Ohtani is Player of the Game in both games of a doubleheader Thursday, July 27

Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

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Shohei Ohtani of the Angels earns Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors twice Thursday—as overall Player of the Day in one game of a doubleheader and as American League Batter of the Day in the second game.

Doubleheader Players of the Game

Shohei Ohtani of the Angels became the 12th player since 1995 to earn Player of the Game honors in both games of a doubleheader and the only one to win as a pitcher in one game and a batter in the other. Here are all 12 players who have achieved that distinction since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995.

Date Player Team Pos BTPs*
7/15/1998 Albert Belle White Sox lf 2.5
8/13/1999 Rondell White Expos lf 2.0
8/30/1999 Edgar Martinez Mariners dh 2.5
4/13/2000 Shawn Green Dodgers rf 2.0
6/24/2002 Alex Rodriguez Rangers ss 2.0
5/28/2004 Rob Mackowiak Pirates cf 3b 2.0
9/2/2006 Chad Cordero Nationals pi cp 2.0
5/25/2008 Jorge Cantu Marlins 3b 2.0
7/21/2009 Erick Aybar Angels ss 2.7
4/28/2011 Ben Zobrist Rays 2b 3.0
10/3/2015 Christian Yelich Brewers cf lf 2.5
7/27/2023 Shohei Ohtani Angels pi sp dh 3.5
* Total Box-Toppers points earned in both games. Ohtani earned the most of the 12 listed here—3.5—by earning 2.0 points as overall Player of the Day in the game he pitched and 1.5 as AL Batter of the Day in the game in which he served as designated hitter.

He is just the 12th player to win Player of the Game honors in both games of a twin bill since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995 and the first to do it as a pitcher in one game and as a batter in the other.

Ohtani was overall Player of the Day in the first game in which he pitched a complete-game, one-hit shutout, striking out eight and walking three, in the 6-0 win over the Tigers. In the second game, Ohtani was American League Batter of the Day, hitting two home runs and going 2-for-3, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 11-4 win over the Tigers.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 in Box-Toppers season player rankings for 2023. Players are ranked by Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned this season through Thursday, July 27.

Player Pos Team BTP
1 Ohtani, Shohei 3933 dh pi sp ana al 17.4
2 Luzardo, Jesus 4282 pi sp fla nl 13.1
3 Strider, Spencer 4626 pi sp atl nl 12.7
4 Bassitt, Chris 3413 pi sp tor al 12.4
5 Gausman, Kevin 3191 pi sp tor al 12.0
6 Burnes, Corbin 4029 pi sp mil nl 11.7
7 Bautista, Felix 4668 pi cp bal al 11.0
8 Gallen, Zac 4171 pi sp ari nl 10.7
9 Scherzer, Max 2588 pi sp nym nl 10.4
10 Miller, Bryce 4797 pi sp sea al 10.4
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Ohtani earned 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, which gave him 15.9 for the season. Then he earned 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 17.4 for the season.

Ohtani extends his lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings, ahead of second-place player, Marlins pitcher Jesus Luzardo (13.1 points). He also leads second-place AL pitcher, Chris Bassitt of the Blue Jays (12.4) and also leads second-place AL batter Aaron Judge (7.5). Ohtani is the only player to qualify to rank among both pitchers and batters, earning 14 total Player of the Game honors in 2023, seven as a pitcher and seven as a designated hitter. He now has 8.7 points as a pitcher and 8.7 as a designated hitter.

Ohtani earned 3.5 total Box-Toppers points Thursday, which is the most points earned in one day in the 29 seasons Box-Toppers has tracked players. The previous high was 3.0 points by Ben Zobrist of the Rays, on April 28, 2011. Zobrist earned 2.0 points as overall Player of the Day in one game and 1.0 point as Player of the Game in the other.

In fact, the 3.5 points Ohtani earned Thursday seems to be the maximum number of points a player could possibly earn in a day. The only way a player could earn more is if they switched leagues between games of a doubleheader, earning 2.0 points as Player of the Day in one game and 1.7 points as the opposite league Player of the Day in the other game for a total of 3.7. The only other way a player could earn more than 3.5 is if they were playing more than two games in a day.

The last time a player won Player of the Game honors in both games of a doubleheader was Oct. 3, 2015, when Christian Yelich of the Brewers did it. The nearly eight years since Yelich achieved the feat is the longest gap between doubleheader Player of the Game winners since 1995. Yelich earned 2.5 total Box-Toppers points that day, earning 1.5 as National League Batter of the Day in one game and 1.0 as Player of the Game in the other.

The only other pitcher among the 12 players who have won Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors in both games of a doubleheader is Chad Cordero of the Nationals. On Sept. 2, 2006, Cordero won Player of the Game honors as a closing pitcher in both games of a doubleheader.

