The odds of either the New York Mets or Chicago White Sox mounting a playoff run decrease with each day that falls off the calendar.

But victories like the ones they produced Sunday provide hope to both teams that it’s not too late to get back into the race.

The Mets and White Sox will each be looking to build some momentum Tuesday night, when New York hosts Chicago in the opener of a three-game interleague series.

Carlos Carrasco (3-3, 5.16 ERA) is slated to start for the Mets against Lucas Giolito (6-5, 3.45) in a battle of right-handers making their first starts of the second half.

Both teams were off Monday after earning victories Sunday. Luis Guillorme delivered the walk-off RBI double to lift the host Mets to a 2-1, 10-inning win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, while Luis Robert Jr. homered and finished with four hits as the visiting White Sox beat the Atlanta Braves 8-1 in the rubber game of a three-game series.

The wins left both teams 8 1/2 games out of a playoff berth entering Monday’s games, though the Mets’ path to a National League wild-card berth looks more arduous than the White Sox’s path in the American League Central.

The extra-inning victory snapped a four-game losing streak for the Mets, who are in 11th place in the NL and have five teams to surmount in the race for the third wild card. New York has been outscored 21-6 in the last five games, a span in which it was outhit 36-18.

But strong outings by starters Kodai Senga and Max Scherzer on Saturday and Sunday provided a glimpse at the template the Mets need to follow in order to turn their season around. The duo combined to allow one run over 13 innings, with Scherzer allowing just one hit in seven scoreless frames on Sunday before the Dodgers tied the score against Trevor Gott in the eighth.

“Every time we win, I hope it’s a starting point of some consistent good baseball,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “And it starts with pitching. We’ve gotten some quality innings, especially out of our starters here. Max was the difference in the game today. That won’t be forgotten, I know, by me.”

The White Sox have the third-worst record in the AL but have 20 games remaining against the three teams ahead of them in the Central — the Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Guardians and Minnesota Twins, the latter of whom are in first place despite a 48-46 record.

The White Sox’s three-game set against the Braves — who have the best record in baseball at 61-31 — started with a discouraging 9-0 loss on Friday. But Chicago never trailed in a 6-5 victory on Saturday before Sunday’s rout, which snapped Atlanta’s streak of series wins at 11.

“Our bats were there, we played great defense for the most part, our pitching was solid,” said White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease, who earned the win Sunday after giving up one run in five innings. “It’s one of those series that shows the kind of talent we have.”

Carrasco, 36, earned the win on July 6, when he allowed three hits over eight scoreless innings as the Mets beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 9-0. He is 10-12 with a 4.14 ERA in 30 career games (26 starts) against the White Sox.

Giolito, 29, didn’t factor into the decision on July 9 after surrendering two runs over seven innings in the White Sox’s 4-3, 10-inning loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. He is 0-0 with a 3.07 ERA in three starts against the Mets.

–Field Level Media

The Milwaukee Brewers will try to continue their hot streak when they open a three-game series at the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night.

The Brewers are coming off a three-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds after taking two of three from them heading into the All-Star break. Those wins gave Milwaukee a two-game edge over the Reds for first place in the NL Central.

Three of their past five wins have come via shutout.

“It’s good to see us come in and shut them down and slow their roll,” Brewers reliever Hoby Milner said of Cincinnati. “Hopefully, we start a little slump for them. That would be nice.”

Milner, Bryse Wilson, Elvis Peguero, Joel Payamps and Devin Williams combined to throw 9 1/3 scoreless innings last weekend.

“We’ve got this group of five that’s been here all year, and all five of them have had really nice seasons,” Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said.

Milwaukee’s offense absorbed another blow over the weekend when power-hitting first baseman Rowdy Tellez underwent surgery on his left ring finger after injuring himself during pregame warmups on Saturday.

Tellez was shagging fly balls in the outfield when his finger snagged on the center-field wall, tearing off his fingernail and breaking the bone at the tip.

Tellez was close to returning from right forearm inflammation that had kept him out since July 5, but now he’ll miss an additional four weeks.

The Brewers also placed third baseman Brian Anderson on the 10-day injured list on Sunday with a lower back strain. The team recalled infielder Jahmai Jones from Triple-A Nashville.

The Phillies came out of the All-Star break hot as well, winning their past three games to take three of four from the visiting San Diego Padres. Those wins moved Philadelphia within a half game of an NL wild-card spot.

The Phillies are planning to start former two-time NL most valuable player Bryce Harper at first base during the upcoming series, but had not cemented which game as of Sunday.

Harper has not played a defensive position since April 16, 2022.

He was diagnosed with a small tear in the ulnar collateral ligament of his right elbow in May of last season and eventually underwent Tommy John surgery in November.

“Ready as I can be at first base, right?” Harper said. “I’m going to try to play the best first base I can. It’s not going to be an every-day thing — it’ll be one day here and a couple DHs — so we’ll go from there.”

Philadelphia plans to send right-hander Aaron Nola to the mound for the series opener.

Nola (8-6, 4.39 ERA) strung together wins in consecutive starts for the first time this season on June 28 against the Chicago Cubs and July 4 against the Tampa Bay Rays, but lost his most-recent outing after giving up five runs (four earned) and eight hits over six innings in a 7-3 loss to the Miami Marlins on July 9.

Nola, 30, is 5-1 in 10 career starts against Milwaukee with a 2.28 ERA. Christian Yelich is 10-for-30 (.333) with a homer against Nola.

The Brewers plan to counter with veteran right-hander Julio Teheran.

Teheran (2-3, 3.64) has struggled in his past two outings, allowing a combined 13 runs in 11 2/3 innings, raising his ERA from 1.53 through his first six starts this season.

