Giants' Lincecum tops players for Wednesday, May 20, rises to 9th in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank May 21, 2015

Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum is Wednesday’s Player of the Day and rises to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.

Also Wednesday, Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings and A.J. Pollock of the Diamondbacks earned National League Batter of the Day for the second day in a row.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 20.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	7.0
3	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
4	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	6.7
5	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	6.5
6	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	6.0
7	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
8	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	5.7
9	Lincecum, Tim 2288	pi sp	sf nl	5.7
10	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Lincecum pitched seven scoreless innings, giving up three hits, in the 4-0 win over the Dodgers. Lincecum earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points, giving him 5.7 for the season, moving up to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings, fifth among NL pitchers.

Lincecum also now has 115.0 career Box-Toppers points and rises to 41st among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his 2.0 points Wednesday, Lincecum passed four players on that list—Josh Beckett (114.9), Mark Buehrle (114.7), Chris Carpenter (113.3) and Sammy Sosa (113.2). Lincecum’s 115.0 career points ranks ninth among active pitchers currently in the NL.

American League Player of the Day—Indians pitcher Shaun Marcum struck out six over 6 2/3 innings, allowing two runs and four hits, in the 4-3 win over the White Sox.

National League Batter of the Day—A.J. Pollock of the Diamondbacks went 3-for-4, scoring four runs, including a steal of home—one of his three stolen bases—in the 6-1 win over the Marlins. This was the second straight day Pollock earned NL Batter of the Day honors.

American League Batter of the Day—Mike Trout of the Angels homered and went 2-for-3, scoring three runs, in the 4-3 win over the Blue Jays.

Rankings—Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel rose to eighth place in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday. Keuchel (7IP R W in the 6-1 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.7 for the season. He ranks third among AL pitchers.

Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Braves pitcher Williams Perez (5IP R 7K ND in the 2-1 win over the Rays) made his Major League debut May 8 and was playing in his third career game. He is the 3,476th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Rangers pitcher Phil Klein (5.1IP R W in the 2-1 win over the Red Sox) made his Major League debut Aug. 1, 2014, and was playing in his 24th career game. He is the 3,477th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Fishy—A.J. Pollock and Mike Trout were the two Box-Toppers Batters of the Day for Wednesday. However, neither Mike Carp nor any player from the Marlins earned Player of the Game honors Wednesday.

Scoring—Lincecum earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Marcum earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Pollock and Trout 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

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/20
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    6.0
    Giants
    Tim Lincecum (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    4
  

    
    5.1
    Cardinals
    Carlos Martinez (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    4
    0
    0
    2
    5
  

    AL
    4.2
    Indians
    Shaun Marcum (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    4
    2
    2
    0
    6
  

    
    4.2
    `Cubs
    Tsuyoshi Wada
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    4.2
    4
    2
    2
    1
    9
  

    
    4.0
    `Twins
    Mike Pelfrey
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    3.2
    Mariners
    Roenis Elias (W, 1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    0
    4
  

    
    3.1
    `Tigers
    Shane Greene
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    3
    2
    2
    2
    6
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Dbacks
    A.J. Pollock   CF
    4
    4
    3
    0
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Angels
    Mike Trout   CF
    3
    3
    2
    1
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Nationals
    Jordan Zimmermann (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    6
  

    
    3.0
    `Braves
    Williams Perez
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    6
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    
    3.0
    Phillies
    Jonathan Papelbon (S, 11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Dallas Keuchel (W, 6-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    0
    2
    4
  

    
    2.0
    Royals
    Jeremy Guthrie (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    3
  

    
    1.1
    Rangers
    Phil Klein (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.1
    5
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

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

  
  

Royals' Ventura tops players for Tuesday, May 19; Giants' Hudson earns Box-Toppers points for 17th straight season

Shawn Plank May 20, 2015

Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura is Tuesday’s Player of the Day.

Also Tuesday, Colby Rasmus of the Astros rose to 10th place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season, taking the lead among American League batters and Giants pitcher Tim Hudson earned a Box-Toppers point for the 17th straight season, tying him for the longest current consecutive streak.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 19.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	7.0
3	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
4	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	6.7
5	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	6.5
6	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	6.0
7	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
8	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
9	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	phi nl	5.0
10	Rasmus, Colby 2608	lf rf cf	hou al	5.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Ventura pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out six, in the 3-0 win over the Reds.

National League Player of the Day—Padres pitcher James Shields struck out 11 over seven innings, allowing two runs, in the 4-3 win over the Cubs. Shields did not pick up the win in the game because he exited with the score tied 2-2.

National League Batter of the Day—A.J. Pollock of the Diamondbacks hit a pinch-hit, two-run, go-ahead home run in the 4-2 win over the Marlins.

American League Batter of the Day—Jimmy Paredes of the Orioles homered and went 2-for-5, driving in four runs, in the 9-4 win over the Mariners.

Rankings—Colby Rasmus of the Astros rose to 10th place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season, taking the lead among AL batters, after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday.

Rasmus (HR 2B 2-4 2R 2BI in the 6-4 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.0 for the season. Rasmus has the same 2015 Box-Toppers point total as Eric Hosmer of the Royals, but wins the tie-breaker because he had more points in 2014—3.2 vs. 2.5.

Streak—Giants pitcher Tim Hudson has now earned Box-Toppers points for 17 straight seasons, tied for the longest currently active streak. Hudson was Player of the Game Tuesday in the 2-0 win over the Dodgers (6.1IP 0R W) and earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

In addition, with his point Tuesday, Hudson now has 154.0 for his career and rises to 13th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. Hudson passes Barry Bonds (153.2) on that list, though it should be noted Bonds played nine seasons before Box-Toppers record keeping began and so would likely have many more career Box-Toppers points.

Hudson’s 17-season streak of earning at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point ties him with Torii Hunter of the Twins for the longest active streak. (Hunter has 3.5 Box-Toppers points this season.) The record for most consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point is 19, held by Jason Giambi (1995-2013). (Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995.) One other active player had Box-Toppers points in 16 straight seasons as of 2014 and also has a chance to extend that to 17 straight seasons in 2015—Carlos Beltran of the Yankees.

Hudson earned his first Box-Toppers points in 1999 with the Athletics. His best year was 2001 with the Athletics, when he had 18.8 Box-Toppers points, ranked first among AL pitchers. In 2014, he had 8.7 Box-Toppers points with the Giants.

His 154.0 career Box-Toppers points ranks him 13th among all players since 1995, just behind Mike Mussina (155.6). His career total ranks 10th among all pitchers since 1995 and first among active pitchers currently in the NL, ahead of Bartolo Colon of the Mets (136.4).

Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Tuesday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Randal Grichuk of the Cardinals (3B 2-2B 3-5 R 3BI in the 10-2 win over the Mets) made his Major League debut April 28, 2014, and was playing in his 57th career game. He is the 3,474th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Clint Robinson of the Nationals (PH 2B 1-1 R BI in the 8-6 win over the Yankees) made his Major League debut June 8, 2012, and was playing in his 40th career game. He is the 3,475th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Ventura earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Shields earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Pollock and Paredes each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/19
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    9.0
    Royals
    Yordano Ventura (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    NL
    7.0
    `Padres
    James Shields
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    2
    2
    1
    11
  

    
    5.1
    Indians
    Trevor Bauer (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    4
    1
    1
    3
    7
  

    
    4.0
    Brewers
    Jimmy Nelson (W, 2-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    1
    1
    4
    5
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Dbacks
    A.J. Pollock   PH, CF
    1
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.2
    `Twins
    Blaine Boyer (H, 7)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.2
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    2.0
    Cardinals
    Randal Grichuk   RF
    5
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Orioles
    Jimmy Paredes   DH
    5
    1
    2
    4
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Colby Rasmus   CF, LF
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Nationals
    Clint Robinson   PH
    1
    1
    1
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Red Sox
    Wade Miley (W, 3-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    7
    2
    2
    1
    7
  

    
    2.0
    Angels
    Hector Santiago (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    2
    1
    3
    5
  

    
    2.0
    Rays
    Brad Boxberger (S, 11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.1
    Giants
    Tim Hudson (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    5
    0
    0
    2
    2
  

    
    1.0
    Rockies
    Nick Hundley   C
    4
    1
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Mets' Matt Harvey (8IP 9K ND) tops players for Monday, May 18, rises to 4th in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank May 19, 2015

Mets pitcher Matt Harvey is Monday’s Player of the Day and rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.

