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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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Pirates pitcher Jared Jones is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Other Player of the Game winners Friday include Astros pitcher Cristian Javier, Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell, Brayan Rocchio of the Guardians, Brice Turang of the Brewers and Padres closing pitcher Mason Miller.
Player of the Day: Jared Jones, Pirates
Jones struck out nine over six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk, in the 1-0 win over the Angels.
Jones earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, bringing his season total to 5.7, 129th among all players and 43rd among National League pitchers.
AL Player of the Day: Cristian Javier, Astros
Javier struck out eight over five innings, allowing one run, one hit and three walks, in the 3-1 win over the Diamondbacks.
Javier earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points as American League Player of the Day, giving him 3.7 for the season, 80th among AL pitchers.
AL Batter of the Day: Brayan Rocchio, Guardians
Rocchio hit two home runs, a game-tying, fourth-inning grand slam and a walk-off, game-winning, ninth-inning solo homer, in the 7-6 win over the Tigers. Rocchio went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five runs.
He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points as AL Batter of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, 21st among AL batters.
Friday’s Sidelights Sidebar
Box-Toppers review of the day's top pitchers, overlooked top performers & lowest B-T game scores:
⬛ Giants’ Devers records highest game score among Friday’s non-Player of the Game winners
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2026 Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned in the regular season through Friday, Sept. 4.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Misiorowski | pi sp | Brewers | 21.4 |
| 2 | Jesús Luzardo | pi sp | Phillies | 21.0 |
| 3 | Dylan Cease | pi sp | Blue Jays | 20.4 |
| 4 | Cam Schlittler | pi sp | Yankees | 18.7 |
| 5 | Cristopher Sánchez | pi sp | Phillies | 17.7 |
| 6 | Braxton Ashcraft | pi sp | Pirates | 16.4 |
| 7 | Gavin Williams | pi sp | Guardians | 15.7 |
| 8 | Shohei Ohtani | pi sp dh | Dodgers | 15.7 |
| 9 | Jacob deGrom | pi sp | Rangers | 15.4 |
| 10 | Bryan Woo | pi sp | Mariners | 14.4 |
NL Batter of the Day: Brice Turang, Brewers
Turang doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 10-7 win over the Reds.
He earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points as NL Batter of the Day, giving him 4.7 for the season, 34th among NL batters.
Notable: Mason Miller, Padres
Miller has the most 2026 Box-Toppers points among Friday’s Player of the Game winners (2IP H 0R 0BB 2K W in the 3-2, 10-inning win over the Yankees). He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.0 for the season, 18th among all players, 10th among NL pitchers and first among all closing pitchers, ahead of second-place Jacob Latz of the Rangers (8.0 points).
Also notable: Blake Snell, Dodgers
Snell now has 116.5 career Box-Toppers points, 61st-most among all players since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995, after earning Player of the Game honors Friday (6IP 5H 0R 2BB 7K W in the 5-3 win over the Nationals).
With his 1.0 point Friday, he passes two players on the “all-time” career points list—Torii Hunter (115.9) and Todd Helton (116.4). He now trails 60th-ranked player Mark Buehrle (116.7).
Snell ranks 11th among active, signed players in career points, sixth among active NL pitchers.
He has 4.7 points in 2026, 56th among NL pitchers.
Debut
Sean Keys of the Blue Jays made his Box-Toppers debut Friday with his first career Player of the Game honor (HR 1-1 R BI in the 9-2 win over the Royals). The 2026 rookie made his Major League debut June 27 and was playing in his 15th career game.
Scoring
Jones earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points as Player of the Day.
Javier earns 1.7 points as AL Player of the Day.
Rocchio and Turang each earn 1.5 points as their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Friday’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.
Help us stay accurate! Spot a mistake? Contact Box-Toppers here so we can fix it.
