Box-Toppers Toppers Box
Today’s key Box-Toppers numbers. Click links to jump to charts elsewhere on this page.▪️ Players of the Game
▪️ B-T points of day’s top players
▪️ Top 10 players in 2026
▪️ Upcoming pitching matchups
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Phillies pitcher Jesús Luzardo is Saturday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Other Player of the Game winners Saturday include Astros pitcher Tatsuya Imai, Garrett Mitchell of the Brewers and Matt Vierling of the Tigers.
Player of the Day: Jesús Luzardo, Phillies
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2026 Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned in the regular season through Saturday, April 4.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Fried | pi sp | Yankees | 4.0 |
| 2 | Cristopher Sánchez | pi sp | Phillies | 3.0 |
| 3 | Sandy Alcantara | pi sp | Marlins | 3.0 |
| 4 | Chris Sale | pi sp | Braves | 2.7 |
| 5 | Taj Bradley | pi cp | Twins | 2.7 |
| 6 | Joey Wiemer | rf | Nationals | 2.7 |
| 7 | Bryan Woo | pi sp | Mariners | 2.0 |
| 8 | Jesús Luzardo | pi sp | Phillies | 2.0 |
| 9 | Kevin Gausman | pi sp | Blue Jays | 2.0 |
| 10 | Jose Soriano | pi sp | Angels | 2.0 |
Luzardo struck out 11 over 6 2/3 innings, allowing one run, five hits and no walks, in the 2-1 win over the Rockies.
Luzardo earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, his first points of the season, and is eighth in season player rankings. Luzardo earned 17.4 Box-Toppers points in 2025, eighth overall and fifth among National League pitchers.
AL Player of the Day: Tatsuya Imai, Astros
Imai struck out nine over 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and three walks, in the 11-0 win over the Athletics.
Imai earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being American League Player of the Day, his first points of the season, and is 24th in season player rankings.
This was Imai’s Box-Toppers debut, his first career Player of the Game honor. Imai made his Major League debut March 29 and was playing in his second career game.
Imai, 27, played for the Saitama Seibu Lions in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league from 2018 to 2025 and was selected as an NPB All-Star three times. In January, he signed a three-year, $54 million deal to join the Astros.
NL Batter of the Day: Garrett Mitchell, Brewers
Mitchell hit a three-run home run, doubled and went 2-for-4, scoring once and driving in five runs,in the 5-2 win over the Royals.
AL Batter of the Day: Matt Vierling, Tigers
Vierling hit a home run and a sacrifice fly, in the 11-6 win over the Cardinals. He went 1-for-2, scoring once and driving in three runs.
Debut
In addition to Imai, two other players also made their Box-Toppers debut Saturday with their first career Player of the Game honor:
Munetaka Murakami of the White Sox (HR SF 1-3 R 3BI in the 6-4 win over the Blue Jays) made his Major League debut March 26 and was playing in his eighth career game. Murakami, 26, played for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in Japan’s NPB from 2019 to 2025 (including hitting 56 home runs in 2022). He signed a 2-year, $34 million contract in December to join the White Sox.
Nick Yorke of the Pirates (2B 1-1 R BI in the 3-2 win over the Orioles) made his Major League debut Sept. 16, 2024, and was playing in his 38th career game.
Saturday’s Sidelights Sidebar
Box-Toppers review of the day’s top pitchers, overlooked top performers & lowest B-T game scores:
⬛ Elder strikes out 8 over 7 innings, but is not B-T Player of the Game in Braves loss to D-backs
Scoring
Luzardo earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day.
Imai earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day.
