A Box-Toppers look at 2017 All-Star Final Vote candidates

Anthony Rendon of the Nationals, Justin Bour of the Marlins and Logan Morrison of the Rays have the most 2017 Box-Toppers points among the 10 players who are All-Star Game Final Vote candidates.

All-Star Final Vote candidates

Here are the 2017 and 2016 Box-Toppers point (BTP) totals of the 2017 All-Star Game Final Vote candidates. Voters will choose one player from each league as the "final" player selected to the All-Star teams. Each league's players are listed from highest to lowest 2017 Box-Toppers point total.  

			BTP
AL player	Pos	Team	’17	’16
Logan Morrison	1b	Rays	4.2	2.0
Elvis Andrus	ss	Rangers	3.5	9.2
Mike Moustakas	dh 3b	Royals	3.0	1.0
Xander Bogaerts	ss	Red Sox	2.5	1.0
Didi Gregorius	ss	Yankees	1.0	2.0
			BTP
NL player	Pos	Team	’17	’16
Anthony Rendon	3b lf	Nationals	4.5	5.5
Justin Bour	1b	Marlins	4.5	2.5
Mark Reynolds	1b	Rockies	3.5	4.0
Kris Bryant	3b lf	Cubs	1.5	10.5
Justin Turner	3b lf	Dodgers	1.0	2.5

But if players’ 2016 Box-Toppers point totals are taken into consideration, Kris Bryant of the Cubs and Elvis Andrus of the Rangers would be considered leading candidates.

Voting ends today as fans pick one of the five players in each league to fill the final roster spots on the 2017 American League and National League All-Star teams.

In the AL, Logan Morrison of the Rays has the most 2017 Box-Toppers points among the five AL candidates with 4.2. That puts him 15th among AL batters for the season and fourth among AL first basemen.

However, Elvis Andrus of the Rangers, who has 3.5 Box-Toppers points this season, had 9.2 points in 2016, most of any of the five AL candidates. That ranked 10th among AL batters in 2016, second among AL shortstops. None of the other five AL candidates had more than 2.0 Box-Toppers points in 2016.

In the NL, Anthony Rendon of the Nationals and Justin Bour of the Marlins have the most 2017 Box-Toppers points among the five Final Vote candidates with 4.5. Rendon ranks 13th among NL batters and third among NL third basemen. Bour ranks 16th among NL batters and sixth among NL first basemen.

However, Kris Bryant of the Cubs, who has 1.5 Box-Toppers points in 2017, has the most 2016 points among the five NL candidates with 10.5. That ranked second among NL batters in 2016, behind Nolan Arenado of the Rockies (10.7). Bryant was also NL Most Valuable Player in 2016.

About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.

Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.

Nationals' Max Scherzer tops players for Friday, May 26, rises to 4th in season player rankings

Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and rises to fourth place in season player rankings.

Scherzer struck out 13 over 8 2/3 innings, allowing one run, three hits and two walks, in the 5-1 win over the Padres.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2017 season as of May 26:  

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	10.7
2	Santana, Ervin 2005	pi sp	min al	9.4
3	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	bos al	8.4
4	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	8.0
5	Wood, Alex 3246	pi sp	lad nl	7.0
6	Greinke, Zack 1871	pi sp	ari nl	6.7
7	McCullers, Lance 3488	pi sp	hou al	6.0
8	Harper, Bryce 3011	rf	dc nl	6.0
9	Vargas, Jason 2055	pi sp	kc al	6.0
10	Holland, Greg 2906	pi cp	col nl	6.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 8.0 for the season and rises from fifth to fourth place in season player rankings. He is second among National League pitchers, behind overall leader Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (10.7).

Scherzer also now has 139.7 career Box-Toppers points, rising to 29th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Friday, he passes Andy Pettitte (138.5) on the “all-time” list. He now trails 28th-ranked player Jake Peavy (141.8).

American League Player of the Day—Athletics pitcher Sean Manaea struck out eight over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and one walk, in the 4-1 win over the Yankees.

American League Batter of the Day—Devon Travis of the Blue Jays hit a grand slam and doubled in the 7-6 win over the Rangers. Travis went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs.

National League Batter of the Day—Justin Bour of the Marlins hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-4 in the 8-5 win over the Angels.