Also Monday, Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels rose to ninth place in player rankings for the season and 40th among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 18.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	7.0
3	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
4	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	6.7
5	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	6.5
6	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	6.0
7	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
8	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
9	Hamels, Cole 2135	pi sp	phi nl	5.0
10	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Harvey pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out nine in the 2-1, 14-inning win over the Cardinals. Harvey did not pick up the win in the game because after he exited, the Cardinals tied the game.

Harvey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.7 for the season, rising to fourth place in Box-Toppers player rankings for 2015. He ranks second among NL pitchers, behind Shelby Miller of the Braves (7.0).

American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Chris Sale struck out seven over eight innings, allowing one run and four hits, in the 2-1, 10-inning win over the Indians. Sale did not earn the win because he exited with the game tied, 1-1.

American League Batter of the Day—Jose Bautista of the Blue Jays homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, scoring three times and driving in three, in the 10-6 win over the Angels.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no NL Batter of the Day for Monday because no NL batter earned Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors.

Notable—Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels rose to ninth place in season Box-Toppers player rankings and 40th among all players since 1995 after earning Player of the Game honors Monday.

Hamels (7IP R 7K W in the 4-3 win over the Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.0 for the season and 115.8 for his career. With his point Monday, Hamels passes Josh Beckett (114.9 Box-Toppers points) on the list of players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He now trails the 39th-place player on that list, Todd Helton (116.4). Hamels’ 115.4 career points ranks 27th among all pitchers since 1995 and eighth among active pitchers currently in the NL.

Debut—Brewers pitcher Jeremy Jeffress made his Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Jeffress (1IP R 3K W in the 3-2 win over the Tigers) made his Major League debut Sept. 1, 2010, and was playing in his 100th career game. He is the 3,473rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Harvey earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Sale earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Bautista earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/18
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    10.0
    `Mets
    Matt Harvey
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    6
    0
    0
    1
    9
  

    AL
    7.0
    `White Sox
    Chris Sale
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    
    5.1
    Phillies
    Cole Hamels (W, 4-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    6
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Blue Jays
    Jose Bautista   DH
    4
    3
    3
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    `Dbacks
    Rubby De La Rosa
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    6
    2
    2
    0
    5
  

    
    4.0
    `Athletics
    Evan Scribner (H, 5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.1
    Brewers
    Jeremy Jeffress (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    1
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

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

  
  

Braves' Shelby Miller (CG 0R 2H) tops players for Sunday, May 17, rises to 3rd in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank May 18, 2015

Braves pitcher Shelby Miller, who was one out away from a no-hitter, is Sunday’s Player of the Day and rises to third 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 May 17.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	7.0
3	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	7.0
4	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	6.5
5	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	6.0
6	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
7	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
8	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
9	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
10	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Also Sunday, two other players rose in Box-Toppers top 10 rankings after earning Player of the Game honors—Rays pitcher Chris Archer rises to second and Bryce Harper of the Nationals rises to fourth. In addition, one player with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors, two players made their Box-Toppers debut and one player earned Player of the Game honors for the first time in nearly six years.

Player of the Day—Miller pitched a complete game shutout, allowing two hits and striking out four, in the 6-0 win over the Marlins. Miller was one out away from a no-hitter, but gave up two hits before retiring the final batter, securing the shutout.

Miller earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 7.0 for the season and rises to third place in Box-Toppers player rankings. He takes the lead among NL pitchers in Box-Toppers points, passing Max Scherzer of the Nationals (6.0), who had only taken the lead Saturday.

American League Player of the Day—Orioles pitcher Mike Wright pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out six, in the 3-0 win over the Angels.

This was Wright’s 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 3,471st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Batter of the Day—Bryce Harper of the Nationals hit a three-run homer, a triple and went 3-for-4 with three runs and four RBIs, in the 10-5 win over the Padres.

Harper earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 6.5 for the season and rises to fourth place in player rankings, the highest ranking of any batter.

American League Batter of the Day—Avisail Garcia of the White Sox homered and went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in two, in the 7-3 win over the Athletics.

Rankings—Rays pitcher Chris Archer rose to second place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday. Archer (6IP R 4K W in the 11-3 win over the Twins) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 7.0 for the season. He trails only overall leader Felix Hernandez of the Mariners (8.7). Both Archer and Shelby Miller of the Braves have 7.0 Box-Toppers points on the season, but Archer wins the tiebreaker because he had more points in 2014—12.4 vs. 9.

Debut—Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard made his Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Syndergaard (6IP R 5K W in the 5-1 win over the Brewers) made his Major League debut May 12 and was playing in his second career game. He is the 3,472nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Notables—Two other players had notable Box-Toppers achievements Sunday:

Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett, Player of the Game against the Cubs (7IP 3H 0R 7K W) now has 123.8 career Box-Toppers points. He ranks 33rd among all players since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995. His career 123.8 points ranks sixth among active pitchers currently in the NL.
Phillies pitcher Sean O’Sullivan, Player of the Game against the Diamondbacks (6IP 0R 4K W) earned his first Box-Toppers point in nearly six years. O’Sullivan last earned Player of the Game honors on June 16, 2009, when he made his Box-Toppers debut with the Angels. Sunday was O’Sullivan’s second career Player of the Game honor. O’Sullivan was the 2,604th player to debut in Box-Toppers, meaning that more than 800 players have debuted in Box-Toppers since O’Sullivan last earned Player of the Game honors.

Scoring—Miller earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Wright earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Harper and Garcia 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/17
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    10.0
    Braves
    Shelby Miller (W, 5-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    2
    0
    0
    1
    4
  

    AL
    9.1
    Orioles
    Mike Wright (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    4
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    
    9.0
    Royals
    Edinson Volquez (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    0
    
  

    
    7.0
    Dodgers
    Mike Bolsinger (W, 2-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    6
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Nationals
    Bryce Harper   RF
    4
    3
    3
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Pirates
    A.J. Burnett (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    5
    7
  

    
    5.0
    Astros
    Collin McHugh (W, 5-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    2
    2
    1
    9
  

    
    5.0
    Mets
    Noah Syndergaard (W, 1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    1
    1
    5
  

    
    4.1
    Cardinals
    Lance Lynn (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    6
    1
    1
    2
    7
  

    
    4.0
    Giants
    Santiago Casilla (S, 9)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.0
    Mariners
    James Paxton (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Rays
    Chris Archer (W, 4-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    4
  

    
    3.0
    Phillies
    Sean O`Sullivan (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    5
    0
    0
    2
    4
  

    BAT
    2.0
    White Sox
    Avisail Garcia   RF
    5
    2
    3
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Rangers
    Mitch Moreland   1B
    4
    1
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

  
  

Nationals' Max Scherzer (7IP 0R 11K) tops players for Saturday, May 16, rises to 2nd in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank May 17, 2015

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

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 16.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Scherzer, Max 2588	pi sp	dc nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.0
4	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
5	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
6	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
7	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
8	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
9	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
10	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Also Saturday, CC Sabathia and Jonathan Papelbon extended their streaks of consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point—Sabathia now has 15 seasons and Papelbon has 10—and Kris Bryant earned Player of the Game honors two days in a row, the third time in six days.

Player of the Day—Scherzer struck out 11 over seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, in the 4-1 win over the Padres.

Scherzer earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 6.0 for the season, rising to second place in overall player rankings for the season. He now ranks first among all NL players, passing Gerrit Cole of the Pirates. Both Scherzer and Cole have 6.0 Box-Toppers points, but Scherzer wins the tie-breaker because he had more Box-Toppers points in 2014—22.1 vs. 5.7.

