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 Monday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, passing Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski for the lead in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in 2026 Box-Toppers points (BTP) earned in the regular season through Monday, Sept. 7.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jesús Luzardo | pi sp | Phillies | 23.0 |
| 2 | Jacob Misiorowski | pi sp | Brewers | 21.4 |
| 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 | Bryan Woo | pi sp | Mariners | 16.4 |
| 7 | Braxton Ashcraft | pi sp | Pirates | 16.4 |
| 8 | Zack Wheeler | pi sp | Phillies | 15.7 |
| 9 | Gavin Williams | pi sp | Guardians | 15.7 |
| 10 | Shohei Ohtani | pi sp dh | Dodgers | 15.7 |
Other Player of the Game winners Monday include Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello, Henry Bolte of the Athletics, Riley Greene of the Tigers and A.J. Ewing of the Mets.
Player of the Day: Jesús Luzardo, Phillies
Luzardo pitched a complete-game, two-hit shutout, striking out 12 and walking one, in the 1-0 win over the Braves.
Luzardo earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points as Player of the Day, bringing his season total to 23.0 and moving him from second to first overall, ahead of Misiorowski (21.4), who has led since July 26. Luzardo takes the lead among National League pitchers from Misiorowski, who falls to second place.
This is the first time in 2026 Luzardo has led overall season Box-Toppers points and only the second time in his career—he led for two days early in the 2023 season when he was with the Marlins (April 5 and 6, when he had 3.7 points).
Luzardo’s 23.0 Box-Toppers points are the most by any player in a season since 2022 when Justin Verlander had 26.0 and Shohei Ohtani had 24.7.
Luzardo recorded a +18.0 Box-Toppers game score Monday, third-highest among 2026 Player of the Game winners, behind only these two:
+23.0 by Misiorowski on June 12 (CG H 0R 0BB 15K W in the 6-0 win over the Phillies).
+19.0 by Angels pitcher Reid Detmers on May 24 (8IP H R 0BB 14K ND in the 2-1 win over the Rangers).
AL Player of the Day: Brayan Bello, Red Sox
Bello struck out seven over five scoreless innings, allowing four hits and two walks, in the 5-2 win over the Angels.
Bello earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points as American League Player of the Day, giving him 6.1 for the season, 43rd among AL pitchers.
Monday’s Sidelights Sidebar
Box-Toppers review of the day's top pitchers, overlooked top performers & lowest B-T game scores:
⬛ Royals’ Cameron posts best game score among Monday’s non-Player of the Game winners
AL Batter of the Day: Henry Bolte, Athletics
Bolte homered and went 1-for-2, scoring three times and driving in one run, in the 6-5 win over the Blue Jays.
NL Batter of the Day: A.J. Ewing, Mets
Ewing doubled and went 3-for-5, driving in three runs, in the 9-4 win over the Marlins.
Notable: Riley Greene, Tigers
Greene rises to second place among AL batters in 2026 Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Monday (HR 3-4 R 2BI in the 5-4 win over the Twins).
He earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, bringing his season total to 7.5, trailing AL batting leader Pete Alonso of the Orioles (8.2). Greene is one of three AL batters with 7.5 points but ranks first among them with more 2025 points (9.0). The other two with 7.5 points:
Yordan Alvarez of the Astros (who had 1.0 point in 2025).
Yandy Díaz of the Rays (who had no points in 2025).
With less than three weeks remaining, the top AL batter is on pace to potentially set a record for the lowest point total to lead a category in a full season since Box-Toppers tracking began in 1995. The record low was set last season when George Springer of the Blue Jays led AL batters with 9.7 points; Alonso needs 1.5 more points to reach that mark.
Scoring
Luzardo earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points as Player of the Day.
Bello earns 1.7 points as AL Player of the Day.
Bolte and Ewing each earn 1.5 points as their league’s Batter of the Day.
