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Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski officially secured 2026 Box-Toppers Player of the Year honors Sunday, earning Player of the Game honors to put the overall season points race completely out of reach.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2026 Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned in the regular season through Sunday, Sept. 20.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Misiorowski | pi sp | Brewers | 25.1 |
| 2 | Jesús Luzardo | pi sp | Phillies | 23.0 |
| 3 | Cam Schlittler | pi sp | Yankees | 21.7 |
| 4 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Blue Jays | 21.4 |
| 5 | Cristopher Sánchez | pi sp | Phillies | 18.7 |
| 6 | Bryan Woo | pi sp | Mariners | 17.4 |
| 7 | Yoshinobu Yamamoto | pi sp | Dodgers | 17.4 |
| 8 | Gavin Williams | pi sp | Guardians | 17.4 |
| 9 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 16.7 |
| 10 | Jacob deGrom | pi sp | Rangers | 16.4 |
Also Sunday:
Dodgers pitcher Emmet Sheehan is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sánchez maintains fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors.
Guardians pitcher Gavin Williams rises to eighth place in season player rankings.
Other Player of the Game winners Sunday include Jake Cronenworth of the Padres and White Sox pitcher Davis Martin.
Player of the Year: Jacob Misiorowski, Brewers
Misiorowski now has 25.1 Box-Toppers points in 2026 after earning 1.0 as Player of the Game Sunday, extending his lead over second-place player, Phillies pitcher Jesús Luzardo (23.0).
Luzardo is currently on the injured list with left shoulder inflammation but is eligible to return Sept. 27, the final day of the regular season. But even if he wins Player of the Day honors (+2.0 points), he would only reach 25.0 points—just short of Misiorowski’s current total.
Misiorowski sealed the season point title in a planned limited outing Sunday, striking out four over three scoreless innings, allowing one hit and no walks in the 3-0 win over the Orioles. He did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because he did not pitch the required five innings to earn the win. However, he did pitch the required three innings to qualify for Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors. He is expected to make one more regular season start Saturday.
Misiorowski’s 25.1 points tie for the 28th-most in a single season since tracking began in 1995, matching Chris Sale (2017) and Max Scherzer (2018, 2021). It is the highest single-season point total since Justin Verlander earned 26.0 points in 2022, and marks only the third time in the 2020s a player has exceeded 25.0 points. It was more common in the 2010s, when players had 25.0 or more points 13 times. It was done nine times in the 2000s and seven times from 1995 (when tracking began) to 1999.
While this is the 32nd time a player has reached 25.0 points in a season, Misiorowski is the 17th different player to reach the milestone and the second Brewers player to reach that mark. However, CC Sabathia, who led all players in 2008 with 26.7 points, began that season with Cleveland before being traded to Milwaukee and earned his final 15.0 points that season with the Brewers.
Player of the Day: Emmet Sheehan, Dodgers
Sheehan struck out nine over 5.1 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk, in the 3-1 win over the Giants. Sheehan, who pitched from the second through the seventh innings, did not earn the win, picking up a no-decision, because the game was tied when he exited.
Sheehan earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 7.0 for the season, 95th among all players and 36th among National League pitchers.
AL Player of the Day: Gavin Williams, Guardians
Williams struck out nine over seven scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 1-0 win over the Athletics.
He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points as American League Player of the Day, giving him 17.4 for the season, rising to eighth overall and fourth among AL pitchers.
NL Batter of the Day: Jake Cronenworth, Padres
Cronenworth homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in five runs, in the 7-3 win over the Marlins.
AL Batter of the Day
There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Sunday because no AL batter won Player of the Game honors in the 15 games completed.
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 |
| 2024 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 21.4 |
| 2025 | Tarik Skubal | pi sp | Tigers | 22.1 |
| 2026 | Jacob Misiorowski | pi sp | Brewers | 25.1†† |
* 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.
†† Misiorowski has secured title in 2026 but could earn additional points.
Rankings: Cristopher Sánchez, Phillies
Sánchez maintains fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday (6.1IP 2H 2R 0BB 6K W in the 7-2 win over the Mets).
He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 18.7 for the season. He ranks third among NL pitchers, behind Jacob Misiorowski of the Brewers (25.1) and Jesús Luzardo of the Phillies (23.0).
Notable: Davis Martin, White Sox
Martin becomes the 34th player to reach 10 Box-Toppers points in 2026 after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday (4.1IP 3H 0R 2BB 6K ND in the 8-1 win over the Tigers).