American League Player of the Day—Angels pitcher Matt Shoemaker struck out seven over seven innings, allowing one run and three hits, in the 6-1 win over the Orioles.

National League Batter of the Day—Brandon Crawford of the Giants homered, doubled and went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in six runs, in the 11-2 win over the Reds.

American League Batter of the Day—Eduardo Escobar of the Twins doubled and went 4-for-4, with one run and one RBI, in the 6-4 win over the Rays.

Streaks—Two players extended their streaks of consecutive seasons with at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point after earning Player of the Game honors Friday:

Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia has now earned Box-Toppers points in 15 straight seasons, extending his lead in career points among active pitchers (174.3) and earning his first Player of the Game honor in more than a year.

Sabathia (7IP R 5K W in the 5-1 win over the Royals) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season. He earned his first points in 2001 with the Indians. His best year was 2008 with the Indians and Brewers when he had 26.7 Box-Toppers points, first among NL pitchers that year (while he played in both leagues in 2008, he is counted as an NL pitcher since that’s where he ended his season).

In 2014, Sabathia had 1.0 Box-Toppers point with the Yankees. Saturday marked the first time Sabathia earned Player of the Game honors since April 24, 2014.

Sabathia’s career 174.3 Box-Toppers points is fifth among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began). He trails Randy Johnson (278.8), Pedro Martinez (244.8), Curt Schilling (194.1) and Alex Rodriguez (183.8).

Phillies closing pitcher Jonathan Papelbon has now earned Box-Toppers points in 10 straight seasons. Papelbon (1IP 0R 2K Sv in the 7-5 win over the Diamondbacks) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, his first of the season.

Papelbon earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Red Sox. His two best seasons were 2006 with the Red Sox and 2012 with the Phillies—he had 7.0 Box-Toppers points in both seasons. In 2006, he ranked seventh among AL closing pitchers. In 2012, he ranked fifth among NL closing pitchers.

In 2014, he had 3.0 Box-Toppers points with the Phillies.

Papelbon has 49.4 career Box-Toppers points, which ranks 20th among all closing pitchers since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. His career 49.4 points ranks second among active closing pitchers currently in the NL (behind Francisco Rodriguez of the Brewers with 59.4).

Notable—Kris Bryant of the Cubs earned Player of the Game honors for the second day in a row and the third time in six days.

Bryant (2-2 2R in the 4-1 win over the Pirates) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point. He was also Player of the Game Thursday and on May 11, when he made his Box-Toppers debut. He has 3.0 Box-Toppers points for the season (and for his career) and currently ranks eighth among NL batters for 2015.

Debut—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Jace Peterson of the Braves (grand slam 2-5 in the 5-3 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut April 25, 2014, and was playing in his 60th career game. He is the 3,469th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Tigers pitcher Blaine Hardy (1IP 0R 2K W in the 4-3 win over the Cardinals) made his Major League debut June 16, 2014, and was playing in his 51st career game. He is the 3,470th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

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

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/16
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    12.0
    Nationals
    Max Scherzer (W, 4-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    0
    0
    2
    11
  

    AL
    9.0
    Angels
    Matt Shoemaker (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    0
    7
  

    
    8.1
    Rockies
    Jorge De La Rosa (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    2
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Giants
    Brandon Crawford   SS
    5
    2
    3
    6
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Mets
    Wilmer Flores   SS
    4
    2
    2
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Yankees
    CC Sabathia (W, 2-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    3.0
    White Sox
    John Danks (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    2
    2
    3
    6
  

    
    3.0
    `Red Sox
    Tommy Layne (H, 1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Phillies
    Jonathan Papelbon (S, 9)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    2.2
    Astros
    Scott Feldman (W, 3-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    5
    3
    3
    3
    10
  

    
    2.0
    Braves
    Jace Peterson   2B
    5
    1
    2
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Twins
    Eduardo Escobar   SS
    4
    1
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Cubs
    Kris Bryant   3B
    2
    2
    2
    0
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Tigers
    Blaine Hardy (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    1
    2
  

    
    2.0
    Indians
    Cody Allen (S, 6)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    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.
  

  
  

Brewers' Kyle Lohse (8IP 0R 8K) tops players for Friday, May 15

Shawn Plank May 16, 2015

Brewers pitcher Kyle Lohse is Friday’s Player of the Day.

Also Friday, two players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors, including last year’s Box-Toppers points leader, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 15.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.0
3	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
4	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
5	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
6	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
7	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
8	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
9	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
10	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Lohse pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out eight, in the 7-0 win over the Mets.

American League Player of the Day—Lorenzo Cain of the Royals drove in five runs, while going 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs, in the 12-1 win over the Yankees.

National League Batter of the Day—Brandon Belt of the Giants hit a three-run home run and a double, going 3-for-5 with three runs and four RBIs, in the 10-2 win over the Reds.

American League Batter of the Day—There is no separate AL Batter of the Day for Friday since a batter (Lorenzo Cain of the Royals) was the overall AL Player of the Day.

Notable—Two players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earned Player of the Game honors Friday;

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw now has 135.6 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 22nd among all players since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995.

Kershaw (6.2IP 3R 10K W in the 6-4 win over the Rockies) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.0 for the season. Last year, Kershaw led all players with 31.5 Box-Toppers points, the fourth-highest single-season total since 1995. Still, Kershaw is not far off his 2014 pace—at this time last year, Kershaw had only 3.0 Box-Toppers points, only 1.0 more than he has this season.

Kershaw trails Bartolo Colon (136.4) for 21st place among all players since 1995. His career 135.6 Box-Toppers points puts him at 16th among all pitchers since 1995 and third among all active pitchers currently in the NL (behind Colon and Giants pitcher Tim Hudson—153.0).

Angels pitcher Jered Weaver now has 118.4 career Box-Toppers points and moves up to 36th place among all players since 1995, passing Justin Verlander (118.2) and Carlos Delgado (117.7) on that list.

Weaver (7.1IP 3H R W in the 3-1 win over the Orioles) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.

Weaver’s 118.4 career Box-Toppers points puts him at 24th place among all pitchers since 1995 and fourth among active pitchers currently in the AL—behind CC Sabathia (173.3), Johan Santana (166.6) and Felix Hernandez (152.0).

Debut—Todd Cunningham of the Braves made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Cunningham (2B 3-4 2R BI in the 5-2 win over the Marlins) made his Major League debut July 30, 2013, and was playing in his ninth career game. He is the 3,468th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Lohse earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Cain earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Belt earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day. All of Friday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/15
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    13.0
    Brewers
    Kyle Lohse (W, 3-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    2
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    AL
    6.0
    Royals
    Lorenzo Cain   CF
    4
    2
    3
    5
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Giants
    Brandon Belt   1B
    5
    3
    3
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Nationals
    Jordan Zimmermann (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    6
    0
    0
    1
    6
  

    
    4.1
    Angels
    Jered Weaver (W, 2-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    3
    1
    1
    1
    3
  

    
    4.0
    Indians
    Michael Brantley   CF, LF
    3
    2
    3
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.2
    Dodgers
    Clayton Kershaw (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    4
    3
    3
    3
    10
  

    
    3.0
    Tigers
    Yoenis Cespedes   LF
    5
    2
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Cubs
    Kris Bryant   3B
    4
    2
    1
    4
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Phillies
    Freddy Galvis   SS
    2
    2
    1
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Braves
    Todd Cunningham   LF
    4
    2
    3
    1
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Jose Altuve   2B
    4
    1
    2
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    White Sox
    Adam LaRoche   DH
    3
    1
    1
    3
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    `Mariners
    J.A. Happ
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    3
  

    
    1.0
    Twins
    Brian Dozier   2B
    3
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Mariners' Hernandez continues Box-Toppers player rankings lead; Hosmer, Harper rise to lead batters

Shawn Plank May 15, 2015

King Felix reigns for 4th week. Pirates' Cole is top NL pitcher. Royals' Hosmer rises to lead AL batters, Nationals' Harper rises to lead NL batters.