All of Monday’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).| 9/7 | BTG | Game | Player | AB | R | H | BI | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 18.0 | PHI 1, ATL 0 | Jesús Luzardo (W, 14‑5) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
| 9.2 | LAD 6, CIN 3 | Emmet Sheehan (W, 5‑8) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 7.0 | `SF 5, STL 4 (F/11) | Logan Webb | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| AL | 6.0 | BOS 5, LAA 2 | Brayan Bello (W, 6‑7) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | |
| 5.1 | BAL 6, CLE 4 | Trevor Rogers (W, 10‑9) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 7.1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 5.0 | SD 3, WSH 2 | Nick Pivetta (W, 2‑2) | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 5.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | ATH 6, TOR 5 | Henry Bolte CF‑LF | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | |
| 3.0 | `ARI 5, KC 4 (F/10) | Taylor Clarke | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.2 | `MIL 4, CHC 3 | Robert Gasser | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | 4.2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 2.0 | DET 5, MIN 4 | Riley Greene LF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ||
| BAT | 1.0 | NYM 9, MIA 4 | A.J. Ewing CF | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ | ‑ |
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 | 23.0 | 40.4 | 71.6 | 76.3 | +5.6 |
| Webb, Logan 4258 | pi sp | sf nl | 9.0 | 18.0 | 66.6 | 69.3 | 0.0 |
| Greene, Riley 4675 | lf | det al | 7.5 | 16.5 | 24.2 | 24.2 | -1.5 |
| Rogers, Trevor 4311 | pi sp | bal al | 7.0 | 18.7 | 33.7 | 34.7 | -4.7 |
| Bello, Brayan 4727 | pi mr cp | bos al | 6.1 | 13.5 | 24.2 | 24.2 | -1.3 |
| Sheehan, Emmet 4886 | pi sp | lad nl | 5.0 | 8.0 | 12.7 | 12.7 | +2.0 |
| Clarke, Taylor 4199 | pi mr | ari nl | 5.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 10.0 | +4.0 |
| Gasser, Robert 4998 | pi sp | mil nl | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6.7 | 6.7 | +4.0 |
| Pivetta, Nick 3825 | pi sp | sd nl | 3.7 | 21.4 | 52.8 | 75.5 | -14.0 |
| Ewing, A.J. 5354 | cf | nym nl | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | +3.5 |
| Bolte, Henry 5460 | rf | oak al | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | +3.0 |
About Box-Toppers’ team abbreviations
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A Box-Toppers look at Tuesday’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLE | Bibee, Tanner 4792 | 4.7 | 11.7 | 34.4 | 34.4 |
| BAL | Young, Brandon 5253 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| HOU | Wesneski, Hayden 4731 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 10.4 | 10.4 |
| PHI | Painter, Andrew 5302 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| MIN | Kremer, Dean 4330 | 3.0 | 10.7 | 38.8 | 40.5 |
| DET | Anderson, Drew 4559 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| NYM | Manaea, Sean 3637 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 44.8 | 73.3 |
| MIA | Alcantara, Sandy 4061 | 10.7 | 18.7 | 56.5 | 65.9 |
| LAA | Detmers, Reid 4513 | 7.0 | 11.0 | 29.4 | 29.4 |
| BOS | Sandoval, Patrick 4357 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 16.7 | 17.7 |
| COL | Hughes, Gabriel* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| NYY | Schlittler, Cam 5261 | 18.7 | 26.1 | 26.1 | 26.1 |
| TB | Peralta, Freddy 3965 | 2.7 | 17.4 | 68.6 | 87.3 |
| ATL | Smith-Shawver, AJ 4951 | 0.0 | 4.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| ARI | Burnes, Corbin 4029 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 60.6 | 71.3 |
| KC | Wacha, Michael 3276 | 9.7 | 19.8 | 56.7 | 91.4 |
| CHC | Peterson, David 4347 | 4.7 | 10.4 | 26.1 | 28.1 |
| MIL | Misiorowski, Jacob 5200 | 21.4 | 27.4 | 27.4 | 27.4 |
| PIT | Chandler, Bubba 5269 | 3.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.7 |
| CHW | Burke, Sean 5124 | 12.1 | 15.8 | 16.8 | 16.8 |
| TEX | Bradford, Cody 4938 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 9.4 | 9.4 |
| SEA | Undecided | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| TOR | Soriano, Jose 4884 | 11.7 | 24.4 | 28.4 | 28.4 |
| ATH | Perkins, Jack 5225 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| WSH | Cornelio, Riley* | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| SD | Mize, Casey 4377 | 5.0 | 12.0 | 19.7 | 19.7 |
| STL | Mathews, Quinn 5454 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| SF | Roupp, Landen 5079 | 6.0 | 10.7 | 12.7 | 12.7 |
| CIN | Lodolo, Nick 4586 | 1.0 | 10.7 | 26.7 | 26.7 |
| LAD | Skubal, Tarik 4414 | 10.7 | 32.8 | 84.0 | 84.0 |
* Player has yet to earn any career Box-Toppers points.
What are those numbers after players' names?
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