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Athletics pitcher Jacob Lopez is Box-Toppers Player of the Day in Saturday’s spring training games.
Other top players Saturday include Brandon Nimmo of the Rangers, Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal, Bryce Elder of the Braves and Freddy Fermin of the Padres.
Player of the Day: Jacob Lopez, Athletics
Lopez struck out seven over four scoreless and hitless innings, allowing one walk, in the 12-1 win over the Royals.
Lopez earned 11.4 Box-Toppers points in 2025, most among American League rookies and was Box-Toppers’ choice for AL Rookie of the Year. But he was not even among the 15 rookies who received votes from baseball writers for AL top rookie; the award went to teammate first baseman Nick Kurtz, whose 4.5 Box-Toppers points were tied for 12th among AL rookies.
Lopez’s overall statistics for 2025 were not overly impressive (7-7 win-loss record, 4.08 ERA). But on a game-by-game basis, he won Player of the Game honors in eight of the 21 games in which he pitched, with his 11.4 points leading all Athletics players and ranking 18th among AL pitchers.
NL Player of the Day: Bryce Elder, Braves
Elder struck out six over five innings, allowing one run, one hit and two walks, in the 10-1 win over the Red Sox. Elder did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the Braves trailed when he exited.
Elder earned 5.0 Box-Toppers points in 2025, 63rd among National League pitchers.
AL Batter of the Day: Brandon Nimmo, Rangers
Nimmo hit two home runs, doubled and went 4-for-4, scoring five times and driving in four runs, in the 22-2 win over the Padres.
The Rangers acquired the 32-year-old outfielder from the Mets in November in a one-for-one trade for second baseman Marcus Semien, 35. Nimmo earned 5.5 Box-Toppers points in 2025 with the Mets, 29th among NL batters, while Semien earned 3.0 points in 2025 for the Rangers, 66th among AL batters.
NL Batter of the Day: Freddy Fermin, Padres
Fermin homered and went 2-for-2, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 8-5 win over the Guardians.
Fermin earned 1.5 Box-Toppers points in 2025 for the Padres, 127th among NL batters. He was traded from the Royals at the 2025 trade deadline.
This is his second Box-Toppers Player of the Game honor of the 2026 spring training season. He also did it March 5 in the 27-6 win over the Mariners, when he won overall Player of the Day honors (HR 3-3 3R 6BI).
Notable: Tarik Skubal, Tigers
Skubal has the most 2025 Box-Toppers points among Saturday’s spring training Player of the Game winners.
Skubal (4.2IP 3H R 0BB 7K W in the 8-1 win over the Blue Jays) earned 22.1 Box-Toppers points in 2025, leading all players and winning Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors.
Saturday’s games
In 17 spring training games between two Major League teams:
Twelve games featured Player of the Game winners with previous career Box-Toppers points; 10 of those earned points in 2025 (see table).
Four games featured Player of the Game winners with 0.0 career regular-season Box-Toppers points.
One game ended in a tie (Cardinals vs. Marlins); no Player of the Game honors awarded.
(Excludes World Baseball Classic games.)
Saturday’s Scoring Summary
No official Box-Toppers points are awarded for preseason exhibition games. Had this been the regular season, points would have been awarded as follows:
Jacob Lopez, Athletics: 2.0 points (Player of the Day)
Bryce Elder, Braves: 1.7 points (NL Player of the Day)
Brandon Nimmo, Rangers: 1.5 points (AL Batter of the Day)
Freddy Fermin, Padres: 1.5 points (NL Batter of the Day)
All other winners, listed in the chart: 1.0 point
About Box-Toppers
Box-Toppers tracks who contributes most to their team’s victory. Using standard box score statistics, we identify the Player of the Game for every MLB contest. In the regular season, winners earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point, with bonus points awarded to the top overall and league-specific players of the day. More on how Box-Toppers works.
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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).| 3/14 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +10.0 | ATH 12, KC 1 | Jacob Lopez (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| BAT | +9.0 | TEX 22, SD 2 | Brandon Nimmo RF | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +6.2 | DET 6, TOR 1 | Tarik Skubal (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||
| NL | +6.0 | `ATL 10, BOS 1 | Bryce Elder | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |
| +6.0 | `COL 4, CHC 3 | Kyle Freeland | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| BAT | +5.0 | SD 8, CLE 5 | Freddy Fermin C | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +4.0 | ARI 8, SF 7 | Jacob Amaya 2B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | HOU 8, NYM 2 | Yordan Alvarez LF | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +4.0 | LAA 6, SEA 2 | Walbert Urena (W, 2‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| +4.0 | `MIA 4, WSH 1 | Michael Petersen (H, 4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +3.0 | MIL 8, COL 4 | David Hamilton 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | TB 9, MIN 6 | Kenny Piper C | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +3.0 | CIN 4, TEX 3 | Michael Toglia 1B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.2 | CHW 7, LAD 2 | Mike Vasil (W, 2‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| +2.0 | PIT 8, BAL 6 | Henry Davis C | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | `PHI 6, NYY 4 | Bryse Wilson | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 0.0 | STL 7, MIA 7 (F/8) | N/A | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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.