Ohtani was somewhat aided in his 3.5-points-in-a-day feat by the fact that only five games were played Thursday. But his +13.0 Box-Toppers game score in his pitching effort would have been high enough to win Player of the Day honors in seven of the previous 10 days. His +4.0 game score to win AL Batter of the Day honors, however, would only have beaten the top AL batter in two of the previous 10 days.

Shohei Ohtani of the Angels is Thursday’s Box-Toppers AL Batter of the Day.

National League Player of the Day

Christopher Morel of the Cubs doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 10-3 win over the Cardinals.

Morel earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 3.7 for the season, 30th among NL batters.

National League Player of the Day is Christopher Morel of the Cubs.

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National League Batter of the Day

There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Thursday because the overall NL Player of the Day is batter Christopher Morel.

Scoring

  • Ohtani earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.

  • Morel earns 1.7 points for being NL Player of the Day.

  • Ohtani also earns 1.5 points for being AL Batter of the Day.

  • All of Thursday’s other Player of the Game winners (listed in the chart) 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.

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.

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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).

7/27 BTG Game Player AB R H BI IP H R ER BB K
MLB +13.0 LAA 6, DET 0 Shohei Ohtani (W, 9‑5) ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ 9.0 1 0 0 3 8
NL +4.0 CHC 10, STL 3 Christopher Morel DH‑2B 4 3 3 2 ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
BAT +4.0 LAA 11, DET 4 Shohei Ohtani DH 3 2 2 3 ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
+4.0 `NYM 2, WSH 1 Kodai Senga ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ 6.0 2 1 1 3 5
+2.0 CLE 6, CHW 3 Josh Naylor 1B 4 1 2 3 ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑
MLB—Overall Box‑Toppers Player of the Day, worth 2.0 total Box‑Toppers points.
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 2023 (’23). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’22-23), the period 2018-2023 (’18-23) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2023 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2022 total (+/-).
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Player of the Game Pos Team ’23 ’22‑23 ’18‑23 Career +/‑
Ohtani, Shohei 3933 dh pi sp ana al 17.4 42.1 72.7 72.7 -7.3
Senga, Kodai 4762 pi sp nym nl 9.7 9.7 9.7 9.7 +9.7
Naylor, Josh 4154 1b cle al 5.0 8.5 10.0 10.0 +1.5
Morel, Christopher 4704 dh cf 2b chi nl 3.7 7.2 7.2 7.2 +0.2
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A Box-Toppers look at Friday’s pitching matchups

A Box-Toppers look at the upcoming day’s probable pitching matchups. Teams are paired below with visiting teams on top and home teams on the bottom. Each team’s starting pitcher is shown with their Box-Toppers point total from 2023 (’23), over a two-year period (’22-23), over a six-year period (’18-23) and their career point total.
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Game Starter ’23 ’22‑23 ’18‑23 Career
DET Olson, Reese 4861 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
MIA Garrett, Braxton 4341 9.7 15.4 17.4 17.4
NYY Cole, Gerrit 3232 8.0 23.4 103.4 146.3
BAL Rodriguez, Grayson 4790 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0
PHI Wheeler, Zack 3204 8.0 22.4 64.2 76.9
PIT Keller, Mitch 4230 8.0 10.0 15.0 15.0
LAA Giolito, Lucas 3900 3.0 7.0 43.1 46.1
TOR Gausman, Kevin 3191 12.0 24.7 46.1 81.4
CLE Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
CHW Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
WSH Gore, MacKenzie 4582 5.0 9.7 9.7 9.7
NYM Scherzer, Max 2588 10.4 20.4 90.0 246.7
MIL Houser, Adrian 4162 1.7 3.4 14.4 14.4
ATL Chirinos, Yonny 4039 1.0 1.0 10.0 10.0
MIN Gray, Sonny 3259 5.7 17.8 52.0 93.2
KC Singer, Brady 4337 2.0 13.7 20.7 20.7
TB McClanahan, Shane 4399 9.7 26.1 30.8 30.8
HOU Javier, Cristian 4290 5.0 20.7 28.7 28.7
CHC Undecided 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
STL Montgomery, Jordan 3814 6.7 16.1 26.8 32.8
OAK Sears, JP 4627 2.0 7.0 7.0 7.0
COL Freeland, Kyle 3763 5.7 11.7 33.1 39.1
SEA Gilbert, Logan 4439 8.7 22.8 29.8 29.8
ARI Henry, Tommy 4829 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7
TEX Dunning, Dane 4317 1.0 5.4 10.4 10.4
SD Musgrove, Joe 3705 6.0 23.4 53.5 59.2
CIN Williamson, Brandon 4813 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7
LAD Miller, Bobby 4820 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0
BOS Crawford, Kutter 4660 2.0 6.0 6.0 6.0
SF Webb, Logan 4258 7.0 16.7 34.9 34.9
Starters subject to change.
* Player has yet to earn Box-Toppers points.
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