Royals rank 2nd in Box-Toppers team rankings, Mets rank 7th. But Mets' top four starters have edge in combined Box-Toppers points over Royals' top four—54.9 vs. 39.5.
Read MoreALCS Preview: Blue Jays may have edge with bats, Price; but Royals may have overall pitching edge
The Royals have more team Box-Toppers points and possibly an overall pitching edge. But the Blue Jays have big bats led by Jose Bautista and top AL pitching ace, David Price.
Read MoreCardinals' Lackey tops players for Thursday, Sept. 17; Angels' Trout rises to 2nd among AL batters
Cardinals pitcher John Lackey is Thursday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Lackey pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out eight and allowing five hits, in the 6-3 win over the Brewers.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of Sept. 17.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Arrieta, Jake 2738 | pi sp | chi nl | 23.1 |
| 2 | Kershaw, Clayton 2494 | pi sp | lad nl | 22.7 |
| 3 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 20.4 |
| 4 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | tor al | 20.1 |
| 5 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 19.7 |
| 6 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 19.4 |
| 7 | Keuchel, Dallas 3050 | pi sp | hou al | 19.4 |
| 8 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 17.1 |
| 9 | Bumgarner, Madison 2753 | pi sp | sf nl | 17.0 |
| 10 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 17.0 |
Lackey rises to 55th place in Box-Toppers points among all players since 1995, when record keeping began. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 106.8 for his career. With his points Thursday, he passes two players on the “all-time” list—Aramis Ramirez (105.8) and Frank Thomas (106.2). (Thomas began his career in 1990, five years before Box-Toppers record keeping began. If his entire career were tracked, based on rough projections, Thomas would likely have about 145 career Box-Toppers points.) Lackey now trails 54th-place player Lance Berkman (108.1).
Lackey has 8.7 Box-Toppers points for the season, 52nd among all players, 20th among NL pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Omar Infante of the Royals homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, driving in seven runs, in the 8-4 win over the Indians.
National League Batter of the Day—Addison Russell of the Cubs doubled and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs, in the 9-6 win over the Pirates.
American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day Thursday because the overall AL Player of the Day was batter Omar Infante.
Notable—Mike Trout of the Angels rose to second place among AL batters in Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors.
Trout (2HR 2-3 3R 5BI in the 11-8 win over the Twins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.0 for the season, rising to 29th place among all players.
Trout had a Box-Toppers game score of +7.0 Thursday, the same as Omar Infante. But Infante won AL Player of the Day honors on a tiebreaker because he had more at bats than Trout—four vs. three. Had Trout earned AL Player of the Day honors instead of Infante and earned 1.7 Box-Toppers points, Trout would have had 11.7 points for the season, enough to pass AL batting leader Prince Fielder of the Rangers (11.5). But he didn’t.
Trout led AL batters in Box-Toppers points much of July and all of August, but was passed by other players in September. This was Trout’s first Box-Toppers point since July 26.
Debut—Orioles pitcher Chaz Roe made his Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Roe (1.1IP 0H 0R 2K W in the 4-3 win over the Rays) made his Major League debut July 1, 2013, and was playing in his 58th career game. He is the 3,597th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Lackey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Infante earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Russell earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL 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
| 9/17 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 8.0 | Cardinals | John Lackey (W,12-9) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| AL | 7.0 | Royals | Omar Infante, 2B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 7.0 | Angels | Mike Trout, CF | 3 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 7.0 | Blue Jays | Marco Estrada (W,13-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 3.1 | Orioles | Chaz Roe (MR) (W,4-2) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.1 | Marlins | A.J. Ramos (S,28) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 3.0 | Rangers | Shin-Soo Choo, RF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Athletics | Sean Doolittle (W,1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Cubs | Addison Russell, SS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Cubs' Arrieta tops players for Sunday, July 12; Nationals' Scherzer regains Box-Toppers points lead
Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta is Sunday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day and becomes the 12th player this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points.
Also Sunday, Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer regained the Box-Toppers season points lead and also earned his 100th career Box-Toppers point. Plus, Athletics pitcher Sonny Gray rose to ninth place in Box-Toppers season player rankings.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of July 12.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 15.0 |
| 2 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 14.4 |
| 3 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 13.4 |
| 4 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 13.4 |
| 5 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 13.1 |
| 6 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 12.0 |
| 7 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 12.0 |
| 8 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 11.7 |
| 9 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | hou al | 11.1 |
| 10 | Greinke, Zack 1871 | pi sp | lad nl | 11.0 |
Player of the Day—Arrieta pitched a two-hit complete game, allowing one run and striking out nine, in the 3-1 win over the White Sox.
Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 10.0 points for the season. He is the 12th player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points and ranks 13th among all players, seventh among National League pitchers.
American League Player of the Day—Athletics pitcher Sonny Gray pitched a complete game, two-hit shutout, striking out six, in the 2-0 win over the Indians.
Gray earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day, giving him 11.1 for the season. He is the 13th player this season with 10 or more Box-Toppers points and rises to ninth in season player rankings, fifth among AL pitchers.
National League Batter of the Day—Kirk Nieuwenhuis of the Mets hit three homers and drove in four runs in the 5-3 win over the Diamondbacks.
American League Batter of the Day—Omar Infante of the Royals doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 11-10 win over the Blue Jays.
Rankings—Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer regained the top spot in Box-Toppers player rankings Sunday after earning Player of the Game honors.
Scherzer (8.2IP 4H 2R 7K W in the 3-2 win over the Orioles) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 15.0 for the season. He passes Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez (14.4 Box-Toppers points) for first place in Box-Toppers rankings. Scherzer previously led players in Box-Toppers points this season from June 26 to July 8, when he both took the lead from and lost the lead to Hernandez.
Scherzer also now has 100.0 career Box-Toppers points, becoming the 67th player with 100 since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Scherzer ranks 67th among all players and trails 66th-place player Larry Walker (100.1).
Scoring—Arrieta earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Gray earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Nieuwenhuis and Infante each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Sunday’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
| 7/12 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 14.0 | Cubs | Jake Arrieta (W,10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | |
| AL | 12.0 | Athletics | Sonny Gray (W,10-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | |
| 7.2 | Nationals | Max Scherzer (W,10-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 7.2 | Padres | Tyson Ross (W,6-7) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 7.0 | Angels | Andrew Heaney (W,3-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 6.0 | Mets | Kirk Nieuwenhuis, CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Twins | Kyle Gibson (W,8-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 4.2 | Giants | Chris Heston (W,9-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | Rockies | Charlie Blackmon, CF | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Marlins | Justin Bour, 1B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Dodgers | Kenley Jansen (S,16) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Royals | Omar Infante, 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2.0 | Pirates | Gregory Polanco, RF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Yankees | Brian McCann, C | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Rays | David DeJesus, LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Blue Jays' Marco Estrada (8.2IP 0R 2H 10K ND) tops players for Wednesday, June 24
Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada is Wednesday’s Box-Toppers Player of the Day.
Estrada pitched 8 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out 10, in the 1-0, 12-inning win over the Rays. Estrada picked up a no decision and did not earn the win because he left the game in scoreless tie. Estrada had a perfect game before allowing a hit in the eighth inning.
Top 10 players
Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of June 24.| Player | Pos | Team | BTP | |
| 1 | Hernandez, Felix 2064 | pi sp | sea al | 13.4 |
| 2 | Scherzer, Max 2588 | pi sp | dc nl | 13.0 |
| 3 | Archer, Chris 3194 | pi sp | tb al | 12.0 |
| 4 | Cole, Gerrit 3232 | pi sp | pit nl | 12.0 |
| 5 | Price, David 2593 | pi sp | det al | 11.1 |
| 6 | Sale, Chris 2806 | pi sp | chi al | 10.4 |
| 7 | deGrom, Jacob 3343 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 |
| 8 | Martinez, Carlos 3371 | pi sp | stl nl | 9.7 |
| 9 | Harvey, Matt 3075 | pi sp | nym nl | 9.7 |
| 10 | Gray, Sonny 3259 | pi sp | oak al | 9.4 |
National League Player of the Day—Brewers pitcher Jimmy Nelson allowed one run on two hits over eight innings, striking out five, in the 4-1 win over the Mets.
American League Batter of the Day—Brett Lawrie of the Athletics hit a grand slam and went 3-for-5 in the 8-2 win over the Rangers.
National League Batter of the Day—Yasmany Tomas of the Diamondbacks doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring twice and driving in a run, in the 8-7 win over the Rockies.