Rankings—Dodgers pitcher Alex Wood rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.

Wood (5IP 2H 0R 2BB 8K W in the 4-0 win over the Cubs) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.0 for the season. He rises from eighth to fifth place in rankings. He ranks third among NL pitchers, behind Kershaw (10.7) and Scherzer (8.0).

Scoring—Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Manaea earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Travis and Bour each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.

Box-Toppers strives for accuracy. See a mistake in a post? A wrong name, wrong team, grammar error, spelling goof, etc.? Thanks for pointing it out! Contact Box-Toppers here. Let's fix it and make it right.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score 

5/26	Score	Game	Player of the Game	AB	R	H	BI		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	14.2	WSH 5, SD 1	Max Scherzer (W,5-3)	-	-	-	-		8.2	3	1	1	2	13
AL	10.0	OAK 4, NYY 1	Sean Manaea (W,3-3)	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	1	8
	9.1	NYM 8, PIT 1	Jacob deGrom (W,4-1)	-	-	-	-		8.1	6	1	1	1	10
	9.0	CIN 5, PHI 2	Tim Adleman (W,3-2)	-	-	-	-		8.0	1	0	0	2	4
	9.0	HOU 2, BAL 0	Joe Musgrove (W,4-4)	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	0	6
	9.0	LAD 4, CHC 0	Alex Wood (W,6-0)	-	-	-	-		5.0	2	0	0	2	8
	8.2	TB 5, MIN 2	Chris Archer (W,4-3)	-	-	-	-		7.2	5	2	2	1	11
	6.0	COL 10, STL 0	Antonio Senzatela (W,7-1)	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	0	0	0	3
	6.0	`ARI 4, MIL 2 (F/10)	Zack Godley	-	-	-	-		6.0	5	0	0	1	6
	5.2	ATL 2, SF 0	Jaime Garcia (W,2-3)	-	-	-	-		6.2	4	0	0	2	5
BAT	5.0	TOR 7, TEX 6	Devon Travis, 2B	4	2	3	4		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	CHW 8, DET 2	Melky Cabrera, LF	5	2	3	4		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	KC 6, CLE 4	Mike Minor (W,2-1)	-	-	-	-		2.0	1	0	0	0	3
BAT	2.0	MIA 8, LAA 5	Justin Bour, 1B	4	1	2	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	BOS 3, SEA 0	Eduardo Rodriguez (W,4-1)	-	-	-	-		6.0	5	0	0	3	4

MLB—Overall Box-Toppers Player of the Day, worth 2.0 total Box-Toppers points.
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.

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (’17). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (’16-17), the period 2012-2017 (’12-17) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2017 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2016 total (+/-).  

Player of the Game	Pos	Team	’17	’16-17	’12-17	Career	+/-
Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	8.0	33.7	111.9	139.7	-17.7
Wood, Alex 3246	pi sp	lad nl	7.0	8.0	26.4	26.4	6.0
Rodriguez, Eduardo 3480	pi sp	bos al	5.7	10.4	16.4	16.4	1.0
Godley, Zack 3538	pi sp	ari nl	4.0	5.0	8.7	8.7	3.0
deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	3.7	13.4	48.8	48.8	-6.0
Bour, Justin 3433	1b	fla nl	3.5	6.0	16.0	16.0	1.0
Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	3.0	12.0	52.1	52.1	-6.0
Senzatela, Antonio 3760	pi sp	col nl	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0	3.0
Manaea, Sean 3637	pi sp	oak al	2.7	9.4	9.4	9.4	-4.0
Cabrera, Melky 2143	lf ph	chi al	2.0	6.0	16.0	32.5	-2.0
Travis, Devon 3436	2b	tor al	1.5	2.5	5.5	5.5	0.5
Garcia, Jaime 2508	pi sp	atl nl	1.0	9.0	27.1	44.8	-7.0
Musgrove, Joe 3705	pi sp	hou al	1.0	4.7	4.7	4.7	-2.7
Adleman, Tim 3625	pi sp	cin nl	1.0	3.0	3.0	3.0	-1.0
Minor, Mike 2894	pi mr sp	kc al	1.0	1.0	25.4	28.1	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw tops players for Friday, June 10, extends lead in '16 points, rises to 6th in all-time rankings

