesus 4282 | pi sp | fla nl | 17.8 | |
| 3 | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | tor al | 18.7 | 3 | Peralta, Freddy 3965 | pi sp | mil nl | 17.7 | |
| 4 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 17.0 | 4 | Gallen, Zac 4171 | pi sp | ari nl | 16.7 | |
| 5 | Castillo, Luis Miguel 3840 | pi sp | sea al | 16.1 | 5 | Wheeler, Zack 3204 | pi sp | phi nl | 14.7 | |
| 6 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | tex al | 15.4 | 6 | Snell, Blake 3688 | pi sp | sd nl | 14.7 | |
| 7 | Bradish, Kyle 4597 | pi sp | bal al | 14.0 | 7 | Kelly, Merrill 4143 | pi sp | ari nl | 13.0 | |
| 8 | Kirby, George 4595 | pi sp | sea al | 13.7 | 8 | Keller, Mitch 4230 | pi sp | pit nl | 13.0 | |
| 9 | Gilbert, Logan 4439 | pi sp | sea al | 13.4 | 9 | Garrett, Braxton 4341 | pi sp | fla nl | 12.7 | |
| 10 | Lopez, Pablo 4028 | pi sp | min al | 13.4 | 10 | Senga, Kodai 4762 | pi sp | nym nl | 12.7 | |
| AL BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | NL BATTERS | POS | TEAM | BTP | |||
| 1 | Ohtani, Shohei 3933 | pi sp dh | ana al | 19.4 | 1 | Alonso, Pete 4118 | 1b | nym nl | 12.0 | |
| 2 | Tucker, Kyle 4277 | rf | hou al | 12.5 | 2 | Acuna, Ronald Jr. 3947 | rf | atl nl | 10.7 | |
| 3 | Judge, Aaron 3767 | rf dh | nyy al | 12.0 | 3 | Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | lad nl | 10.0 | |
| 4 | Witt, Bobby Jr. 4592 | ss | kc al | 7.7 | 4 | Gorman, Nolan 4633 | 2b | stl nl | 10.0 | |
| 5 | Drury, Brandon 3744 | 2b 1b dh | ana al | 7.5 | 5 | Yelich, Christian 3334 | lf | mil nl | 9.2 | |
| 6 | Devers, Rafael 4038 | 3b | bos al | 7.5 | 6 | Soto, Juan 3994 | lf | sd nl | 9.0 | |
| 7 | Altuve, Jose 3007 | 2b | hou al | 7.5 | 7 | Outman, James 4699 | cf | lad nl | 8.7 | |
| 8 | Henderson, Gunnar 4739 | dh 3b ss | bal al | 7.5 | 8 | Betts, Mookie 3404 | rf 2b | lad nl | 8.5 | |
| 9 | McCormick, Chas 4444 | lf cf | hou al | 7.5 | 9 | Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 | 1b | stl nl | 8.2 | |
| 10 | Duran, Jarren 4783 | cf | bos al | 7.5 | 10 | Reynolds, Bryan 4169 | lf cf | pit nl | 7.7 |
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Braves pitcher Spencer Strider is 2023 Box-Toppers Player of the Year, holding the season lead in Box-Toppers points since Sept. 13.