Notable—Giants pitcher Ryan Vogelsong has the highest Box-Toppers player ranking of any of the 15 who earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday.
Vogelsong has 7.0 Box-Toppers points and ranks 21st among all players, 13th among NL pitchers. Vogelsong (6IP 5H 0R 4K W in the 6-0 win over the Padres) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game.
Rankings—Two pitchers ranked among Box-Toppers top 10 players this season started Wednesday but both failed to earn Player of the Game honors as their teams both lost:
- Gerrit Cole of the Pirates ranks fourth in player rankings with 12.0 Box-Toppers points, but lost 5-2 to the Reds. Cole (4.2IP 8H 5R 8K L) had a Box-Toppers game score of −11.8. Player of the Game was Reds closing pitcher J.J. Hoover (1IP 0H 0R 2K Sv) who had a Box-Toppers game score of 3.
- Chris Sale of the White Sox ranks sixth in player rankings with 10.4 Box-Toppers points, but lost 6-1 to the Twins. Sale (6.2IP 8H 6R 10K L) had a Box-Toppers game score of −3.8. Player of the Game was Twins pitcher Phil Hughes (8IP 6H R 5K W) who had a Box-Toppers game score of 5.
Streak—Omar Infante of the Royals has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 12 straight seasons.
Infante was Player of the Game in Wednesday’s 8-2 win over the Mariners (2B 3-4 R 3BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.
Infante earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2004 with the Tigers. His best year was 2012 when he had 4.5 Box-Toppers points with the Tigers and ranked third among AL second basemen. Infante had 4.0 Box-Toppers points in 2014 with the Royals.
Infante has 29.5 career Box-Toppers points, which ranks fifth among active AL second basemen.
Return—Dodgers pitcher J.P. Howell earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors for the first time in more than five years Wednesday. Howell (1.1IP H 0R K W in the 5-2 win over the Cubs) last earned Player of the Game honors on Aug. 5, 2009, when he was with the Rays.
Debut—Angels pitcher Andrew Heaney made his Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Heaney (6IP 4H R 5K ND in the 2-1, 13-inning win over the Astros) made his Major League debut June 19, 2014, and was playing in his eighth career game. He is the 3,515th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Scoring—Estrada earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Nelson earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Lawrie and Tomas each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Wednesday’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
| 6/24 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| MLB | 16.2 | `Blue Jays | Marco Estrada | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | |
| NL | 8.0 | Brewers | Jimmy Nelson (W, 4-8) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
| 5.0 | Indians | Carlos Carrasco (W, 9-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 5.0 | Twins | Phil Hughes (W, 6-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 5.0 | `Nationals | Jordan Zimmermann | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 4.0 | Cardinals | Jaime Garcia (W, 3-3) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 4.0 | `Angels | Andrew Heaney | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 3.0 | Athletics | Brett Lawrie 3B | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Royals | Omar Infante 2B | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Red Sox | Clay Buchholz (W, 5-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 3.0 | Giants | Ryan Vogelsong (W, 6-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 3.0 | Reds | J.J. Hoover (S, 1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.2 | Yankees | Ivan Nova (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| BAT | 2.0 | Dbacks | Yasmany Tomas RF | 5 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1.1 | Dodgers | J.P. Howell (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| `Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save. | ||||||||||||||||
Royals' Omar Infante tops players in World Series Game 2, Wednesday, Oct. 22
Omar Infante of the Royals is Box-Toppers.com Player of the Day in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the World Series.
Infante doubled and hit a two-run homer, going 2-for-3 and scoring twice in the 7-2 win over the Giants. The Royals tie the best-of-seven game World Series 1-1.
Infante had a Box-Toppers game score of +3, the best of any Royals player Wednesday. (Pitchers Greg Holland and Wade Davis of the Royals also had Box-Toppers game scores of +3—see the chart below—but in cases of game score ties, Box-Toppers rules have batters finishing ahead of pitchers.)
During the regular season, Infante had 4.0 Box-Toppers points, ranking 243rd among all players, 51st among all AL batters and eighth among all AL second basemen.
This was the first time this postseaon Infante has earned Player of the Game honors. In fact, in the Royals’ nine postseason wins of 2014, a different player has earned Player of the Game honors each time. The previous eight are listed in this earlier post. (To compare, five different players have earned Player of the Game honors in the Giants' nine postseason wins of 2014.)