The 32-year-old has made 26 career appearances against Philadelphia, including 25 starts, and is 9-9 with a 3.97 ERA.

Harper is 19-for-47 (.404) with nine homers, 21 RBIs and 12 walks against Teheran.

–Field Level Media

The soaring Toronto Blue Jays just swept one National League West team and now aim to take care of business against another when they host the San Diego Padres on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game series.

The Padres have lost 12 of their past 15 road games as they make their first visit to Toronto since winning two of three games in May 2019.

The Blue Jays enter this series with four straight victories and eight in nine games after outscoring the Arizona Diamondbacks 19-9 during their three-game sweep. Danny Jansen delivered a big three-run double during Sunday’s 7-5 victory.

“It’s definitely satisfying to keep going with the momentum and not seem to lose that over the (All-Star) break,” Jansen said after Sunday’s win.

Whit Merrifield is batting .333 (13-for-39) with four homers and 12 RBIs in July while notching six two-hits games. Fellow All-Star Bo Bichette is hitting .320 (16-for-50) with two homers this month.

Toronto’s recent success has allowed it to move into second place in the American League wild-card chase.

San Diego, on the other hand, is eight games behind the third and final NL wild-card spot after losing three of four to the Philadelphia Phillies over the weekend.

The Padres expect to have right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (right ankle) in the starting lineup on Tuesday. Tatis injured the ankle in Game 2 of Saturday’s doubleheader against the Phillies.

Tatis entered Sunday’s game in the eighth inning as a pinch hitter and delivered a tying two-run ground single. The Padres eventually lost 7-6 in 12 innings to fall to 5-16 in one-run games and 0-9 in extra innings.

San Diego has the worst record in one-run games and is the lone team in the majors without an extra-inning victory.

“We haven’t executed as a team,” Tatis said after Sunday’s setback. “It’s a huge moment, and somebody (has to get a hit) in the clutch.”

Shortstop Xander Bogaerts homered Sunday, giving him three for the month after hitting just two total across May and June.

Bogaerts, who hit six of his 11 homers in April, has been bothered by a left wrist injury.

“I’m swinging it better,” Bogaerts told reporters after going 6-for-17 against the Phillies. “I haven’t been feeling (pain) at all.”

The Padres will send right-hander Joe Musgrove (8-2, 3.29 ERA) to the mound Tuesday.

Musgrove is 7-0 with a 1.79 ERA in his last nine starts, allowing one run or fewer six times during the stretch.

Musgrove defeated the New York Mets in his final start before the All-Star break. He gave up three hits over six scoreless innings.

Musgrove, 30, is 1-0 with a 1.46 ERA in three career appearances (one start) against Toronto, the organization that drafted him in the first round in 2011 before trading him to the Houston Astros one year later.

Daulton Varsho (4-for-11) and Brandon Belt (4-for-16) each homered off Musgrove.

Right-hander Alek Manoah (2-7, 5.91) will start for Toronto and aims to follow up on an encouraging start against the Detroit Tigers on July 7. He gave up one run, five hits and no walks and struck out eight for his first victory since April 5.

It was Manoah’s first major league outing since June 5, when he gave up six runs and recorded just one out against the Astros. Manoah, a 2022 All-Star, even was torched for 11 runs in 2 2/3 innings in a rookie-level game on June 27 after being demoted.

“We’ve been talking about the pace of his delivery, and it’s exactly where it should be right now,” Toronto manager John Schneider told reporters Sunday. “We’re just making sure that it’s staying right there. It’s amazing what a little time away can do for you.”

Manoah, 25, has never faced the Padres. Bogaerts is 2-for-12 against Manoah and Rougned Odor is 2-for-13.

–Field Level Media

The Tampa Bay Rays reinstated left-hander Shane McClanahan from the 15-day injured list, and the team’s ace is scheduled to start Monday night’s game at the Texas Rangers.

The Rays also activated third baseman Yandy Diaz, who leads the American League in batting average (.323) and on-base percentage (.408), from the paternity list.

McClanahan (11-1, 2.53 ERA) leads the majors in wins (tied) and ERA among qualified pitchers. In 17 starts, the southpaw has 101 strikeouts over 96 innings.

The 26-year-old is coming off a pair of shortened starts. After his last appearance, when he allowed four runs on five hits with three walks in just three innings at Seattle on June 30, he landed on the 15-day IL with back tightness. He failed to complete four innings in his previous start, as well.

McClanahan threw a bullpen session on July 9 and another on Thursday, with manager Kevin Cash saying that he was hitting 95 mph in those lower-intensity sessions.

The Rays had planned for him to come off the IL when eligible Sunday in Kansas City, but a rainout changed the pitching schedule.

Diaz played in his first All-Star Game on Tuesday and homered in his first at-bat. His first son, also named Yandy, was born on Wednesday.

In corresponding moves, Tampa Bay designated right-hander Yonny Chirinos (4-4, 4.02 ERA) for assignment and optioned second baseman Jonathan Aranda to the Triple-A Durham Bulls. Aranda went 3-for-15 in four games.

–Field Level Media

The St. Louis Cardinals designated left-hander Genesis Cabrera for assignment on Monday, The Athletic reported.

The club has yet to announce the transaction, along with corresponding moves to the active and 40-man rosters. The Cardinals have seven days to trade their 26-year-old southpaw.

Cabrera is 1-1 with a 5.06 ERA in 32 relief appearances this season. He last pitched Saturday, giving up two runs on three hits in 1 1/3 innings in an 8-4 win over the Washington Nationals.

Cabrera is 13-11 with a 4.14 ERA in 174 career appearances (two starts), all with the Cardinals (2019-23).

–Field Level Media