St. Louis Cardinals top Box-Toppers team rankings, Washington Nationals rise to top 10

Shawn Plank May 15, 2015

Redbirds lead teams for 2nd week. Royals rise to top AL teams. Preseason favorite Nationals rise to top 10 after early season slump.

Tigers' Sanchez, Phillies' Harang top players for Thursday, May 14

Shawn Plank May 15, 2015

Tigers pitcher Anibal Sanchez is Thursday’s Player of the Day.

Meanwhile, Phillies pitcher Aaron Harang rises to fourth in Box-Toppers player rankings and Shane Victorino of the Red Sox scores a Box-Toppers point for the 10th season in a row.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 14.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.0
3	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
4	Harang, Aaron 1599	pi sp	phi nl	5.1
5	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
6	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
7	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
8	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
9	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
10	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Sanchez struck out nine over eight innings, allowing one run, in the 13-1 win over the Twins.

National League Player of the Day—Phillies pitcher Aaron Harang pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing five hits and striking out six, in the 4-2 win over the Pirates.

Harang rises to fourth in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season. He earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 5.1 for the season. He ranks second among NL pitchers, behind Gerrit Cole of the Pirates (6.0).

National League Batter of the Day—Derek Norris of the Padres hit a three-run homer and a two-run triple in the 8-3 win over the Nationals.

American League Batter of the Day—Alcides Escobar of the Royals went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in three runs, in the 6-3 win over the Rangers.

Streak—Shane Victorino of the Red Sox has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons.

Victorino was Player of the Game in Thursday’s 2-1 win over the Mariners (HR 2-3) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

Victorino earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Phillies. His best season was 2009 with the Phillies, when he had 9.5 Box-Toppers points, 10th among NL batters. In 2014, he had 2.5 Box-Toppers points with the Red Sox.

Victorino has 48.2 career Box-Toppers points, which ranks 24th among active batters currently in the AL.

Scoring—Sanchez earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Harang earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Norris and Escobar 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/14
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    9.0
    Tigers
    Anibal Sanchez (W, 3-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    9
  

    NL
    8.0
    Phillies
    Aaron Harang (W, 4-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    0
    0
    1
    6
  

    
    6.0
    Rays
    Erasmo Ramirez (W, 1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    1
    0
    0
    2
    4
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Padres
    Derek Norris   C
    3
    1
    2
    5
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Reds
    Marlon Byrd   LF
    2
    1
    2
    3
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.1
    Cardinals
    Trevor Rosenthal (S, 12)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    1
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.1
    Cubs
    Pedro Strop (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Royals
    Alcides Escobar   SS
    5
    2
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Rockies
    Carlos Gonzalez   RF
    3
    2
    1
    3
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Chad Qualls (S, 4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Red Sox
    Shane Victorino   RF
    3
    1
    2
    1
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

  
  

Indians' Corey Kluber (8IP H 0R 18K) tops players for Wednesday, May 13 with highest Box-Toppers game score of 2015

Shawn Plank May 14, 2015

Indians pitcher Corey Kluber, who struck out 18 and allowed one hit over eight innings, is Wednesday’s Player of the Day.

Kluber did not allow a hit until the seventh inning in the 2-0 win over the Cardinals. His Box-Toppers game score of 25 is the highest of the season, far outdistancing the previous high game scores of 15.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 13.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.0
3	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
4	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
5	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
6	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
7	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
8	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
9	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
10	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Kluber led American League players in Box-Toppers points in 2014 with 25.8. This was his first Player of the Game honor this season and first Box-Toppers points of the season. Until now, he held the distinction of the player with the highest 2014 Box-Toppers point total who had yet to earn points in 2015, a dubious honor that now goes to Twins pitcher Phil Hughes (14.1 points in 2014).

Though it was Kluber’s first points of the season, he is not very far off pace from his 2014 point total. As Wednesday’s Player of the Day, Kluber now has 2.0 Box-Toppers points for the season. As of May 14, 2014, Kluber had 3.0 Box-Toppers points. His 25.8 Box-Toppers points were the 17th-most points scored by a player in a single season since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Player of the Day—Reds pitcher Raisel Iglesias allowed one run and two hits over eight innings in the 5-1 win over the Braves.

This was Iglesias’ Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. He made his Major League debut April 12 and was playing in his third career game. He is the 3,467th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Batter of the Day—Michael Taylor of the Nationals hit a grand slam in the 9-6 win over the Diamondbacks.

American League Batter of the Day—Prince Fielder of the Rangers homered and went 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the 5-2 win over the Royals.

Fielder has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 11 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2005 with the Brewers. His best year was 2011 with the Brewers when he had 15.7 Box-Toppers points, first among NL batters. In 2014, he had 1.0 Box-Toppers point with the Rangers.

Fielder has 71.8 career Box-Toppers points, ranking 73rd among all batters since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. His career 71.8 points ranks ninth among active batters currently in the AL.

Notable—Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels moves up to 41st place among all players in Box-Toppers points since 1995 after earning Player of the Game honors Wednesday.

Hamels now has 114.8 Box-Toppers points and moves past Blue Jays pitcher Mark Buehrle (114.7). He trails 40th-place player Josh Beckett (114.9).

Hamels (7IP 2R 9K W in the 3-2 win over the Pirates) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 4.0 for the season, 19th among all players for 2015.

Hammel, Hamels—Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel and Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels have been Box-Toppers Players of the Game on the same day three times this season, including Wednesday. Obviously, the similarly-named hurlers are on the same starting rotation schedule and both are doing well so far—Hamels has earned Player of the Game honors four times and has 4.0 Box-Toppers points. Hammel has earned Player of the Game honors three times and also has 4.0 Box-Toppers points. Both were top players in their games on April 27, May 8 and May 13. In addition, the two have shared Player of the Game honors on the same day in previous seasons three different times—April 25, 2012, June 6, 2014, and Sept. 1, 2014.

Scoring—Kluber earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Iglesias earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Taylor and Fielder 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/13
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    25.0
    Indians
    Corey Kluber (W, 1-5)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    18
  

    
    10.0
    White Sox
    Jose Quintana (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    1
    10
  

    NL
    6.0
    Reds
    Raisel Iglesias (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    2
    1
    1
    3
    5
  

    
    6.0
    Phillies
    Cole Hamels (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    9
  

    
    6.0
    `Cubs
    Jason Hammel
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    5.2
    Orioles
    Miguel Gonzalez (W, 4-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    3
    1
    0
    3
    5
  

    BAT
    5.0
    Nationals
    Michael Taylor   RF
    1
    1
    1
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    `Angels
    Hector Santiago
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    7
    1
    1
    0
    8
  

    
    4.0
    Padres
    James Shields (W, 5-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    6
    1
    1
    3
    9
  

    
    3.1
    Twins
    Ricky Nolasco (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.1
    4
    2
    0
    3
    7
  

    
    3.0
    Rays
    Brad Boxberger (S, 10)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    3.0
    Marlins
    A.J. Ramos (S, 1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    BAT
    2.0
    Rangers
    Prince Fielder   DH
    4
    1
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Chad Qualls (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Red Sox
    Daniel Nava   1B
    3
    1
    2
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Giants' Chris Heston tops players for Tuesday, May 12, is among 3 to rise in Box-Toppers top 10 player rankings

Shawn Plank May 13, 2015

Giants pitcher Chris Heston is Tuesday’s Player of the Day and is one of three players to rise in Box-Toppers top 10 player rankings for the season.

Heston rises to seventh place Tuesday, while Rays pitcher Chris Archer rises to second place and Eric Hosmer of the Royals rises to fifth.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 12.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	6.0
3	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
4	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
5	Hosmer, Eric 2886	1b	kc al	5.0
6	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
7	Heston, Chris 3437	pi sp	sf nl	5.0
8	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
9	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
10	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Heston pitched a complete game, allowing one run, two hits and striking out 10, in the 8-1 win over the Astros. Heston earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, putting him in seventh in Box-Toppers player rankings, third among National League pitchers.