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is Friday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day, extending his lead in season player rankings and rising to sixth place in career Box-Toppers points since 1995.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2016 season as of June 10:  

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	17.0
2	Fernandez, Jose 3147	pi sp	fla nl	11.7
3	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	sf nl	9.0
4	Arrieta, Jake 2738	pi sp	chi nl	8.7
5	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	8.7
6	Machado, Manny 3087	ss 3b	bal al	8.7
7	Matz, Steven 3516	pi sp	nym nl	8.7
8	Lackey, John 1640	pi sp	chi nl	8.4
9	Hill, Rich 2215	pi sp	oak al	8.4
10	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	8.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Kershaw struck out 13 over eight innings, allowing two runs and five hits, in the 3-2 win over the Giants.

Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 17.0 for the season, extending his dominant lead in player rankings; second-place player, Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez (11.7 points) is 5.3 points behind. Kershaw has more than doubled the season Box-Toppers point totals of all but six other players.

Kershaw also rises in the rankings of career Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began. With his points Friday, Kershaw rises to sixth place, passing Albert Pujols of the Angels (176.3). (While both Kershaw and Pujols have 176.3 career points, Kershaw ranks ahead on a tiebreaker because he has more points in 2016—17.0 vs. 2.0). 

All-time leaders

Here are Box-Toppers top 20 players since record keeping began in 1995:

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	pi sp	retired	278.8
2	Pedro Martinez	pi sp	retired	244.8
3	Curt Schilling	pi sp	retired	194.1
4	Alex Rodriguez	dh	nyy al	187.0
5	CC Sabathia	pi sp	nyy al	182.0
6	Clayton Kershaw	pi sp	lad nl	176.3
7	Albert Pujols	1b dh	ana al	176.3
8	Roy Halladay	pi sp	retired	170.7
9	Manny Ramirez	lf dh	retired	167.2
10	Johan Santana	pi sp	free agent	166.6
11	Roger Clemens	pi sp	retired	164.8
12	Felix Hernandez	pi sp	sea al	164.7
13	John Smoltz	pi sp	retired	160.9
14	Tim Hudson	pi sp	retired	157.0
15	Mike Mussina	pi sp	retired	155.6
16	Zack Greinke	pi sp	ari nl	154.4
17	Barry Bonds	lf	retired	153.2
18	Greg Maddux	pi sp	retired	151.7
19	Chipper Jones	3b	retired	149.0
20	Javier Vazquez	pi sp	retired	148.3

List of top 100 players since 1995 (through the 2015 season)

Kershaw becomes the third-ranked active player in career Box-Toppers points behind only Alex Rodriguez (187.0) and CC Sabathia (182.0), both of the Yankees. Kershaw now trails fifth-ranked Sabathia (who also earned Player of the Game honors Friday) by 5.7 points.

American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Corey Kluber pitched a complete game, striking out eight and allowing two runs and three hits, in the 6-2 win over the Angels.

National League Batter of the Day—Justin Bour of the Marlins hit a pinch-hit grand slam in the 8-6 win over the Diamondbacks.

American League Batter of the Day—Dae-Ho Lee of the Mariners hit two home runs, going 2-for-4 and driving in four runs, in the 7-5 win over the Rangers.

Notable—Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia, the fifth-ranked player in career Box-Toppers points since 1995, earned Player of the Game honors Friday.

Sabathia (7IP 5H 0R 4K W in the 4-0 win over the Tigers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 182.0 for his career, maintaining his rank of fifth place. He trails fourth-place player, teammate Alex Rodriguez (187.0).

Sabathia has 3.0 Box-Toppers points this season.