The World Series takes a day off Thursday before resuming Friday in San Francisco:
World Series Game 3: Royals at Giants, series tied, 1-1
The pitching matchup Friday:
Royals: Jeremy Guthrie, 7.0 Box-Toppers points, ranked 113rd among all players, 40th among AL pitchers.
Giants: Tim Hudson, 8.7 Box-Toppers points, ranked 71st among all players, 34th among NL pitchers.
Guthrie has started once this postseason and Hudson has started twice. Neither pitcher has earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors so far this postseason.
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 2014 World Series previews:
Royals sweep Giants in series—in regular season, interleague series back in August, that is
Top 6 players in World Series Game 2
Here are the top six Royals players in Wednesday's World Series Game 2, ranked from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score (how game score is calculated). Omar Infante, who had a Box-Toppers game score of +3.0, is Player of the Game (POG). Under Box-Toppers rules, batters beat pitchers in cases of game score ties, so Infante finished ahead of two pitchers who also had game scores of +3.0—Greg Holland and Wade Davis.
| 1022 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POG | 3.0 | Royals | Omar Infante 2B | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Royals | Greg Holland | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Royals | Wade Davis | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1.0 | Royals | Billy Butler DH | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Royals | Terrance Gore PR, DH | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 0.2 | Royals | Kelvin Herrera (W, 1-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Mariners' Iwakuma tops players for Tuesday, Aug. 19; Tigers' Scherzer extends Box-Toppers points lead among AL pitchers
Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma is Tuesday’s Player of the Day, while Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer extends his Box-Toppers points lead among American League pitchers.
Iwakuma pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out 11 in the 5-2 win over the Phillies. He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 11.0 for the season. He is the 31st player this season with 10.0 or more Box-Toppers points. He ranks 23rd among all players and 13th among AL pitchers.
Scherzer bolstered his top spot among AL pitchers after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Scherzer (7IP 9K ND in the 8-6 win over the Rays) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 21.1 for the season. He ranks second among all players, behind Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who has 22.1 Box-Toppers points. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) Scherzer ranks first among AL pitchers, ahead of the current second-place AL pitcher, Corey Kluber of the Indians (17.4 Box-Toppers points).
Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers is National League Player of the Day. Fiers struck out six over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-1 win over the Blue Jays.
Carl Crawford of the Dodgers is NL Batter of the Day. Crawford homered and went 3-for-3, scoring three times and driving in three runs, in the 8-6 win over the Padres.
Omar Infante of the Royals is AL Batter of the Day. Infante hit three doubles, going 4-for-5, scoring a run and driving in four more, in the 7-4 win over the Rockies.
Notables: Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir rose to 12th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Kazmir (6IP R 6K W in the 6-2 win over the Mets) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 14.1 for the season. He ranks seventh among AL pitchers.
Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg rose to 14th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday. Strasburg (8IP R W in the 8-1 win over the Diamondbacks) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 12.7 for the season. He ranks sixth among NL pitchers.
Iwakuma receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Fiers receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Crawford and Infante each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Tuesday’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
| 819 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 15.0 | Mariners | Hisashi Iwakuma (W, 12-6) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 11.0 | Orioles | Chris Tillman (W, 10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| NL | 8.0 | Brewers | Mike Fiers (W, 3-1) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |
| BAT | 6.0 | Dodgers | Carl Crawford LF | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 6.0 | Nationals | Stephen Strasburg (W, 10-10) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Royals | Omar Infante 2B | 5 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 4.0 | Braves | Justin Upton LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4.0 | Marlins | Sam Dyson (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 3.0 | Indians | Yan Gomes C | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | *Cubs | Anthony Rizzo 1B | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Athletics | Scott Kazmir (W, 14-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 2.2 | `Astros | Tony Sipp | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2.0 | Cardinals | Jon Jay CF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | Angels | Chris Iannetta C | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1.0 | `Tigers | Max Scherzer | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 9 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
* UPDATE: Thursday, August 21, 2014: Rizzo was named Player of the Game in the game that was initially ruled a final, rain-shortened game. However, the Giants protested the game and Major League Baseball upheld the protest. The now-suspended game is to resume in the bottom of the fifth inning on Aug. 21. Rizzo's 1.0 Box-Toppers point earned Aug. 19 will be removed and the game's top player will now be included among Aug. 21's games. Rizzo has 5.5 Box-Toppers points for the season and ranks 15th among NL batters. Before the point was removed, his 6.5 Box-Toppers points put him at seventh place among NL batters.
