Astros pitcher Justin Verlander tops Box-Toppers list of the top 100 players of 2022.
Top 100 players of 2022
Here are Box-Toppers Top 100 players of 2022, ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP).| 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 |
| 11 | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | pi sp | tb al | 16.4 |
| 12 | Fried, Max 4011 | pi sp | atl nl | 16.0 |
| 13 | Nola, Aaron 3569 | pi sp | phi nl | 16.0 |
| 14 | Valdez, Framber 4048 | pi sp | hou al | 16.0 |
| 15 | McKenzie, Triston 4303 | pi sp | cle al | 15.7 |
| 16 | Javier, Cristian 4290 | pi sp | hou al | 15.7 |
| 17 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | nyy al | 15.4 |
| 18 | Burnes, Corbin 4029 | pi sp | mil nl | 15.4 |
| 19 | Cortes, Nestor 4160 | pi sp | nyy al | 15.4 |
| 20 | Alonso, Pete 4118 | 1b | nym nl | 14.9 |
| 21 | Ryan, Joe 4539 | pi sp | min al | 14.7 |
| 22 | Wheeler, Zack 3204 | pi sp | phi nl | 14.4 |
| 23 | Ray, Robbie 3502 | pi sp | sea al | 14.4 |
| 24 | Wright, Kyle 4349 | pi sp | atl nl | 14.4 |
| 25 | Gilbert, Logan 4439 | pi sp | sea al | 14.1 |
| 26 | Bieber, Shane 4005 | pi sp | cle al | 13.7 |
| 27 | Strider, Spencer 4626 | pi sp | atl nl | 13.4 |
| 28 | Judge, Aaron 3767 | cf rf | nyy al | 13.2 |
| 29 | Snell, Blake 3688 | pi sp | sd nl | 13.1 |
| 30 | Manoah, Alek 4424 | pi sp | tor al | 13.1 |
| 31 | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | pi sp | tor al | 12.7 |
| 32 | Anderson, Tyler 3656 | pi sp | lad nl | 12.7 |
| 33 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | min al | 12.1 |
| 34 | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | pi sp | stl nl | 12.1 |
| 35 | Stripling, Ross 3629 | pi sp | tor al | 12.0 |
| 36 | Ramirez, Jose 3436 | 3b | cle al | 11.7 |
| 37 | Singer, Brady 4337 | pi sp | kc al | 11.7 |
| 38 | Betts, Mookie 3404 | rf | lad nl | 11.7 |
| 39 | Gonsolin, Tony 4211 | pi sp | lad nl | 11.4 |
| 40 | Quintana, Jose 3040 | pi sp | stl nl | 11.4 |
| 41 | Kirby, George 4595 | pi sp | sea al | 11.4 |
| 42 | Rasmussen, Drew 4547 | pi sp | tb al | 11.1 |
| 43 | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | pi sp | nym nl | 11.0 |
| 44 | Kluber, Corey 3200 | pi sp | tb al | 11.0 |
| 45 | Kelly, Merrill 4143 | pi sp | ari nl | 11.0 |
| 46 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 10.7 |
| 47 | Lopez, Pablo 4028 | pi sp | fla nl | 10.7 |
| 48 | Taillon, Jameson 3658 | pi sp | nyy al | 10.7 |
| 49 | Skubal, Tarik 4414 | pi sp | det al | 10.7 |
| 50 | Springs, Jeffrey 4372 | pi sp | tb al | 10.7 |
| 51 | Morton, Charlie 2503 | pi sp | atl nl | 10.4 |
| 52 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | nym nl | 10.0 |
| 53 | Wainwright, Adam 2150 | pi sp | stl nl | 10.0 |
| 54 | Castillo, Luis Miguel 3840 | pi sp | sea al | 10.0 |
| 55 | Webb, Logan 4258 | pi sp | sf nl | 9.7 |
| 56 | Lynn, Lance 2992 | pi sp | chi al | 9.7 |
| 57 | Garcia, Luis 4423 | pi sp | hou al | 9.7 |
| 58 | Carrasco, Carlos 2885 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 |
| 59 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.4 |