Scoring—Kershaw earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Kluber earns 1.7 points for being AL Player of the Day. Bour and Lee each earn 1.5 points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

6/10	Score	Game	Player of Game	AB	R	H	BI		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	12.0	LAD 3/SF 2	Clayton Kershaw (W,9-1)	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	2	2	0	13
AL	9.0	CLE 6/LAA 2	Corey Kluber (W,6-6)	-	-	-	-		9.0	3	2	2	1	8
	8.0	`NYM 2/MIL 1	Matt Harvey	-	-	-	-		6.0	2	1	1	2	8
	7.0	ATL 5/CHC 1	Bud Norris (W,2-7)	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	1	1	0	6
BAT	5.0	MIA 8/ARI 6	Justin Bour, PH	1	1	1	4		-	-	-	-	-	-
BAT	4.0	SEA 7/TEX 5	Dae-Ho Lee, 1B	4	2	2	4		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	NYY 4/DET 0	CC Sabathia (W,4-4)	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	0	0	2	4
	3.1	BOS 8/MIN 1	Steven Wright (W,7-4)	-	-	-	-		7.1	7	1	0	2	6
	3.0	STL 9/PIT 3	Matt Carpenter, 2B	4	2	2	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	CHW 7/KC 5	Alex Avila, C	4	2	2	3		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	SD 7/COL 5	Wil Myers, 1B	3	1	1	4		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.0	DC 9/PHI 6	Stephen Strasburg (W,10-0)	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	4	4	1	10
	3.0	CIN 2/OAK 1	Blake Wood (W,5-1)	-	-	-	-		2.0	0	0	0	1	2
	1.0	TB 4/HOU 3	Steve Pearce, 1B	4	0	3	2		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	TOR 4/BAL 3	Russell Martin, C	1	0	1	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
		`Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Box-Toppers point totals of the day’s top players

Here are Box-Toppers point totals of each of the Players of the Game. Players are ranked by their Box-Toppers point total for the current season (16). Also shown are each players’ Box-Toppers point total for this season and last (15-16), the period 2011-2016 (11-16) and each players’ career point total. Also shown is how their 2016 Box-Toppers point total compares with their 2015 total (+/-).  

Player of Game	Pos	Team	16	15-16	11-16	Career	+/-
Kershaw, Clayton 2494	pi sp	lad nl	17.0	42.7	142.8	176.3	-8.7
Kluber, Corey 3200	pi sp	cle al	7.8	21.2	52.0	52.0	-5.6
Strasburg, Stephen 2736	pi sp	dc nl	7.4	21.4	67.5	75.2	-6.6
Lee, Dae-Ho 3627	1b ph	sea al	5.7	5.7	5.7	5.7	5.7
Carpenter, Matt 2987	3b	stl nl	5.5	11.0	25.5	25.5	0.0
Wright, Steven 3224	pi sp	bos al	5.0	8.7	9.7	9.7	1.3
Martin, Russell 2202	ca	tor al	3.5	8.5	25.0	46.0	-1.5
Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	3.0	18.4	36.4	36.4	-12.4
Sabathia, C.C. 1492	pi sp	nyy al	3.0	8.7	43.5	182.0	-2.7
Myers, Wil 3228	1b	sd nl	3.0	6.0	11.5	11.5	0.0
Pearce, Steve 2371	1b	tb al	2.0	4.5	14.0	16.0	-0.5
Bour, Justin 3433	1b ph	fla nl	1.5	10.0	11.5	11.5	-7.0
Norris, Bud 2638	pi sp	atl nl	1.0	2.0	32.4	41.4	0.0
Avila, Alex 2642	ca	chi al	1.0	1.0	12.5	17.0	1.0
Wood, Blake 2850	pi mr	cin nl	1.0	1.0	5.0	5.0	1.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Athletics' Scott Kazmir (8IP 0R 7K) tops players for Thursday, July 2

Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.

Kazmir pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out seven, in the 4-0 win over the Mariners.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of July 2.  

	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	14.0
2	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	13.4
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	12.0
4	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	12.0
5	Sale, Chris 2806	pi sp	chi al	11.4
6	deGrom, Jacob 3343	pi sp	nym nl	11.4
7	Price, David 2593	pi sp	det al	11.1
8	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	10.7
9	Martinez, Carlos 3371	pi sp	stl nl	10.7
10	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	9.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Kazmir also has the highest Box-Toppers player ranking of any of the 12 who earned Player of the Game honors Thursday. Kazmir earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 8.7 for the season and is ranked 12th among all players. He ranks seventh among American League pitchers.

National League Player of the Day—Braves pitcher Manny Banuelos pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out seven, in the 2-1 win over the Nationals.