American League Player of the Day—White Sox pitcher Chris Sale struck out 11 over eight innings, allowing two runs, in the 4-2 win over the Brewers.

National League Batter of the Day—Andre Ethier of the Dodgers homered, went 5-for-5 and drove in three runs, in the 11-1 win over the Marlins.

American League Batter of the Day—Josh Reddick of the Athletics homered, went 4-for-5, scored twice and drove in three runs, in the 9-2 win over the Red Sox.

Rankings—In addition to Heston, two other players rose in Box-Toppers player rankings top 10 for the season after earning Player of the Game honors Tuesday:

Rays pitcher Chris Archer rose to second place. Archer (7IP 2R 8K ND in the 4-2 win over the Yankees) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 6.0 for the season.
Eric Hosmer of the Royals rose to fifth place. Hosmer (HR 2-3 2R 2BI in the 7-6 win over the Rangers) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 5.0 for the season. He takes the lead among AL batters, passing previous leader Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers (4.7 Box-Toppers points).

Scoring—Heston earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Sale earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Ethier and Reddick each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Tuesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/12
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    15.0
    Giants
    Chris Heston (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    2
    1
    1
    0
    10
  

    AL
    11.0
    White Sox
    Chris Sale (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    2
    2
    1
    11
  

    
    11.0
    Cubs
    Jake Arrieta (W, 4-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    10
  

    
    7.0
    Cardinals
    Lance Lynn (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    4
    0
    0
    4
    9
  

    
    4.2
    `Tigers
    Alfredo Simon
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Dodgers
    Andre Ethier   RF
    5
    1
    5
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Athletics
    Josh Reddick   RF
    5
    2
    4
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Mariners
    Mike Zunino   C
    4
    2
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Blue Jays
    Edwin Encarnacion   1B
    4
    3
    2
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Angels
    C.J. Wilson (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    6
  

    
    3.0
    Dbacks
    Mark Trumbo   RF
    5
    2
    2
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Royals
    Eric Hosmer   1B
    3
    2
    2
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Pirates
    Josh Harrison   3B
    3
    2
    1
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    `Rays
    Chris Archer
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    7
    2
    2
    1
    8
  

    
    1.0
    Reds
    Todd Frazier   3B
    3
    1
    1
    2
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Braves' Miller tops players for Monday, May 11; Yankees' Teixeira earns Box-Toppers points for 13th straight season

Shawn Plank May 12, 2015

Braves pitcher Shelby Miller is Monday’s Player of the Day and rises to fourth place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.

Meanwhile, Mark Teixeira of the Yankees has now earned Box-Toppers points for 13 straight seasons and Cubs phenom Kris Bryant is one of two players to earn their career-first Box-Toppers Player of the Game honors.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 11.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Miller, Shelby 3134	pi sp	atl nl	5.0
5	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
6	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
7	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
8	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
9	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
10	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Miller struck out eight over seven innings and allowed one run in the 2-1 win over the Reds. Miller earned no decision because he left the game with the score tied 1-1—the Braves scored the go-ahead run in the ninth.

Miller earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season, moving up to fourth in Box-Toppers player rankings, second among NL pitchers, behind Gerrit Cole of the Pirates (6.0).

American League Player of the Day—Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis allowed one run over seven innings and struck out five in the 8-2 win over the Royals.

American League Batter of the Day—Mark Teixeira of the Yankees hit a two-run homer, doubled and went 4-for-5, scoring three times and driving in two runs, in the 11-5 win over the Rays.

Teixeira has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 13 straight seasons with his first Player of the Game honor of the season. He earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2003 with the Rangers. His best season was 2009 with the Yankees when he had 11.5 Box-Toppers points, sixth among AL batters. In 2014, he had 2.0 Box-Toppers points with the Yankees.

Teixeira has 91.3 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 86th among all players since 1995 when Box-Toppers record keeping began. His career point total ranks 37th among all batters since 1995, seventh among active batters currently in the AL and third among active batters currently on the Yankees—behind Alex Rodriguez (183.8) and Carlos Beltran (95.4).

National League Batter of the Day—Scott Van Slyke of the Dodgers hit a walk-off three-run homer in the 5-3 win over the Marlins. Van Slyke also doubled and went 3-for-4 with two runs.

Debuts—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Monday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Kris Bryant of the Cubs (HR 1-2 R 2BI in the 4-3 win over the Mets) made his Major League debut April 17 and was playing in his 23rd career game. He is the 3,465th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Red Sox pitcher Matt Barnes (2IP 0R K W in the 5-4 win over the Athletics) made his Major League debut Sept. 9, 2014, and was playing in his eighth career game. He is the 3,466th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Miller earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lewis earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Teixeira and Van Slyke each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being their league’s Batter of the Day. All of Monday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/11
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    8.0
    `Braves
    Shelby Miller
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    8
  

    
    5.0
    Nationals
    Max Scherzer (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    AL
    5.0
    Rangers
    Colby Lewis (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    2
    5
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Yankees
    Mark Teixeira   1B
    5
    3
    4
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Dodgers
    Scott Van Slyke   LF
    4
    2
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Orioles
    Ubaldo Jimenez (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    2
    2
    2
    9
  

    
    2.0
    Brewers
    Carlos Gomez   CF
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Cubs
    Kris Bryant   3B
    2
    1
    1
    2
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Red Sox
    Matt Barnes (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    1
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Pirates
    Starling Marte   LF
    4
    1
    1
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Yankees' Pineda tops players for Sunday, May 10; Mariners' Hernandez extends lead among players, rises to 15th in 'all-time' rankings

Shawn Plank May 11, 2015

Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda is Sunday’s Player of the Day.

Meanwhile, Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez extended his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings and moved into 15th place on Box-Toppers “all-time” player rankings, passing Greg Maddux.

Top 10 players

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


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	8.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
5	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
6	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
7	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
8	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
9	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
10	Rodriguez, Alex	dh	nyy al	4.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Pineda struck out 16 batters over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-2 win over the Orioles.

Pineda had a Box-Toppers game score of 15, the highest recorded so far this season. However, another player also had a Box-Toppers game score of 15 Sunday—Indians pitcher Danny Salazar, Player of the Game in the 8-2 win over the Twins (7IP H R 11K). However, Pineda won the tiebreaker to earn overall Player of the Day because he had more strikeouts than Salazar—16 vs. 11. And though Salazar had one of the two highest Box-Toppers game scores of the season, he earns only 1.0 Box-Toppers point as Player of the Game, while Pineda earns 2.0 for being Player of the Day.

National League Player of the Day—Brewers pitcher Matt Garza struck out nine over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 3-2, 11-inning win over the Cubs. After Garza exited the game, the Cubs tied the score 2-2 in the top of the eighth inning, so Garza did not earn the win, but picked up a no-decision.

National League Batter of the Day—Adrian Gonzalez of the Dodgers hit two doubles and drove in four runs in the 9-5 win over the Rockies.

American League Batter of the Day—Mike Napoli of the Red Sox hit a three-run home run in the 6-3 win over the Blue Jays.

Napoli has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Angels. His best year was 2011 with the Rangers when he had 9.0, ninth among AL batters. In 2014, he had 5.5 Box-Toppers points with the Red Sox.

Napoli has 48.2 career Box-Toppers points, ranking 23rd among active batters currently in the AL.

Rankings—Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez extended his lead in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game honors Sunday.

Hernandez (7IP 2R 6K W in the 4-3 win over the Athletics) earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 8.7 for the season. He is 2.7 Box-Toppers points ahead of the second place player, Gerrit Cole of the Pirates (6.0).

With the Box-Toppers point earned Sunday, Hernandez now has 152.0 for his career, which moves him up to 15th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. He passes Greg Maddux (151.7) on the list. It should be noted that Maddux pitched nine seasons, many of them stellar, before Box-Toppers record keeping began, so his actual Box-Toppers career total would likely be much higher. Hernandez now trails Tim Hudson of the Giants (153.0) and Barry Bonds (153.2).

Streak—Ryan Zimmerman of the Nationals has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons.