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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).| 9/4 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 11.0 | PIT 1, LAA 0 | Jared Jones (W, 3‑6) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| AL | 7.0 | HOU 3, ARI 1 | Cristian Javier (W, 2‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | |
| 6.0 | LAD 5, WSH 3 | Blake Snell (W, 3‑1) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | ||
| BAT | 5.0 | CLE 7, DET 6 | Brayan Rocchio SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| 5.0 | CHC 6, MIA 1 | Shota Imanaga (W, 9‑10) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | MIL 10, CIN 7 | Brice Turang 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| 4.0 | BOS 1, BAL 0 | Ranger Suarez (W, 6‑4) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | SD 3, NYY 2 (F/10) | Mason Miller (W, 5‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | CLE 4, DET 3 (F/10) | Hunter Gaddis (W, 3‑3) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | NYM 10, SF 6 | Bo Bichette 3B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| 3.0 | ATL 5, PHI 2 | Raisel Iglesias (S, 30) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | TB 7, TEX 6 | Jonathan Aranda 1B | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| 2.0 | TOR 9, KC 2 | Sean Keys 1B | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| 2.0 | CHW 4, MIN 1 | Erick Fedde (W, 8‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | STL 7, COL 6 | Riley O’Brien (S, 36) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | ATH 7, SEA 6 | Zack Gelof 3B | 5 | 2 | 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 | +/‑ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miller, Mason 4975 | pi cp | sd nl | 13.0 | 20.0 | 25.0 | 25.0 | +6.0 |
| Fedde, Erick 4065 | pi sp mr | chi al | 8.7 | 11.4 | 33.9 | 38.6 | +6.0 |
| Suarez, Ranger 4228 | pi sp | bos al | 8.0 | 23.8 | 51.9 | 52.9 | -7.8 |
| Imanaga, Shota 4960 | pi sp | chi nl | 8.0 | 15.0 | 35.7 | 35.7 | +1.0 |
| O’Brien, Riley 5280 | pi cp | stl nl | 6.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | +4.0 |
| Bichette, Bo 4233 | ss 3b | nym nl | 6.0 | 7.5 | 23.0 | 24.5 | +4.5 |
| Jones, Jared 4956 | pi sp | pit nl | 5.7 | 5.7 | 12.7 | 12.7 | +5.7 |
| Rocchio, Brayan 5100 | ss | cle al | 5.0 | 6.5 | 8.0 | 8.0 | +3.5 |
| Snell, Blake 3688 | pi sp | lad nl | 4.7 | 11.7 | 66.6 | 116.5 | -2.3 |
| Turang, Brice 4779 | 2b | mil nl | 4.7 | 6.7 | 9.7 | 9.7 | +2.7 |
| Javier, Cristian 4290 | pi mr sp | hou al | 3.7 | 5.4 | 35.1 | 37.1 | +2.0 |
| Iglesias, Raisel 3467 | pi cp mr | atl nl | 3.0 | 4.0 | 16.0 | 37.7 | +2.0 |
| Aranda, Jonathan 4926 | 1b | tb al | 2.7 | 3.7 | 6.2 | 6.2 | +1.7 |
| Gelof, Zack 4881 | 2b | oak al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 7.5 | 7.5 | +1.0 |
| Gaddis, Hunter 4764 | pi cp mr | cle al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | +1.0 |
| Keys, Sean 5465 | 1b | tor al | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | +1.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Saturday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHC | Assad, Javier 4899 | 5.0 | 7.0 | 17.7 | 17.7 |
| MIA | Gusto, Ryan 5156 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| SF | Molina, Anthony 5112 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| NYM | Thornton, Zac 5414 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| ATL | Perez, Martin 3213 | 7.4 | 9.1 | 29.6 | 49.3 |
| PHI | Wheeler, Zack 3204 | 14.0 | 34.1 | 105.7 | 139.1 |
| DET | Valdez, Framber 4048 | 7.7 | 19.4 | 65.8 | 76.2 |
| CLE | Messick Parker 5266 | 9.7 | 10.7 | 10.7 | 10.7 |
| LAA | Kikuchi, Yusei 4136 | 0.0 | 7.7 | 40.1 | 45.8 |
| PIT | Ashcraft, Braxton 5208 | 16.4 | 21.1 | 21.1 | 21.1 |
| MIL | May, Dustin 4214 | 6.7 | 12.4 | 20.1 | 24.1 |
| CIN | Abbott, Andrew 4839 | 1.0 | 11.7 | 27.7 | 27.7 |
| BOS | Gray, Sonny 3259 | 12.0 | 26.0 | 67.3 | 136.3 |
| BAL | Bassitt, Chris 3413 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 60.5 | 79.6 |
| TB | Rasmussen, Drew 4547 | 13.0 | 22.7 | 44.2 | 44.2 |
| TEX | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | 15.4 | 26.4 | 61.2 | 166.6 |
| MIN | Bradley, Taj 4780 | 14.4 | 20.4 | 37.5 | 37.5 |
| CHW | Kay, Anthony 4285 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 |
| TOR | Scherzer, Max 2588 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 58.5 | 259.7 |
| KC | Lugo, Seth 3729 | 2.0 | 7.0 | 29.5 | 45.5 |
| ARI | Pfaadt, Brandon 4812 | 3.7 | 11.4 | 27.5 | 27.5 |
| HOU | Pecko, Ethan* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| NYY | Rodon, Carlos 3494 | 1.7 | 15.4 | 60.6 | 85.7 |
| SD | Ray, Robbie 3502 | 7.4 | 16.8 | 52.6 | 96.7 |
| STL | Liberatore, Matthew 4662 | 7.7 | 13.7 | 20.7 | 20.7 |
| COL | Adams, Mason* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| WSH | Cavalli, Cade 5244 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 | 11.7 |
| LAD | Glasnow, Tyler 3948 | 6.7 | 11.7 | 48.5 | 72.2 |
| ATH | Springs, Jeffrey 4372 | 4.0 | 12.7 | 35.1 | 35.1 |
| SEA | Kirby, George 4595 | 7.0 | 18.0 | 58.5 | 58.5 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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