This was Baneulos’ Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. It was also his Major League debut. He is the 3,523rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

American League Batter of the Day—Alejandro De Aza of the Red Sox tripled, doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 12-6 win over the Blue Jays.

National League Batter of the Day—Justin Bour of the Marlins hit a three-run homer in the 5-4 win over the Giants. This was the second day in a row Bour earned Player of the Game honors.

Notables—Two pitchers with more than 10.0 Box-Toppers points started games Thursday but neither earned Player of the Game honors:

• Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer (ranked first with 14.0 Box-Toppers points) did not earn Player of the Game in the 2-1 loss to the Braves. Scherzer (8.1IP 5H 2R 9K L) had a Box-Toppers game score of 8.1. Player of the Game was Braves pitcher Manny Banuelos, who had a Box-Toppers game score of 10.2.
• Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom (ranked sixth with 11.4 Box-Toppers points) did not earn Player of the Game honors in the 6-1 loss to the Cubs. deGrom (5.1IP 7H 4R 2K L) had a Box-Toppers game score of −8.9. Player of the Game was Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta, who had a Box-Toppers game score of 8.

Scoring—Kazmir earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Banuelos earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. De Aza and Bour each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

7/2	Score	Team	Player	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	13.0	Athletics	Scott Kazmir (W, 5-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	2	0	0	0	7
NL	10.2	`Braves	Manny Banuelos	-	-	-	-	-	-		5.2	2	0	0	0	7
	8.0	Cubs	Jake Arrieta (W, 8-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	1	1	0	7
	8.0	Dbacks	Jeremy Hellickson (W, 6-5)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	3	1	1	0	6
	7.0	`Indians	Corey Kluber	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	7	4	3	1	14
	7.0	Twins	Kyle Gibson (W, 6-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	4	0	0	4	7
BAT	4.0	Red Sox	Alejandro De Aza RF LF	5	2	3	4	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	4.0	Pirates	Francisco Liriano (W, 5-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	5	0	0	3	5
	4.0	Padres	Shawn Kelley (W, 1-2)	-	-	-	-	-	-		2.0	2	0	0	0	4
	3.0	`Rangers	Yovani Gallardo	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.0	2	0	0	3	2
BAT	2.0	Marlins	Justin Bour 1B	3	1	1	3	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Brewers	Michael Blazek (W, 5-2)	-	-	-	-	-	-		2.0	1	0	0	1	2
		`Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.

Nationals' Fister tops players for Friday, Sept. 26; Indians' Kluber passes 25 Box-Toppers points, extends lead among AL pitchers

Nationals pitcher Doug Fister is Friday’s Player of the Day, while Indians pitcher Corey Kluber has now earned more than 25 Box-Toppers points, only the 20th time in 20 seasons a player has reached that threshold.

Most BTP single season

Corey Kluber of the Indians is now tied for the 17th-best single season in Box-Toppers history (dating back to 1995), with 25.8 Box-Toppers points. It is the 20th time in 20 seasons a player has passed 25 Box-Toppers points and the second time this season—Clayton Kershaw has 31.5.

Rank	Player	Team	Pos	Year	BTP
1	Randy Johnson	Dbacks	pi sp	2000	33.7
1	Randy Johnson	Dbacks	pi sp	2002	33.7
3	Pedro Martinez	Red Sox	pi sp	2000	33.5
4	Randy Johnson	Dbacks	pi sp	1999	31.5
4	*Clayton Kershaw	Dodgers	pi sp	2014	31.5
6	Pedro Martinez	Red Sox	pi sp	1999	31.4
7	Randy Johnson	Dbacks	pi sp	2001	29.4
8	Pedro Martinez	Red Sox	pi sp	2002	28.8
9	Curt Schilling	Dbacks	pi sp	2002	28.4
10	Roger Clemens	Blue Jays	pi sp	1997	27.4
11	Johan Santana	Twins	pi sp	2004	26.8
12	Pedro Martinez	Expos	pi sp	1997	26.7
12	CC Sabathia	Indians/Brewers	pi sp	2008	26.7
14	Randy Johnson	Mariners/Astros	pi sp	1998	26.4
15	John Smoltz	Braves	pi sp	1996	26.1
15	Clayton Kershaw	Dodgers	pi sp	2011	26.1
17	Roger Clemens	Blue Jays	pi sp	1998	25.8
17	*Corey Kluber	Indians	pi sp	2014	25.8
19	Johan Santana	Twins	pi sp	2006	25.7
20	Cliff Lee	Phillies	pi sp	2011	25.4

* Current season
BTP: Box-Toppers points

Fister pitched a complete game, three-hit shutout, striking out nine and walking none, in the 4-0 win over the Marlins. Fister earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 14.4 for the season. He ranks 18th among all players and ninth among National League pitchers.