| 60 | Montgomery, Jordan 3814 | pi sp | stl nl | 9.4 |
| 61 | Lauer, Eric 4017 | pi sp | mil nl | 9.4 |
| 62 | Odorizzi, Jake 3291 | pi sp | atl nl | 9.4 |
| 63 | Perez, Martin 3213 | pi sp | tex al | 9.1 |
| 64 | Berrios, Jose 3791 | pi sp | tor al | 9.0 |
| 65 | Gibson, Kyle 3312 | pi sp | phi nl | 9.0 |
| 66 | Suarez, Jose 4425 | pi sp | ana al | 9.0 |
| 67 | Kopech, Michael 4385 | pi sp | chi al | 9.0 |
| 68 | Thompson, Keegan 4579 | pi sp | chi nl | 9.0 |
| 69 | Smyly, Drew 3009 | pi sp | chi nl | 8.7 |
| 70 | Alvarez, Yordan 4209 | dh | hou al | 8.7 |
| 71 | Bregman, Alex 3721 | 3b | hou al | 8.7 |
| 72 | Canha, Mark 3454 | lf | nym nl | 8.7 |
| 73 | Freeman, Freddie 2887 | 1b | lad nl | 8.5 |
| 74 | Wacha, Michael 3276 | pi sp | bos al | 8.4 |
| 75 | Tellez, Rowdy 4078 | 1b | mil nl | 8.2 |
| 76 | Riley, Austin 4144 | 3b | atl nl | 8.0 |
| 77 | Urquidy, Jose 4194 | pi sp | hou al | 8.0 |
| 78 | Heaney, Andrew 3515 | pi sp | lad nl | 8.0 |
| 79 | Springer, George 3337 | cf rf | tor al | 8.0 |
| 80 | Sandoval, Patrick 4357 | pi sp | ana al | 8.0 |
| 81 | Bard, Daniel 2657 | pi cp | col nl | 8.0 |
| 82 | Suarez, Eugenio 3355 | 3b | sea al | 8.0 |
| 83 | Walker, Taijuan 3453 | pi sp | nym nl | 7.7 |
| 84 | Hill, Rich 2215 | pi sp | bos al | 7.7 |
| 85 | Pivetta, Nick 3825 | pi sp | bos al | 7.7 |
| 86 | Irvin, Cole 4140 | pi sp | oak al | 7.7 |
| 87 | Kremer, Dean 4330 | pi sp | bal al | 7.7 |
| 88 | Goldschmidt, Paul 2935 | 1b | stl nl | 7.5 |
| 89 | Raleigh, Cal 4481 | ca ph | sea al | 7.5 |
| 90 | Rodriguez, Julio 4590 | cf | sea al | 7.5 |
| 91 | Peralta, Freddy 3965 | pi sp | mil nl | 7.4 |
| 92 | Muncy, Max 3969 | 3b | lad nl | 7.2 |
| 93 | Wood, Alex 3246 | pi sp | sf nl | 7.0 |
| 94 | Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | stl nl | 7.0 |
| 95 | Bogaerts, Xander 3383 | ss | bos al | 7.0 |
| 96 | France, Ty 4243 | 1b | sea al | 7.0 |
| 97 | Story, Trevor 3607 | 2b | bos al | 7.0 |
| 98 | Cron, C.J. 3338 | 1b | col nl | 7.0 |
| 99 | Semien, Marcus 3302 | 2b | tex al | 7.0 |
| 100 | Diaz, Edwin 3690 | pi cp | nym nl | 7.0 |
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Verlander had 26.0 Box-Toppers points during the regular season. Verlander came back after sitting out most of the previous two seasons, recovering from Tommy John surgery. He earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 2020 and none in 2021. His 26.0 point gain from 0.0 in 2021 to 26.0 in 2022 is the largest single-season point gain for any player since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.
Verlander’s 26.0 points is also ranked 21st among most Box-Toppers points earned in a single season (since 1995). Verlander also has the 12th-most points earned in a single season—27.5 in 2019, when he finished second overall behind then-teammate Gerrit Cole (32.2). It is the fifth season Verlander has earned more than 24.0 Box-Toppers points in a single season. He also did it:
2011 with the Tigers, when he had 24.4 Box-Toppers points, third overall, first among American League pitchers.