N/A—Not applicable. No Player of the Game was chosen because the game ended in a tie.
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. No points are awarded during spring training games, so all players have 0.0 Box-Toppers points for 2026. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total in 2025 (’25). Also shown is their point total for the period 2021-2025 (’21-25) and each players’ career point total. (Player of the Game winners not listed here have yet to earn Box-Toppers points during the regular season.)Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’26 | ’25 | ’21‑25 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skubal, Tarik 4414 | pi sp | det al | 0.0 | 22.1 | 73.3 | 73.3 |
| Lopez, Jacob 5202 | pi sp | oak al | 0.0 | 11.4 | 11.4 | 11.4 |
| Nimmo, Brandon 3895 | lf | tex al | 0.0 | 5.5 | 15.0 | 23.9 |
| Elder, Bryce 4709 | pi sp | atl nl | 0.0 | 5.0 | 19.7 | 19.7 |
| Freeland, Kyle 3763 | pi sp | col nl | 0.0 | 4.0 | 24.7 | 45.1 |
| Vasil, Mike 5187 | pi mr cp | chi al | 0.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Fermin, Freddy 4862 | ca dh | sd nl | 0.0 | 1.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 |
| Alvarez, Yordan 4209 | lf dh | hou al | 0.0 | 1.0 | 30.7 | 34.2 |
| Hamilton, David 5030 | 2b ss | mil nl | 0.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Toglia, Michael 5038 | 1b | cin nl | 0.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Wilson, Bryse 4048 | pi mr | phi nl | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.7 | 10.7 |
| Davis, Henry 4973 | ca | pit nl | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Sunday’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 2026 (’26)†, last year (’25), over five years (’21-25), and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’26† | ’25 | ’21‑25 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WSH | Mikolas, Miles 3034 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 29.8 | 47.2 |
| STL | Fitts, Richard* | 0.0 | 6.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 |
| PIT | Urquidy, Jose 4194 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 18.4 | 23.1 |
| TB | McClanahan, Shane 4399 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 30.8 | 30.8 |
| MIN | Matthews, Zebby 5186 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| BOS | Keller, Kyle* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| ATL | Suarez, Jose 4425 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 18.4 | 18.4 |
| PHI | Walker, Taijuan 3453 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 29.8 | 62.2 |
| MIA | Perez, Eury 4814 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 |
| HOU | Javier, Cristian 4290 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 31.4 | 33.4 |
| DET | Valdez, Framber 4048 | 0.0 | 11.7 | 58.1 | 68.5 |
| NYY | Gil, Luis 4498 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 19.4 | 19.4 |
| TOR | Rogers, Tyler 4251 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 6.7 | 7.7 |
| NYM | Thornton, Zach* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LAD | Sheehan, Emmet 4886 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| CHC | Taillon, Jameson 3658 | 0.0 | 10.1 | 43.2 | 69.6 |
| ATH | Perkins, Jack 5225 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| CLE | Bibee, Tanner 4792 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 29.7 | 29.7 |
| TEX | Supak, Trey* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LAD | Ryan, River 5071 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| CHW | Smith, Hagen* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| KC | Ragans, Cole 4889 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 23.4 | 23.4 |
| MIL | Drohan, Shane* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| SF | Ray, Robbie 3502 | 0.0 | 9.4 | 45.2 | 89.3 |
| COL | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| LAA | Gordon, Austin* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| SD | Vasquez, Randy 4841 | 0.0 | 5.4 | 8.4 | 8.4 |
| ARI | Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 | 0.0 | 7.7 | 23.8 | 23.8 |
| CIN | Williamson, Brandon 4813 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| SEA | Kirby, George 4595 | 0.0 | 11.0 | 51.5 | 51.5 |
| NYY | Blackburn, Paul 3869 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 13.7 | 16.7 |
| BAL | Eflin, Zach 3679 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 30.1 | 54.2 |
Games shown are spring training games between MLB teams. Doesn't include games vs. non-MLB teams.
† Players don’t earn Box-Toppers points in spring training games, only regular season games, so no pitcher has earned any points in 2026.
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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