2023 lead changes
Here are the season’s lead changes among players in Box-Toppers points. Chart shows the date and the player’s Box-Toppers point (BTP) total when they took the lead.| Date | Player | Team | BTP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/30 | Dylan Cease | chi al | 2.0 |
| 4/4 | Luis Castillo | sea al | 2.7 |
| 4/5 | Jesus Luzardo | fla nl | 3.7 |
| 4/7 | Bryan Reynolds | pit nl | 3.7 |
| 4/8 | Jeffrey Springs | tb al | 3.7 |
| 4/9 | Drew Rasmussen | tb al | 4.0 |
| 4/12 | Kevin Gausman | tor al | 4.0 |
| 4/16 | Gerrit Cole | nyy al | 4.0 |
| 4/17 | Jacob deGrom | tex al | 5.0 |
| 4/19 | Drew Rasmussen | tb al | 5.0 |
| 4/22 | Gerrit Cole | nyy al | 5.0 |
| 4/23 | Kevin Gausman | tor al | 6.0 |
| 4/26 | Zac Gallen | ari nl | 6.7 |
| 4/28 | Jacob deGrom | tex al | 7.7 |
| 5/8 | Zac Gallen | ari nl | 7.7 |
| 5/21 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 8.4 |
| 5/24 | Shane McClanahan | tb al | 8.7 |
| 5/30 | Zac Gallen | ari nl | 8.7 |
| 5/31 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 9.4 |
| 6/1 | Kevin Gausman | tor al | 10.0 |
| 6/13 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 12.9 |
| 8/25 | Spencer Strider | atl nl | 19.1 |
| 8/26 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 19.4 |
| 9/13 | Spencer Strider | atl nl | 20.1 |
Meanwhile, Chris Bassitt of the Blue Jays rises to lead American League pitchers and Pete Alonso of the Mets rises to lead National League batters in the season’s final player rankings report. While Shohei Ohtani of the Angels loses the lead among AL pitchers, he still retains the top spot among AL batters.
Strider leads
Strider leads Box-Toppers season player rankings with 21.1 Box-Toppers points, picking up no points since the last player rankings report Sept. 21. He leads over second-place Bassitt (20.1 points) and over second-place NL pitcher Jesus Luzardo of the Marlins (17.8).
This is the first time Strider has won Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors in his second season. He earned 13.4 Box-Toppers points in 2022 with the Braves, 27th overall and 13th among NL pitchers.
Box-Toppers Players of the Year
Here are Box-Toppers Player of the Year winners in each season of Box-Toppers tracking since 1995. Player of the Year is the player with the season’s highest Box-Toppers point total:| Year | Player | Pos | Team | BTP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Mariners | 23.7 |
| 1996 | John Smoltz | pi sp | Braves | 26.1 |
| 1997 | Roger Clemens | pi sp | Blue Jays | 27.4 |
| 1998 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Astros† | 26.4 |
| 1999 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Dbacks | 31.5 |
| 2000 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Dbacks | 33.7 |
| 2001 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Dbacks | 29.4 |
| 2002 | Randy Johnson | pi sp | Dbacks | 33.7 |
| 2003 | Jason Schmidt | pi sp | Giants | 24.7 |
| 2004 | Johan Santana | pi sp | Twins | 26.8 |
| 2005 | Johan Santana | pi sp | Twins | 24.1 |
| 2006 | Johan Santana | pi sp | Twins | 25.7 |
| 2007 | Jake Peavy | pi sp | Padres | 23.4 |
| 2008 | CC Sabathia | pi sp | Brewers* | 26.7 |
| 2009 | Zack Greinke | pi sp | Royals | 21.5 |
| 2010 | Jon Lester | pi sp | Red Sox | 23.4 |
| 2011 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 26.1 |
| 2012 | Justin Verlander | pi sp | Tigers | 24.8 |
| 2013 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 21.7 |
| 2014 | Clayton Kershaw | pi sp | Dodgers | 31.5 |
| 2015 | Jake Arrieta | pi sp | Cubs | 29.1 |
| 2016 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | Nationals | 25.7 |
| 2017 | Chris Sale | pi sp | Red Sox | 25.1 |
| 2018 | Blake Snell | pi sp | Rays | 27.2 |
| 2019 | Gerrit Cole | pi sp | Astros | 32.2 |
| 2020 | Shane Bieber | pi sp | Indians | 11.4§ |
| 2021 | Max Scherzer | pi sp | Dodgers** | 25.1 |
| 2022 | Justin Verlander | pi sp | Astros | 26.0 |
| 2023 | Spencer Strider | pi sp | Braves | 21.1 |
† Played for Mariners before trade to Astros.
* Played for the Indians before trade to the Brewers.
** Played for the Nationals before trade to the Dodgers.
§ Season shortened from 162 to 60 games due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Strider’s 21.1 Box-Toppers points is the lowest point total to lead final season player rankings since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. The previous lowest total to lead players was 21.5 by Zack Greinke of the Royals in 2009.