2012 with the Tigers, 24.8 points, first overall.
2018 with the Astros, 24.1 points, third overall, second among AL pitchers.
2019 with the Astros, 27.5 points, second overall, second among AL pitchers.
Verlander ranks fifth among all players (third among active players) in career Box-Toppers points since 1995 with 232.6. He trails Mets pitcher Max Scherzer (236.3) by 3.7 points. Verlander has signed with the Mets for 2023.
Verlander earned his 26.0 Box-Toppers points by being Box-Toppers Player of the Game in 18 of the Astros’ wins, earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point each time. Eight of those 18 times, Verlander earned 1.0 bonus point for being Box-Toppers overall Player of the Day.
While Verlander also earned 18 wins in 2022, they do not directly correspond to his 18 Player of the Game honors. Verlander twice earned Player of the Game honors when he picked up a no-decision (on June 1 and Aug. 28) and twice earned the win without earning Player of the Game honors (May 4 and July 7).
At July’s All-Star break, Verlander ranked second overall with 15.0 Box-Toppers points, behind Shohei Ohtani of the Angels (17.0). Verlander took the season lead in Box-Toppers points for the first time on Aug. 4, with 19.0 points. He held the lead until Ohtani passed him Sept. 29 with 24.7 points. But Verlander reclaimed the lead on Oct. 4, the next-to-last day of the season, with 26.0 points.
Ohtani, whose 24.7 Box-Toppers points was second overall and second among AL pitchers, led players during four different intervals in 2022 for 85 total days, the most of any player. Verlander led for two intervals for a total of 58 days. His 56-day tenure atop player rankings from Aug. 4 to Sept. 28 was the longest uninterrupted stretch atop the rankings in 2022.
Sandy Alcantara of the Marlins, who led National League pitchers with 21.1 Box-Toppers points, ranks third among all players. Pete Alonso of the Mets, who led NL batters with 14.9 points, ranks 20th overall. Aaron Judge of the Yankees, who led AL batters with 13.2 points, ranks 28th overall.
2022 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4/7 | Framber Valdez | hou al | 2.0 |
| 4/8 | Sean Manaea | sd nl | 2.0 |
| 4/12 | Tylor Megill | nym nl | 3.7 |
| 4/19 | Joe Musgrove | sd nl | 4.0 |
| 4/20 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 5.0 |
| 4/29 | Tylor Megill | nym nl | 5.7 |
| 5/5 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 7.0 |
| 6/2 | Nestor Cortes | nyy al | 8.4 |
| 6/3 | Joe Musgrove | sd nl | 8.7 |
| 6/4 | Pete Alonso | nym nl | 9.2 |
| 6/9 | Shane McClanahan | tb al | 10.7 |
| 6/16 | Joe Musgrove | sd nl | 11.4 |
| 6/22 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 13.0 |
| 8/4 | Justin Verlander | hou al | 19.0 |
| 9/29 | Shohei Ohtani | ana al | 24.7 |
| 10/4 | Justin Verlander | hou al | 26.0 |
Three of the four Box-Toppers points category leaders went on to win major postseason awards: Verlander won the AL Cy Young Award, Alcantara won the NL Cy Young Award and Judge won the AL Most Valuable Player Award. Paul Goldschmidt of the Cardinals won the NL MVP Award over Alonso. Goldschmidt earned 7.5 Box-Toppers points, seventh among NL batters and 88th among all players.
It took 7.0 Box-Toppers points for a player to make the top 100 list—Mets closing pitcher Edwin Diaz took the 100th spot with 7.0 points. He earned them by being Player of the Game in seven Mets wins, earning 1.0 Box-Toppers point for each.
Box-Toppers points are a measure of how much a player provides key contributions to his teams win. Specifically, 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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Here are some other highlights from the top 100 list:
1., 14. and 16. Three Astros pitchers are among the top 20 overall players, which helped the team finish second overall in regular season Box-Toppers team rankings. Astros players had a combined 131.4 Box-Toppers points, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers with 133.1. The eventual World Series champion Astros had the first-, 14th- and 16th-ranked players: Verlander with 26.0 points, Framber Valdez with 16.0 (in 14th place) and Cristian Javier with 15.7 (in 16th place).