Zimmerman was Player of the Game in Sunday’s 5-4 win over the Braves (2B 2-4 2R 2BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

Zimmerman earned his first Box-Toppers point in 2006 with the Nationals. His best year was 2013 with the Nationals when he had 9.2, sixth among NL batters. In 2014, he had 3.5 Box-Toppers points with the Nationals.

Zimmerman has 52.8 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 13th among active batters currently in the NL.

Debut—Two players made their Box-Toppers debut Sunday, the first time in their career they earned Player of the Game honors:

Johnny Monell of the Mets (pinch hitter: 2B 2BI in the 7-4 win over the Phillies) made his Major League debut Sept. 5, 2013, and was playing in his 10th career game. He is the 3,463rd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.
Jung-Ho Kang of the Pirates (HR 2-4 2BI in the 4-3 win over the Cardinals) made his Major League debut April 8 and was playing in his 20th career game. He is the 3,464th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Pineda earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Garza earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Gonzalez and Napoli 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/10
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    15.0
    Yankees
    Michael Pineda (W, 5-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    0
    16
  

    
    15.0
    Indians
    Danny Salazar (W, 4-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    1
    1
    1
    0
    11
  

    
    9.2
    Angels
    Garrett Richards (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.2
    1
    1
    1
    4
    10
  

    NL
    8.0
    `Brewers
    Matt Garza
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    1
    1
    3
    9
  

    
    7.0
    `Rangers
    Wandy Rodriguez
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    2
    1
    1
    1
    6
  

    
    6.0
    `Giants
    Ryan Vogelsong
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    5.0
    `Royals
    Chris Young
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    1
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    4.1
    `Dbacks
    Daniel Hudson
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    3.1
    2
    0
    0
    2
    5
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Dodgers
    Adrian Gonzalez   1B
    4
    1
    2
    4
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Red Sox
    Mike Napoli   1B
    2
    1
    1
    3
    2
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Mariners
    Felix Hernandez (W, 6-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    2
    1
    6
  

    
    2.0
    Nationals
    Ryan Zimmerman   1B
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Mets
    Johnny Monell   PH
    1
    0
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Pirates
    Jung-Ho Kang   3B
    4
    1
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    White Sox
    Tyler Flowers   C
    2
    1
    2
    0
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Brewers' Parra (HR 2-4 4RBI), Orioles' Chen (7IP 7K) top players for Saturday, May 9

Shawn Plank May 10, 2015

Gerardo Parra of the Brewers is Saturday’s Player of the Day.

Parra homered and went 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs, in the 12-4 win over the Cubs.

American League Player of the Day—Orioles pitcher Wei-Yin Chen struck out seven over seven innings, allowing one run, in the 6-2 win over the Yankees.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 9.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	7.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
5	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
6	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
7	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
8	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
9	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
10	Rodriguez, Alex	dh	nyy al	4.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

American League Batter of the Day—Steven Souza Jr. of the Rays hit a three-run home run in the 7-2 win over the Rangers.

This was Souza’s Box-Toppers debut, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Souza made his Major League debut April 13, 2014, and was playing in his 51st career game. He is the 3,461st player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Saturday since the overall Player of the Day was an NL batter (Gerardo Parra of the Brewers).

Notable—Torii Hunter of the Twins earned Player of the Game honors for the second straight day (and for the third time in eight days) and also rose to 47th place in “all-time” Box-Toppers player rankings.

Hunter (HR 3-5 3R in the 7-4 win over the Indians) earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being Player of the Game, giving him 3.5 for the season (fifth among AL batters this season) and 111.4 for his career.

His 111.4 career points puts him at 47th place among all players since 1995 (when Box-Toppers record keeping began). With his point Saturday, he passes Tom Glavine (110.6) and Jon Lester (111.1) on that list. He ranks 15th among all batters since 1995 and fifth among all active batters currently in the AL.

Debut—Padres pitcher Kevin Quackenbush made his Box-Toppers debut Saturday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Quackenbush (2IP H 0R 3K W in the 6-4 win over the Diamondbacks) made his Major League debut April 25, 2014, and was playing in his 64th career game. He is the 3,462nd player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Parra earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Chen earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Souza earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Saturday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/9
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    6.0
    Brewers
    Gerardo Parra   CF
    2
    2
    2
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    AL
    6.0
    Orioles
    Wei-Yin Chen (W, 1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    1
    1
    1
    7
  

    
    5.0
    Mets
    Jon Niese (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    0
    1
    6
  

    
    5.0
    Mariners
    J.A. Happ (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    5.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    8
  

    
    5.0
    `Blue Jays
    Liam Hendriks
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    3.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    BAT
    4.0
    Rays
    Steven Souza Jr.   RF
    2
    2
    1
    3
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Padres
    Kevin Quackenbush (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    1
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.0
    White Sox
    Alexei Ramirez   SS
    4
    2
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Twins
    Torii Hunter   RF
    5
    3
    3
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Nationals
    Jose Lobaton   C
    4
    1
    3
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Astros
    Colby Rasmus   RF
    3
    2
    1
    2
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Marlins
    Donovan Solano   2B
    2
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Pirates
    Rob Scahill (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    1.0
    Reds
    Skip Schumaker   DH
    5
    1
    3
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    1.0
    Royals
    Alcides Escobar   SS
    5
    2
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Angels' Weaver tops players for Friday, May 8; Nationals' Harper rises to lead NL batters in Box-Toppers points

Shawn Plank May 9, 2015

Angels pitcher Jered Weaver is Friday’s Player of the Day.

Meanwhile, Bryce Harper of the Nationals takes the Box-Toppers points lead among National League batters, rising to fourth place in overall player rankings and four players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points earn Player of the Game honors Friday.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 8.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	7.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Harper, Bryce 3011	lf rf	dc nl	5.0
5	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
6	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
7	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
8	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
9	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
10	Rodriguez, Alex	dh	nyy al	4.5

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Weaver pitched a complete game, six-hit shutout, striking out six, in the 2-0 win over the Astros.

Earning 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day, Weaver has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 10 straight seasons. He earned his first points in 2006 with the Angels. His best year was 2011 with the Angels, when he had 22.8 Box-Toppers points, second among American League pitchers (Justin Verlander of the Tigers had 24.4).

Weaver now has 117.4 career Box-Toppers points, ranking 37th among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his points Friday, he passes Barry Zito (117.4) and Todd Helton (116.4) on that list. Weaver’s 117.4 points ranks 25th among all pitchers since 1995 and fifth among active pitchers currently in the AL.

National League Player of the Day—Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum pitched six scoreless innings, striking out eight, in the 6-0 win over the Marlins.

Lincecum earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day, giving him 113.0 for his career, which puts him at 45th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his points Friday, Lincecum passes Kevin Brown (112.8) on that list. Lincecum’s 113.0 points ranks 31st among all pitchers since 1995 and ninth among all active pitchers currently in the NL.

American League Batter of the Day—Torii Hunter of the Twins homered and hit two doubles, going 4-for-4 with two runs and four RBIs, in the 9-3 win over the Indians.

Hunter earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day, giving him 110.4 career Box-Toppers points, putting him in 49th place among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With his points Friday, Hunter passes Dan Haren (110.2) and Jeff Kent (109.7) on that list. Hunter’s 110.4 points ranks 15th among all batters since 1995 and fifth among active batters currently in the AL.

National League Batter of the Day—Bryce Harper of the Nationals hit two home runs and went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in five runs, in the 9-2 win over the Braves.

Harper earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being NL Batter of the Day, giving him 5.0 for the season. He now leads all NL batters—passing Giancarlo Stanton of the Marlins (4.5)—and rises to fourth place among all players this season.

Notable—Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels now has 113.8 career Box-Toppers points after earning Player of the Game honors Friday (7IP R 8K W in the 3-1 win over the Mets).

Hamels now ranks 42nd among all players since 1995, when Box-Toppers record keeping began. With the 1.0 Box-Toppers point he earned Friday, Hamels passes Chris Carpenter (113.3) and Sammy Sosa (113.2) on that list. Hamels’ 113.8 points ranks 29th among all pitchers since 1995 and eighth among active pitchers currently in the NL.