Kluber extended his lead among American League pitchers and maintained his overall No. 2-ranking in Box-Toppers points after earning AL Player of the Day honors Friday. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Kluber pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out 11 in the 1-0 win over the Rays. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 25.8 for the season.

Kluber is now all but assured to be Box-Toppers’ AL Player of the Year and top AL pitcher. With two days left in the season, he leads second-place AL player, Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer (22.1 Box-Toppers points) by 3.7 points.

Kluber now also has the 17th most Box-Toppers points earned in a single season since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995. His 25.8 points is tied for 17th place on the “all-time” list with Roger Clemens, who also had 25.8 points with the Blue Jays in 1998. Kluber’s 25.8 points marks the 20th time in 20 seasons a player has earned 25 or more Box-Toppers points. It is the second time this season—Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw has 31.5.

Justin Bour of the Marlins is NL Batter of the Day. Bour went 3-for-4, scored four times and drove in two runs, in the 15-7 win over the Nationals. This was Bour’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,433rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. Bour made his Major League debut June 5 and was playing in his 37th game.

Brian Dozier of the Twins is AL Batter of the Day. Dozier homered and went 3-for-5, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 11-4 win over the Tigers.

Notables: Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir ranks 15th in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Kazmir (7IP 5K W in the 6-2 win over the Rangers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 15.1 for the season. He ranks eighth among AL pitchers.

Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman ranks 22nd in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Stroman (4IP 0R 4K Sv in the 4-2 win over the Orioles) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 13.7 for the season. He ranks ninth among AL pitchers.

Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma ranks 34th in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Iwakuma (6.1IP W in the 4-3 win over the Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.0 for the season. He ranks 19th among AL pitchers.

Fister receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kluber receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Bour and Dozier each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.

All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Box-Toppers watches the daily performances of selected star players and Box-Toppers points leaders. To see how they performed, click here.

Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. Players earn Box-Toppers points for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

926	Score	Team	Player of the Game	AB	R	H	BI	BB	K		IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
MLB	15.0	Nationals	Doug Fister (W, 16-6)	-	-	-	-	-	-		9.0	3	0	0	0	9
AL	12.0	Indians	Corey Kluber (W, 18-9)	-	-	-	-	-	-		8.0	5	0	0	2	11
	8.0	Royals	Jeremy Guthrie (W, 13-11)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	0	0	1	6
	7.0	Blue Jays	Marcus Stroman (S, 1)	-	-	-	-	-	-		4.0	1	0	0	0	4
	6.2	Yankees	Chris Capuano (W, 3-4)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.2	4	1	0	0	5
	6.0	Padres	Ian Kennedy (W, 13-13)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	1	0	2	6
BAT	5.0	Marlins	Justin Bour 1B	4	4	3	2	1	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	5.0	Athletics	Scott Kazmir (W, 15-9)	-	-	-	-	-	-		7.0	4	2	1	0	5
BAT	4.0	Twins	Brian Dozier 2B	5	3	3	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	3.2	`Astros	Brad Peacock	-	-	-	-	-	-		4.2	4	1	1	2	7
	2.1	Mariners	Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 15-9)	-	-	-	-	-	-		6.1	4	2	2	0	4
	2.0	Cubs	Javier Baez SS	5	2	3	2	0	1		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Dodgers	Darwin Barney PH	1	1	1	1	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	2.0	Pirates	Mark Melancon (S, 33)	-	-	-	-	-	-		1.0	0	0	0	0	1
	1.0	Cardinals	Jhonny Peralta SS	5	0	3	3	0	0		-	-	-	-	-	-
	1.0	Phillies	Cody Asche 3B	4	2	2	1	0	2		-	-	-	-	-	-

` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.