Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez is Thursday’s Player of the Day and rises to fifth place in Box-Toppers player rankings.
Hernandez pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out 11 and allowing three hits, in the 3-1 win over the Angels. Hernandez earned no decision because he left when the game was a scoreless tie.
He earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 19.8 for the season, moving from sixth to fifth place in Box-Toppers player rankings. (See the updated top 10 player list on the home page.) He ranks third among American League pitchers, behind Corey Kluber of the Indians (22.1) and Max Scherzer of the Tigers (21.1).
Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole is National League Player of the Day. Cole struck out seven over seven innings in the 3-2 win over the Red Sox.
Willin Rosario of the Rockies is NL Batter of the Day. Rosario hit a walk-off, two-run homer and went 4-for-5, driving in three runs, in the 7-6 win over the Diamondbacks.
Jake Smolinski of the Rangers is AL Batter of the Day. Smolinksi went 4-for-5, scoring once and driving in one run, in the 7-2 win over the Athletics. This was Smolinski’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time he has earned Player of the Game honors. He is the 3,424th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995. He made his Major League debut July 7 and was playing in his 13th game.
Hernandez receives 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day. Cole receives 1.7 for AL Player of the Day. Rosario and Smolinski each receive 1.5 for being top Batter of the Day in their league.
All of Thursday’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
| 918 | Score | Team | Player | AB | R | H | BI | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | 13.0 | `Mariners | Felix Hernandez | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | |
| 8.1 | `Indians | Danny Salazar | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 7.2 | `Yankees | Shane Greene | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| NL | 4.0 | Pirates | Gerrit Cole (W, 10-5) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | |
| BAT | 3.0 | Rockies | Wilin Rosario C | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3.0 | Padres | Alexi Amarista SS | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3.0 | Cardinals | Sam Freeman (W, 2-0) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2.0 | Dodgers | Andre Ethier PH | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2.0 | Nationals | Gio Gonzalez (W, 9-10) | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.0 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | ||
| BAT | 1.0 | Rangers | Jake Smolinski RF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
` Denotes that the pitcher had a no-decision in the game and did not pick up a win or a save.