Phillies' A.J. Burnett (8IP 0R 8K) tops players for Sunday, April 27; Cards' Wainwright takes Box-Toppers points lead
Phillies pitcher A.J. Burnett is Sunday’s Player of the Day, while Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright takes the season lead among players in Box-Toppers points.
Burnett pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out eight in the 2-0 win over the Diamondbacks.
Wainwright pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out seven in the 7-0 win over the Pirates. He earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 6.0 for the season and rising to the top of Box-Toppers player rankings, passing previous leader Chris Colabello of the Twins (5.2 points). (See updated top 10 rankings on Box-Toppers’ home page.)
Astros pitcher Collin McHugh is American League Player of the Day. McHugh pitched 8 2/3 innings, allowing only one run and striking out seven in the 5-1 win over the Athletics.
Omar Infante of the Royals is AL Batter of the Day. Infante hit a two-run homer and drove in six runs in the 9-3 win over the Orioles.
There is no National League Batter of the Day because no NL batter earned Player of the Game honors Sunday.
Notables: Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel rises to sixth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. Hammel (7IP 0R 7K in 4-0 win vs. Brewers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 5.0 for the season. (See updated top 10 rankings on Box-Toppers’ home page.)
Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka rises to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. Tanaka (6.1IP 11K ND in 3-2 win vs. Angels) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 4.7 for the season. (See updated top 10 rankings on Box-Toppers’ home page.)
Burnett receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. McHugh receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Infante receives 1.5 for being AL Batter of the Day.
All of Sunday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
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
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Marlins' Jose Fernandez takes lead among players in Box-Toppers points; Giants' Petit, nearly perfect, tops players for Friday, Sept. 6
Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez takes the lead in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season after earning Player of the Game honors Friday.
Meanwhile, Giants pitcher Yusmeiro Petit, who nearly threw a perfect game, is Friday's overall Player of the Day.
Fernandez pitched seven shutout innings, giving up only one hit and striking out nine in the 7-0 win over the Nationals. He earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being top player in the game, giving him 19.0 for the season. He moves from second to first in the Box-Toppers player ranking list, passing previous leader Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers (18.7 points), who had led since Aug. 17 (see the updated top 10 player rankings list on the home page). This is the first time Fernandez has led in Box-Toppers points this season.
Though Fernandez' performance Friday was impressive and his Box-Toppers game score of 13.0 would usually be enough to earn Player of the Day honors, there were three other players who had better scores Friday.
Petit, who had a Box-Toppers game score of 15.0, is Friday's overall top player. Petit was one strike away from a perfect game in the 3-0 win over the Diamondbacks. He gave up one hit with two outs and two strikes in the ninth inning. He struck out seven in the complete game shutout.
This is Petit's first Box-Toppers Player of the Game honor since Aug. 27, 2009 when he was with the Diamondbacks.
Indians pitcher Scott Kazmir is American League Player of the Day. Kazmir struck out 12 over six scoreless innings in the 8-1 win over the Mets.
Omar Infante of the Tigers is AL Batter of the Day. Infante went 5-for-6 and drove in six runs in the 16-2 win over the Royals.
Jon Jay of the Cardinals is National League Batter of the Day. Jay went 3-for-4, scored three times and drove in three runs in the 12-8 win over the Pirates.
Notable: Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee rises to 29th place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Friday. Lee (8IP 2H 1R 10K W in 2-1 win vs. Braves) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 11.4 for the season.