21. Twins pitcher Joe Ryan had the most Box-Toppers points among rookies with 14.7, 10th among AL pitchers. Though Ryan had rookie status in 2022, he pitched five games in 2021, earning 2.7 points.
27. Braves pitcher Spencer Strider had the most Box-Toppers points among NL rookies with 13.4, 13th among NL pitchers.
52. Mets pitcher Max Scherzer, who led all players in 2021 with 25.1 Box-Toppers points when he was with the Nationals and Dodgers, finished 2022 with 10.0 Box-Toppers points, 24th among NL pitchers. Scherzer’s 15.1-point decline from 2021 to 2022 was the largest among all players.
81. Daniel Bard of the Rockies led all closing pitchers with 8.0 Box-Toppers points, 36th among all NL pitchers.
90. Julio Rodriguez of the Mariners was voted AL Rookie of the Year. He had 7.5 Box-Toppers points, eighth among AL batters. The NL Rookie of the Year winner, Michael Harris II of the Braves, earned 3.5 Box-Toppers points, 55th among NL batters and 288th among all players.
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Box-Toppers tends to favor pitchers, especially in the short term, so most of the top 100 players are pitchers (78). That’s more than were in the top 100 in the previous three seasons—2021 (74), 2020 (62) and 2019 (71), but fewer than in 2018 (82).
Here is a breakdown of this year’s top 100 players by their primary position:
76—Starting pitcher
6—First base
6—Third base
5—Outfield (1 RF, 1 LF, 3 CF)
2—Closing pitcher
2—Second base
1—Shortstop
1—Designated hitter
1—Catcher
0—Middle relief pitcher
The highest-ranking middle relief pitcher in 2022 is Caleb Thielbar of the Twins, whose 5.7 Box-Toppers points was 143rd among all players.
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Three teams—the Dodgers, Mets and Mariners—each have eight players among the top 100 players, the most among all teams. The Dodgers finished first in Box-Toppers season-ending team rankings for 2022 with 133.1 Box-Toppers points. The Mets were fifth with 125.8 and the Mariners were seventh with 114.9.
The World Series champion Astros have seven players among the top 100 players. The Astros finished second in Box-Toppers team rankings for 2022 with 131.4 Box-Toppers points.
Two teams—the Braves and Cardinals—each have six players each in the top 100 players. The Braves finished third in Box-Toppers team rankings for 2022 with 129.0 Box-Toppers points. The Cardinals were sixth with 118.3.
Three teams have no representatives among the top 100 players—the Reds, Nationals and Pirates. The Reds’ top player is pitcher Nick Lodolo (7.0 points, 105th overall). The Nationals’ top player is designated hitter Nelson Cruz (5.5 points, 151st overall). The Pirates’ top player is closing pitcher David Bednar (6.0 points, 132nd overall).
All three teams with no representatives among the top 100 finished in the bottom three of Box-Toppers team rankings for 2022—the Pirates were 28th with 61.0 Box-Toppers points, the Nationals were 29th with 58.3 and the Reds were 30th and last with 54.7.
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This season, 790 different players earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors. There were 400 players who had more than 2.0 Box-Toppers points and 54 with 10.0 or more points. There were 192 players who made their Box-Toppers debut in 2022, earning Player of the Game honors for the first time.
Here are comparisons with those numbers from recent seasons (the 2020 season was shortened from 162 to 60 games because of the pandemic):
Players earning Player of the Game honors—2021 (779), 2020 (497), 2019 (767), 2018 (744), 2017 (763), 2016 (730), 2015 (751), 2014 (722).
Players earning more than 2.0 Box-Toppers points—2021 (395), 2020 (129), 2019 (400), 2018 (400), 2017 (409), 2016 (395), 2015 (402), 2014 (399).
Players earning 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points—2021 (49), 2020 (2), 2019 (44), 2018 (52), 2017 (38), 2016 (54), 2015 (47), 2014 (58).
Players making their Box-Toppers debut—2021 (207), 2020 (96), 2019 (184), 2018 (175), 2017 (169), 2016 (151), 2015 (172), 2014 (135).
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Top 100 players in 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014.