Mitchell and Vierling each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Saturday’s other Player of the Game winners (listed in the chart) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers 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).| 4/4 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | +10.2 | PHI 2, COL 1 | Jesús Luzardo (W, 1‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | |
| AL | +8.2 | HOU 11, ATH 0 | Tatsuya Imai (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | |
| +8.0 | TB 7, MIN 1 | Steven Matz (W, 2‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| +6.2 | LAA 1, SEA 0 | Jack Kochanowicz (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | ||
| +6.0 | NYM 9, SF 0 | Clay Holmes (W, 2‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| +6.0 | KC 8, MIL 2 | Eli Morgan (S, 1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| +5.0 | LAD 10, WSH 5 | Tyler Glasnow (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | ||
| +5.0 | CIN 2, TEX 0 | Rhett Lowder (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| BAT | +4.0 | MIL 5, KC 2 | Garrett Mitchell CF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +4.0 | SD 3, BOS 2 | Mason Miller (S, 3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| BAT | +3.0 | DET 11, STL 6 | Matt Vierling PH‑RF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| +3.0 | ARI 2, ATL 1 | Paul Sewald (S, 3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| +2.0 | CHW 6, TOR 3 | Munetaka Murakami 1B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | NYY 9, MIA 7 | Cody Bellinger LF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| +2.0 | PIT 3, BAL 2 | Nick Yorke PR‑DH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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 2026 (’26). Also shown is their point total for this season and last (’25-26), the period 2021-2026 (’21-26) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2026 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2025 total (+/-).Back to top
| Player of the Game | Pos | Team | ’26 | ’25‑26 | ’21‑26 | Career | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luzardo, Jesus 4282 | pi sp | phi nl | 2.0 | 19.4 | 50.6 | 55.3 | -15.4 |
| Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | pi sp | lad nl | 2.0 | 7.0 | 43.8 | 67.5 | -3.0 |
| Imai, Tatsua 5308 | pi sp | hou al | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | +1.7 |
| Vierling, Matt 4652 | rf 3b ph | det al | 1.5 | 2.5 | 15.5 | 15.5 | +0.5 |
| Mitchell, Garrett 4723 | cf | mil nl | 1.5 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | +1.5 |
| Miller, Mason 4975 | pi cp | sd nl | 1.0 | 8.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | -6.0 |
| Bellinger, Cody 3781 | lf | nyy al | 1.0 | 6.9 | 18.6 | 39.5 | -4.9 |
| Holmes, Clay 4022 | pi sp | nym nl | 1.0 | 6.0 | 18.0 | 19.0 | -4.0 |
| Kochanowicz, Jack 5094 | pi sp | ana al | 1.0 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | -1.0 |
| Matz, Steven 3516 | pi cp sp | tb al | 1.0 | 3.0 | 20.1 | 52.4 | -1.0 |
| Sewald, Paul 3940 | pi cp mr | ari nl | 1.0 | 2.0 | 17.0 | 18.0 | 0.0 |
| Morgan, Eli 4497 | pi cp mr | kc al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 9.4 | 9.4 | +1.0 |
| Lowder, Rhett 5107 | pi sp | cin nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +1.0 |
| Murakami, Munetaka 5309 | 1b | chi al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
| Yorke, Nick 5310 | dh pr | pit nl | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 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 | ’25‑26 | ’21‑26 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHC | Cabrera, Edward 4641 | 1.0 | 12.7 | 24.8 | 24.8 |
| CLE | Cecconi, Slade 4913 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 9.0 | 9.0 |
| BAL | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 59.5 | 78.6 |
| PIT | Ashcraft, Braxton 5208 | 0.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| LAD | Sasaki, Roki* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| WSH | Griffin, Foster* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| MIA | Paddack, Chris 4093 | 0.0 | 5.0 | 17.7 | 36.5 |
| NYY | Fried, Max 4011 | 4.0 | 18.4 | 68.6 | 85.3 |
| SD | Buehler, Walker 3943 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 28.4 | 65.6 |
| BOS | Suarez, Ranger 4228 | 0.0 | 15.8 | 43.9 | 44.9 |
| MIL | Harrison, Kyle 4914 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 |
| KC | Bubic, Kris 4413 | 1.0 | 9.7 | 14.7 | 14.7 |
| TB | Martinez, Nick 3430 | 0.0 | 6.7 | 28.8 | 35.5 |
| MIN | Woods Richardson, Simeon 4974 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 9.7 |
| TOR | Lauer, Eric 4017 | 1.0 | 11.0 | 28.4 | 41.8 |
| CHW | Martin, Davis 4657 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| CIN | Burns, Chase 5301 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| TEX | Leiter, Jack 5132 | 1.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| PHI | Walker, Taijuan 3453 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 29.8 | 62.2 |
| COL | Sugano, Tomoyuki 5163 | 0.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| HOU | McCullers, Lance 3488 | 1.7 | 3.7 | 17.8 | 53.4 |
| ATH | Lopez, Jacob 5202 | 0.0 | 11.4 | 11.4 | 11.4 |
| NYM | Senga, Kodai 4762 | 0.0 | 8.0 | 21.7 | 21.7 |
| SF | Webb, Logan 4258 | 0.0 | 9.0 | 57.6 | 60.3 |
| SEA | Castillo, Luis Miguel 3840 | 1.0 | 17.1 | 62.9 | 98.7 |
| LAA | Johnson, Ryan* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| ATL | Perez, Martin 3213 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 22.2 | 41.9 |
| ARI | Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 | 0.0 | 7.7 | 23.8 | 23.8 |
| CHC | Imanaga, Shota 4960 | 0.0 | 7.0 | 27.7 | 27.7 |
| CLE | Messick Parker 5266 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| STL | Leahy, Kyle 5001 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| DET | Montero, Keider 5057 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 8.7 | 8.7 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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