Debut—Mariners pitcher Carson Smith made his Box-Toppers debut Friday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Smith (2IP 0R 3K W in the 4-3 win over the Athletics) made his Major League debut Sept. 1, 2014, and was playing in his 24th career game. He is the 3,460th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Weaver earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Lincecum earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being NL Player of the Day. Hunter and Harper each earn 1.5 Box-Toppers 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/8
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    9.0
    Angels
    Jered Weaver (W, 1-4)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    6
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    NL
    8.0
    Giants
    Tim Lincecum (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.0
    3
    0
    0
    3
    8
  

    
    7.0
    Phillies
    Cole Hamels (W, 2-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    1
    1
    2
    8
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Twins
    Torii Hunter   RF
    4
    2
    4
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    6.0
    Nationals
    Bryce Harper   RF
    4
    2
    3
    5
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    6.0
    Rays
    Nathan Karns (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    4
    2
    2
    2
    9
  

    
    5.0
    Mariners
    Carson Smith (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    2.0
    0
    0
    0
    0
    3
  

    
    3.0
    Cubs
    Jason Hammel (W, 3-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    5
    2
    2
    3
    8
  

    
    3.0
    Blue Jays
    Aaron Sanchez (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    2
    0
    0
    5
    3
  

    
    2.1
    Yankees
    Dellin Betances (W, 4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    2.0
    Cardinals
    Kolten Wong   2B
    5
    1
    3
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Padres
    Will Venable   CF
    5
    2
    3
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Tigers
    Ian Kinsler   2B
    4
    0
    4
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Dodgers
    Adrian Gonzalez   1B
    3
    0
    2
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

  
  

Mariners' Felix Hernandez leads Box-Toppers player rankings for 3rd straight week

Shawn Plank May 8, 2015

While King Felix leads all player, Cole leads NL pitchers, Cabrera leads AL batters & Stanton leads NL batters.

St. Louis Cardinals, hottest team of the week, rise to top Box-Toppers team rankings

Shawn Plank May 8, 2015

Cardinals rise to 1st from 3rd. Astros take AL lead. Tigers fall from 1st to 5th. Twins rise into top 10.

Dodgers' Grandal (2 3R HRs) tops players for Thursday, May 7; A-Rod hits 661st HR, rises to 9th in Box-Toppers player rankings

Shawn Plank May 8, 2015

Yasmani Grandal of the Dodgers is Thursday’s Player of the Day.

Meanwhile, Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees earned Player of the Game honors as he hit his 661st career home run, passing Willie Mays’ mark of 660. Rodriguez also moved up to ninth place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 7.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	7.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
5	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
6	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
7	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
8	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
9	Rodriguez, Alex	dh	nyy al	4.5
10	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	cin nl	4.4

What are those numbers after players' names?

Player of the Day—Grandal hit two three-run homers and drove in eight runs, going 4-for-4 and scoring three times, in the 14-4 win over the Brewers.

American League Player of the Day—Tigers pitcher Joakim Soria struck out four over the final 1 1/3 innings, allowing no runs or hits and earning the save, in the 4-1 win over the White Sox.

American League Batter of the Day—Eric Hosmer of the Royals hit a three-run homer and went 2-for-4 with two runs in the 7-4 win over the Indians.

National League Batter of the Day—There is no separate NL Batter of the Day for Thursday since the overall Player of the Day (Yasmani Grandal of the Dodgers) was a batter from the NL.

Rankings—Alex Rodriguez rises to ninth in Box-Toppers player rankings after earning Player of the Game in the Yankees’ 4-3 win over the Orioles (HR 2-3 R 2BI). Rodriguez earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.5 for the season. Rodriguez already has more Box-Toppers points this season than he did in 2013 (3.0) and as many as he had in all of 2012 (4.5). In 2011, he had 4.7 points and in 2010, he had 13.7, the last time he had 10.0 or more in a season.

In the game, Rodriguez moved to fourth place on the all-time home run list with his 661st home run, passing Willie Mays (660). Rodriguez now has 183.8 career Box-Toppers points, ranked fourth among all players since record keeping began in 1995 and first among all batters during that time.

Notables—Two players had notable Box-Toppers achievements Thursday:

Dan Haren of the Marlins became the second pitcher this season to earn Player of the Game honors for batting. Haren (2B 2-3 2R 2BI in the 7-2 win over the Giants) also pitched seven innings and picked up the win. It is the third time in his career he has earned Player of the Game honors for batting—he last did it June 14, 2014. Haren earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 2.0 for the season and 110.2 for his career. With the point, he rises to 49th among all players since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995, passing Jeff Kent (109.7) on that list.
Cardinals pitcher John Lackey becomes the 66th player to earn 100 or more Box-Toppers points after he earned Player of the Game honors Thursday (7.2IP R 10K W in the 5-1 win over the Cubs). Lackey earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 100.8 for his career. He moves to 62nd place among all players (since record keeping began in 1995) and passes four players on that list—Aramis Ramirez (100.8), Paul Konerko (100.7), Jeff Bagwell (100.4) and Larry Walker (100.1). Lackey’s career 100.8 Box-Toppers points ranks 13th among active pitchers currently in the NL.

Debut—Rangers pitcher Alex Claudio made his Box-Toppers debut Thursday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Claudio (1.1IP 0R 0H 2K W in the 5-4 win over the Rays) made his Major League debut Aug. 13, 2014, and was playing in his 21st career game. He is the 3,459th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Grandal earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Soria earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Hosmer earns 1.5 Box-Toppers points for being AL Batter of the Day. All of Thursday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/7
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    11.0
    Dodgers
    Yasmani Grandal   C
    4
    3
    4
    8
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    9.2
    Cardinals
    John Lackey (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    5
    1
    1
    1
    10
  

    
    9.0
    Dbacks
    Rubby De La Rosa (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    7
  

    AL
    5.1
    Tigers
    Joakim Soria (S, 11)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    4
  

    
    4.1
    `Astros
    Collin McHugh
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    5
    2
    2
    1
    7
  

    
    3.1
    Rangers
    Alex Claudio (W, 1-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Royals
    Eric Hosmer   1B
    4
    2
    2
    3
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Marlins
    Dan Haren   P
    3
    2
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.1
    Twins
    Glen Perkins (S, 10)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    1.1
    0
    0
    0
    0
    1
  

    
    2.0
    Pirates
    Andrew McCutchen   CF
    4
    2
    3
    1
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Yankees
    Alex Rodriguez   DH
    3
    1
    2
    2
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

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

  
  

Nationals' Bryce Harper hits three homers, tops players for Wednesday, May 6

Shawn Plank May 7, 2015

Bryce Harper of the Nationals is Wednesday’s Player of the Day.

Harper hit three home runs and drove in five runs in the 7-5 win over the Marlins.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 6.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	7.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
5	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
6	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
7	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
8	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
9	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	cin nl	4.4
10	Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	4.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

Harper had a Box-Toppers game score of +7, the same as Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom, who was Player of the Game in the 5-1 win over the Mets. But Harper earned overall Player of the Day honors because in cases of Box-Toppers game score ties, batters beat pitchers.

American League Player of the Day—Eduardo Escobar of the Twins homered, doubled and went 3-for-4, driving in five runs, in the 13-0 win over the Athletics.

Escobar had a Box-Toppers game score of +5, tied with Carlos Peguero of the Rangers, who was Player of the Game in the 11-3 win over the Astros. Escobar won the tie-breaker to earn AL Player of the Day because he had more runs batted in—five vs. three.

American League and National League Batters of the Day—There are no separate AL and NL Batters of the Day since the top players in both leagues Wednesday were batters. It is the only time this season that batters have had the top overall player in both leagues. Wednesday was also unusual because 12 of the 15 Players of the Game were batters—only three were pitchers.