He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 10.7 for the season, 31st among all players and 15th among AL pitchers.
The fewest 10-point players in a full 162-game season was 38 in 2017, but with less than a week to go, there are 19 players with between 9.0 and 9.7 points who would reach 10.0 points with one more Player of the Game honor.
Two shortened seasons had fewer 10-point players:
1995—32 in a 144-game strike-shortened season.
2020—Two in a 60-game pandemic-shortened season.
Debut
Cardinals relief pitcher Luis Gastelum made his Box-Toppers debut with his first career Player of the Game honor (1IP 0H 0R 0BB 2K W in the 5-3 win over the Nationals). The 2026 rookie made his Major League debut July 8 and was playing in his 31st career game.
Scoring
Sheehan earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points as Player of the Day.
Williams earns 1.7 points as AL Player of the Day.
Cronenworth earns 1.5 points as NL Batter of the Day.
All of Sunday’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).| 9/20 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 12.1 | `LAD 3, SF 1 | Emmet Sheehan | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| AL | 12.0 | CLE 1, ATH 0 | Gavin Williams (W, 14‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| 11.0 | SEA 2, COL 1 | Kade Anderson (W, 2‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 10.0 | MIN 8, LAA 0 | Dean Kremer (W, 4‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | ||
| BAT | 7.0 | SD 7, MIA 3 | Jake Cronenworth 3B‑2B | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| 7.0 | CHC 9, CIN 1 | David Peterson (W, 9‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 6.0 | `MIL 3, BAL 0 | Jacob Misiorowski | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 5.1 | `CHW 8, DET 1 | Davis Martin | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | TB 5, BOS 1 | Griffin Jax (W, 8‑10) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 5.0 | `TOR 7, TEX 2 | Spencer Miles | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 3.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 5.0 | `ATL 4, HOU 2 | AJ Smith‑Shawver (H, 1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | STL 5, WSH 3 | Luis Gastelum (W, 5‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.1 | PHI 7, NYM 2 | Cristopher Sánchez (W, 18‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 2.0 | ARI 8, NYY 4 | Nolan Arenado 3B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| 2.0 | PIT 4, KC 3 | Rafael Flores Jr. C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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 | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Misiorowski, Jacob 5200 | pi sp | mil nl | 25.1 | 31.1 | 31.1 | 31.1 | +19.1 |
| Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | pi sp | phi nl | 18.7 | 34.1 | 49.5 | 49.5 | +3.3 |
| Williams, Gavin 4865 | pi sp | cle al | 17.4 | 29.1 | 36.8 | 36.8 | +5.7 |
| Martin, Davis 4657 | pi sp | chi al | 10.7 | 13.7 | 18.7 | 18.7 | +7.7 |
| Jax, Griffin 4478 | pi sp | tb al | 7.7 | 8.7 | 14.4 | 14.4 | +6.7 |
| Sheehan, Emmet 4886 | pi sp | lad nl | 7.0 | 10.0 | 14.7 | 14.7 | +4.0 |
| Peterson, David 4347 | pi mr cp sp | chi nl | 6.7 | 12.4 | 28.1 | 30.1 | +1.0 |
| Arenado, Nolan 3306 | 3b | ari nl | 6.2 | 7.2 | 28.2 | 73.1 | +5.2 |
| Miles, Spencer 5357 | pi mr | tor al | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | +6.0 |
| Kremer, Dean 4330 | pi sp | min al | 4.0 | 11.7 | 39.8 | 41.5 | -3.7 |
| Flores, Rafael Jr. 5438 | 1b ca ph | pit nl | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | +3.5 |
| Anderson, Kade 5471 | pi sp | sea al | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | +2.0 |
| Cronenworth, Jake 4380 | 3b 2b | sd nl | 1.5 | 2.5 | 17.5 | 17.5 | +0.5 |
| Smith-Shawver, AJ 4951 | pi mr sp | atl nl | 1.0 | 5.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 | -3.7 |
| Gastelum, Luis 5481 | pi mr | stl 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 Monday’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), this year and last year ('25-26), over six years ('21-26), and their career point total.Back to top
| Game | Starter | ’26 | ’25‑26 | ’21‑26 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOR | Yesavage, Trey 5287 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| BAL | Baz, Shane 4560 | 4.0 | 14.7 | 20.4 | 20.4 |
| WSH | Herz, DJ 5032 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| DET | Ryan, River 5071 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| MIN | Matthews, Zebby 5186 | 7.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 |
| SF | Tidwell, Blade 5305 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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