American League pitchers
Chris Bassitt of the Blue Jays passed Shohei Ohtani of the Angels for the overall lead on Thursday, Sept. 28, in the final days of the season, after Ohtani had been out with injuries.
Ohtani had led AL pitchers for 14 straight player rankings reports since taking the lead June 13. Bassitt finishes with 20.1 Box-Toppers points (second overall) ahead of Ohtani’s 19.4 (third overall).
Bassitt ranked sixth at the last player rankings report Sept. 21, third among AL pitchers. He earned 3.0 Box-Toppers points in the interim to finish second overall.
American League batters
Shohei Ohtani of the Angels, while losing the lead among AL pitchers, maintains his lead among AL batters for the 19th straight player rankings report.
Ohtani leads over second-place AL batter Kyle Tucker of the Astros (12.5). However, Tucker has the most 2023 Box-Toppers points earned solely as a batter. That’s because Ohtani earned half of his 19.4 point as a pitcher (9.7) and half as a batter (9.7).
If Ohtani’s points were separated by category, his 9.7 points as a pitcher would rank 27th among AL pitchers and his 9.7 points as a batter would rank third among AL batters.
Ohtani ranks third overall.
National League batters
Pete Alonso of the Mets rose this past week to pass Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves for the lead among NL batters.
Alonso has 12.0 Box-Toppers points and passed Acuna’s 10.7 points on Wednesday, Sept. 27. Acuna falls to second place.
This is the second straight season Alonso has led NL batters. Alonso is the first player to lead NL batters in Box-Toppers points in back-to-back seasons since Marcell Ozuna, who did it in 2019 with the Cardinals and in 2020 with the Braves.
Alonso ranks 28th among all players.
Box-Toppers almanac
Players who earned Box-Toppers points in 2023—798 (there were 777 as of Sept. 21).
Players with more than 2.0 Box-Toppers points—416 (there were 392 as of Sept. 21).
Players with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points—53 (there were 47 as of Sept. 21). There were 54 in 2022.
Players who made their Box-Toppers debut in 2023 (earning their first career Player of the Game honor)—196 (there were 185 as of Sept. 21).
Games completed in 2023—2,430, an average of 162.0 per team.
Percentage of scheduled season completed—100.0.
Pitchers again dominated in the final days of the season, winning Player of the Game honors in 83 of the 135 games played since Sept. 21 (61.5 percent), with batters winning in 52 (38.5 percent). Batters’ share of Player of the Game honors for the season decreased from 40.8 percent last week to 40.7 percent this week (989 of the 2,430 games played). Pitchers won in 1,440 games (59.3 percent).
There were 2,881.9 total Box-Toppers points awarded in 2023. Pitchers won 1,709.7 points and batters won 1,172.2. That means pitchers earned 59.3 percent of all points compared to 40.7 percent for batters. While that is an improvement over the past two seasons for batters (in 2022, they won 38.1 percent and in 2021, they won 39.2 percent), it is still the fifth-lowest percentage of Box-Toppers points won by batters since player tracking began in 1995. From 1995 to 2009, batters generally won half or more of all Box-Toppers points each season but their share of points dropped precipitously after 2009, falling from 50 percent to near 40 percent and below. It was thought rules changes this year—especially the rules to restrict radical infield shifts—might improve batters’ fortunes this season, but if the changes did make any difference it was very minor.
(Note: The almanac section received minor revisions Oct. 30, 2023, to reflect Major League Baseball’s ruling that the New York Mets were the winners in the uncompleted, rain-suspended Sept. 28 game against the Miami Marlins. With that ruling, Mets pitcher David Peterson became Player of the Game and also overall Player of the Day on Monday, Oct. 2, the day the game was scheduled to resume. However, since no postseason berth hinged on the game’s outcome, it was not resumed that day and ruled a Mets win, 1-0, after eight innings. This, even though the Marlins had taken a 2-1 lead in the top of the ninth before rain halted play.)
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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