Streak—Adam Lind of the Brewers has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point in 10 straight seasons. Lind was Player of the Game in Wednesday’s 6-3 win over the Dodgers (HR 2B 2-4 2R 2BI) and earned 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

Lind earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2006 with the Blue Jays. His best season was 2009 with the Blue Jays, when he had 16.4 Box-Toppers points, second among AL batters (behind Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers with 16.5). In 2014, he had 2.5 Box-Toppers points with the Blue Jays.

Lind has 48.6 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 19th among active batters currently in the NL.

Debut—Carlos Peguero of the Rangers made his Box-Toppers debut Wednesday, the first time in his career he earned Player of the Game honors. Peguero (2HR 3-4 2R 2BI in the 11-3 win over the Astros) made his Major League debut April 19, 2011, and was playing in his 89th career game. He is the 3,458th player to debut in Box-Toppers since record keeping began in 1995.

Scoring—Harper earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Escobar earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. All of Wednesday’s other Players of the Game (listed in the chart below) earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/6
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    7.0
    Nationals
    Bryce Harper   RF
    4
    3
    3
    5
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    7.0
    Mets
    Jacob deGrom (W, 3-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    1
    9
  

    AL
    5.0
    Twins
    Eduardo Escobar   LF
    4
    1
    3
    5
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    5.0
    Rangers
    Carlos Peguero   LF
    4
    3
    3
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Dbacks
    Aaron Hill   2B
    5
    1
    4
    4
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Rays
    Evan Longoria   3B
    3
    3
    2
    2
    2
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    4.0
    Reds
    Mike Leake (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    6
    0
    0
    0
    2
  

    
    4.0
    Padres
    Ian Kennedy (W, 2-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    6
    1
    1
    0
    5
  

    
    3.0
    Blue Jays
    Chris Colabello   LF
    4
    2
    4
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Braves
    Andrelton Simmons   SS
    4
    3
    3
    1
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    White Sox
    Melky Cabrera   LF
    3
    1
    1
    4
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Indians
    Brandon Moss   RF
    5
    2
    2
    3
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Cubs
    Anthony Rizzo   1B
    4
    1
    2
    3
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Brewers
    Adam Lind   1B
    4
    2
    2
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    0.0
    Angels
    Mike Trout   CF
    4
    1
    1
    2
    0
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

  
  

Braves' Miller tops players for Tuesday, May 5; Pujols earns Box-Toppers points for 15th straight season

Shawn Plank May 6, 2015

Braves pitcher Shelby Miller is Tuesday’s Player of the Day.

Miller pitched a complete game, three-hit shutout, striking out eight, in the 9-0 win over the Phillies.

American League Player of the Day—Rangers pitcher Wandy Rodriguez struck out eight over eight innings, allowing one run on three hits, in the 7-1 win over the Astros.

American League Batter of the Day—Eric Hosmer of the Royals hit a three-run homer, a triple and drove in four runs, in the 5-3 win over the Indians.

Top 10 players

Here are the top 10 players in Box-Toppers points (BTP) for the 2015 season as of May 5.


	Player	Pos	Team	BTP
1	Hernandez, Felix 2064	pi sp	sea al	7.7
2	Cole, Gerrit 3232	pi sp	pit nl	6.0
3	Archer, Chris 3194	pi sp	tb al	5.0
4	Cabrera, Miguel 1776	1b	det al	4.7
5	Keuchel, Dallas 3050	pi sp	hou al	4.7
6	Gray, Sonny 3259	pi sp	oak al	4.7
7	Harvey, Matt 3075	pi sp	nym nl	4.7
8	Stanton, Giancarlo 2737	rf	fla nl	4.5
9	Cueto, Johnny 2400	pi sp	cin nl	4.4
10	Bumgarner, Madison 2753	pi sp	sf nl	4.0

What are those numbers after players' names?

National League Batter of the Day—Matt Carpenter of the Cardinals hit a game-tying three-run homer and drove in four total runs, in the 7-4 win over the Cubs.

Streak—Albert Pujols of the Angels has now earned at least 1.0 Box-Toppers point for 15 straight seasons. He was Player of the Game Tuesday in the 5-4 win over the Mariners (HR 2-3 2R 2BI) and earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, his first of the season.

Pujols earned his first Box-Toppers points in 2001 with the Cardinals. He led all NL batters in Box-Toppers points in five different seasons, the most times a batter has led his league in Box-Toppers points (since record keeping began in 1995). Here are the seasons he led NL batters, all with the Cardinals:

2003—16.5 Box-Toppers points
2004—15.9
2008—15.2
2009—16.7 (his best overall season)
2010—15.4

In 2014, Pujols had 7.5 Box-Toppers points with the Angels, fourth among AL designated hitters.

Pujols has 168.3 career Box-Toppers points, seventh among all players since Box-Toppers record keeping began in 1995. He trails Roy Halladay (170.7) for sixth place. Pujols ranks second among all batters on that list (behind only Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees with 182.8).

Notables—Two other players with more than 100 career Box-Toppers points also earned Player of the Game honors Tuesday:

Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon now has 136.4 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 21st among all players since 1995 (trailing Andy Pettitte with 138.5). Colon ranks 15th among pitchers on that list and second among active pitchers currently in the NL (behind Tim Hudson of the Giants with 153.0).

Colon was Player of the Game Tuesday in the Mets 3-2 win over the Orioles (7.2IP R 9K W) and earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 3.0 for the season.

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke now has 129.7 career Box-Toppers points and ranks 27th among all players since 1995. With Tuesday’s point, he passes Trevor Hoffman (129.4) on that list. Greinke ranks 18th among pitchers on that list and is fifth among active pitchers currently in the NL.

Greinke was Player of the Game Tuesday in the Dodgers 8-2 win over the Brewers (7.2IP 2H R 7K W) and earns 1.0 Box-Toppers point, giving him 4.0 for the season, putting him in 11th place in Box-Toppers player rankings for the season.

Scoring—Miller earns 2.0 Box-Toppers points for being Player of the Day and Rodriguez earns 1.7 Box-Toppers points for being AL Player of the Day. Hosmer and Carpenter 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.

Top player from each game

Listed from highest to lowest Box-Toppers game score

  
    

  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
  

    5/5
    Score
    Team
    Player
    AB
    R
    H
    BI
    BB
    K
    
    IP
    H
    R
    ER
    BB
    K
  

    MLB
    13.0
    Braves
    Shelby Miller (W, 4-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    9.0
    3
    0
    0
    1
    8
  

    AL
    10.0
    Rangers
    Wandy Rodriguez (W, 1-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    3
    1
    1
    1
    8
  

    
    9.2
    Dodgers
    Zack Greinke (W, 5-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    2
    1
    0
    2
    7
  

    
    8.2
    Mets
    Bartolo Colon (W, 5-1)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.2
    6
    1
    1
    0
    9
  

    
    8.1
    Athletics
    Jesse Chavez (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.1
    4
    1
    0
    1
    7
  

    
    8.0
    Yankees
    Michael Pineda (W, 4-0)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    8.0
    5
    0
    0
    1
    6
  

    
    6.0
    Giants
    Ryan Vogelsong (W, 1-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    3
    0
    0
    2
    4
  

    
    5.0
    Red Sox
    Rick Porcello (W, 3-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    8
    0
    0
    0
    6
  

    
    3.1
    Marlins
    Mat Latos (W, 1-3)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    6.1
    2
    1
    1
    5
    6
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Royals
    Eric Hosmer   1B
    4
    1
    2
    4
    0
    2
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    3.0
    Angels
    Albert Pujols   1B
    3
    2
    2
    2
    1
    0
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    BAT
    3.0
    Cardinals
    Matt Carpenter   3B
    3
    1
    1
    4
    1
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    Reds
    Marlon Byrd   LF
    5
    1
    2
    4
    0
    1
    
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
  

    
    2.0
    White Sox
    Jeff Samardzija (W, 2-2)
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    -
    
    7.0
    7
    2
    2
    1
    7
  

  
  

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Box-Toppers

Tracking who most helps their teams win the most games, based on box score stats. A method to measure & compare baseball's top players.