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Cam Schlittler leads all Box-Toppers Player of the Game winners in Tuesday's opening Wild Card playoff action. Joining him as Tuesday's Players of the Game: Padres pitcher Michael King, Braves pitcher Chris Sale, and White Sox relief pitcher Grant Taylor.
AL Wild Card Game 1: Yankees 9, Red Sox 0
(Yankees lead series, 1-0)
Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler struck out 10 over 6.1 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk.
Schlittler 2026 Regular Season: 21.7 Box-Toppers points (3rd overall, 1st among AL pitchers).
Game Scores: Schlittler earned a Tuesday-high +13.1 Box-Toppers game score. Top Yankees batter Ben Rice earned a +7.0 game score (2HR 2B 4-5 2R 6BI). Red Sox starter Payton Tolle took the loss with a +0.2 game score (4.2IP 5H R BB 4K).
NL Wild Card Game 1: Padres 8, Cubs 0
(Padres lead series, 1-0)
Padres pitcher Michael King struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and three walks. King carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning before giving up a single to Nico Hoerner.
King 2026 Regular Season: 7.0 Box-Toppers points (35th among NL pitchers).
Game Scores: King posted a +11.0 Box-Toppers game score. Top Padres batter Manny Machado recorded a +3.0 game score (HR 2B 2-3 2R 2BI). Cubs starter Matthew Boyd took the loss with a -6.0 game score (4IP 5H R BB 4K L).
NL Wild Card Game 1: Braves 5, Phillies 3
(Braves lead series, 1-0)
Braves pitcher Chris Sale struck out nine over 6.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk. Sale did not earn the win (no-decision) because Atlanta trailed when he exited, but earned Player of the Game honors as the Braves rallied.
Sale 2026 Regular Season & Career: 15.4 Box-Toppers points in 2026 (16th overall, 10th among NL pitchers). His 199.2 career Box-Toppers points rank ninth among all players since tracking began in 1995 (third among active players and first among active NL pitchers).
Game Scores: Sale posted a +4.1 Box-Toppers game score. Top Braves batter Michael Harris II recorded a +2.0 game score (SAC 3-3 2R 0BI). Phillies starter Jesús Luzardo had a +5.0 game score in the loss (5IP 3H R BB 6K ND).
AL Wild Card Game 1: White Sox 6, Astros 3
(White Sox lead series, 1-0)
White Sox closing pitcher Grant Taylor struck out five over 2.1 innings, allowing one run (unearned) on two hits and one walk.
Taylor entered in the seventh inning with a four-run lead (6-2), so he did not meet standard save criteria (entering with a lead of three or fewer). However, he earned Player of the Game honors because he had a higher game score and more innings pitched than the pitcher who otherwise would have been Player of the Game. Taylor’s +3.1 game score and 2.1 innings pitched topped pitcher Jordan Hicks (+2.1 game score, 1.1IP 0H 0R 0BB K W).
Taylor 2026 Regular Season: 4.0 Box-Toppers points (82nd among AL pitchers, 10th among AL middle relievers).
Game Scores: White Sox opener Hagen Smith had a +2.0 game score (3IP 2H 0R 0BB K ND). Top White Sox batter Sam Antonacci had a +1.0 game score (1-3 R 2BI). Astros opener JJ Blubaugh took the loss with a -3.8 game score (0.2IP 0H R 0ER 3BB 0K L). Astros reliever Miguel Ullola led all players in the game with a +4.0 game score (3IP H R 0BB 4K ND).
All of Tuesday’s Player of the Game winners are listed in the chart.
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).| 9/29 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13.1 | NYY 9, BOS 0 | Cam Schlittler (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 11.0 | SD 8, CHC 0 | Michael King (W, 1‑0) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | ||
| 4.1 | `ATL 5, PHI 3 | Chris Sale | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 3.1 | `CHW 6, HOU 3 | Grant Taylor | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
` 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 | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schlittler, Cam 5261 | pi sp | nyy al | 21.7 | 29.1 | 29.1 | 29.1 | +14.3 |
| Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | atl nl | 15.4 | 26.8 | 56.6 | 199.2 | +4.0 |
| King, Michael 4549 | pi sp | sd nl | 7.0 | 11.4 | 38.8 | 38.8 | +2.6 |
| Taylor, Grant 5207 | pi mr | chi al | 4.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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Wednesday’s pitching matchups (for more, see matchups chart below):
NL Wild Card Game 2, Braves lead Phillies, 1-0
Phillies—Cristopher Sánchez, 18.7 Box-Toppers points in 2026, sixth among all players, fourth among NL pitchers.
Braves—Tyler Mahle, 9.1 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 52nd among all players, 22nd among NL pitchers.
More details—Previews of all four Wild Card series
AL Wild Card Game 2, White Sox lead Astros, 1-0
White Sox—Sean Burke, 13.1 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 22nd among all players, 10th among AL pitchers.
Astros—Hunter Brown, 5.0 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 165th among all players, 62nd among AL pitchers.
More details—Previews of all four Wild Card series
AL Wild Card Game 2, Yankees lead Red Sox, 1-0
Red Sox—Sonny Gray, 14.0 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 21st among all players, ninth among AL pitchers.
Yankees—Max Fried, 12.0 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 24th among all players, 11th among AL pitchers.
More details—Previews of all four Wild Card series
NL Wild Card Game 2, Padres lead Cubs, 1-0
Cubs—Kevin Gausman, 8.0 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 72nd among all players, 31st among NL pitchers.
Padres—Nick Pivetta, 4.7 Box-Toppers points in 2026, 194th among all players, 60th among NL pitchers.
A Box-Toppers look at Wednesday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PHI | Sanchez, Cristopher 4850 | 18.7 | 34.1 | 49.5 | 49.5 |
| ATL | Mahle, Tyler 3929 | 9.1 | 14.8 | 35.2 | 47.2 |
| CHW | Burke, Sean 5124 | 13.1 | 16.8 | 17.8 | 17.8 |
| HOU | Brown, Hunter 4729 | 5.0 | 18.4 | 41.5 | 41.5 |
| BOS | Gray, Sonny 3259 | 14.0 | 28.0 | 69.3 | 138.3 |
| NYY | Fried, Max 4011 | 12.0 | 26.4 | 76.6 | 93.3 |
| CHC | Gausman, Kevin 3191 | 8.0 | 22.1 | 77.2 | 120.2 |
| SD | Pivetta, Nick 3825 | 4.7 | 22.4 | 53.8 | 76.5 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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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. (No Box-Toppers points are awarded in postseason games.) More on how Box-Toppers works.
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