Petit receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Kazmir receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Infante and Jay 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.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 906 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 15.0 | Giants | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Yusmeiro Petit (W, 3-0) | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||
| 14.0 | Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Cliff Lee (W, 12-6) | 8.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 | |||
| AL | 14.0 | Indians | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Scott Kazmir (W, 8-7) | 6.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||
| 13.0 | Marlins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Jose Fernandez (W, 11-6) | 7.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | |||
| BAT | 8.0 | Tigers | Omar Infante 2B | 5 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 7.1 | Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Carlos Villanueva (W, 5-8) | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |||
| 7.0 | Red Sox | Mike Napoli 1B | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 6.0 | Orioles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Scott Feldman (W, 5-4) | 9.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | |||
| BAT | 5.0 | Cardinals | Jon Jay CF | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4.0 | Reds | Joey Votto 1B | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 3.0 | Athletics | Josh Donaldson 3B | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Angels | Mark Trumbo 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Mariners | Kyle Seager 3B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Blue Jays | Jose Reyes SS | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Padres | Jesus Guzman PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Yankees' Ivan Nova (CG 0R) tops players for Saturday, Aug. 31
Yankees pitcher Ivan Nova is Saturday's Player of the Day. Nova pitched a complete-game, three-hit shutout in the 2-0 win over the Orioles.
Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett is National League Player of the Day. Burnett gave up one run over seven innings in the 7-1 win over the Cardinals.
Omar Infante of the Tigers is American League Batter of the Day. Infante hit two home runs and drove in five runs in the 10-5 win over the Indians.
Brandon Phillips of the Reds is NL Batter of the Day. Phillips homered and went 3-for-5 in the 8-3 win over the Rockies.
Notables: Saturday's Player of the Game who has the most Box-Toppers points for the season is Dodgers closing pitcher Kenley Jansen (1IP 3K SV in 2-1 win vs. Padres). Jansen earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 9.7 for the season and is in 38th place on the season player ranking list.
Nova receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Burnett receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Infante and Phillips each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Saturday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point.
Top player from each game
Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score
| 831 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 10.0 | Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Ivan Nova (W, 8-4) | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 8.0 | `Rangers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Matt Garza | 7.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9 | |||
| 7.2 | Athletics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Sonny Gray (W, 2-2) | 6.2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |||
| NL | 6.0 | Pirates | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A.J. Burnett (W, 7-9) | 7.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| BAT | 4.0 | Tigers | Omar Infante 2B | 5 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4.0 | Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Kenley Jansen (S, 23) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |||
| BAT | 3.0 | Reds | Brandon Phillips 2B | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Angels | Hank Conger PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.1 | `Mariners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Carter Capps (H, 7) | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 2.0 | Braves | B.J. Upton CF | 6 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Mets | Daniel Murphy 2B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Blue Jays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Casey Janssen (S, 26) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 1.1 | `Diamondbacks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Josh Collmenter (BS, 1) | 1.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 1.0 | Red Sox | Jacoby Ellsbury CF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Kevin Gregg (S, 28) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
Rays' Matt Moore takes over Box-Toppers points lead; is top player for Saturday, April 27
Rays pitcher Matt Moore, who is Saturday's Player of the Day, takes over as season leader in Box-Toppers points.
Moore struck out nine over six innings in the 10-4 win over the White Sox. Moore receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being named Player of the Day and now has 6.7 points for the season, passing Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish (6.0 points).
Bryce Harper of the Nationals is National League Player of the Day. Harper went 2-for-3 with a homer in the 6-3 win over the Reds.
Omar Infante of the Tigers is American League Batter of the Day. Infante went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer in the 7-4 win over the Braves.
Harper receives 1.7 for NL Player of the Day. Infante receives 1.5 for being American League Batter of the Day,
All of Saturday's other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) receive 1.0 Box-Toppers point:
| 427 | Score | Team | BATTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | - | - | PITCHERS | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 9.0 | Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Matt Moore (W, 5-0) | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 6.0 | Mariners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Felix Hernandez (W, 3-2) | 8.0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |||
| 6.0 | Royals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Ervin Santana (W, 3-1) | 7.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |||
| BAT | 4.0 | Tigers | Omar Infante 2B | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Yankees | Travis Hafner DH | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| NL | 3.0 | Nationals | Bryce Harper LF | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3.0 | Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Travis Wood (W, 2-1) | 6.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | |||
| 2.0 | Padres | Yonder Alonso 1B | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Brewers | Carlos Gomez CF | 5 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Twins | Josh Willingham LF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Pirates | Russell Martin C | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Red Sox | David Ortiz DH | 3 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2.0 | Diamondbacks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | J.J. Putz (W, 2-0) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| 1.0 | Orioles | Nate McLouth LF | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1.0 | Phillies | Domonic Brown LF | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |