Brewers among several teams to inquire about Red Sox ace Jon Lester  —  The Brewers, a team with a history of being aggressive at the trade deadline, is among several teams to be making a play for Red Sox ace Jon Lester.  —  Milwaukee, famous for acquiring CC Sabathia in July 2008, leads the NL Central by 1½ games.

Travis d'Arnaud homers to back Bartolo Colon as Mets beat Phillies for 14th win of July … It is a chore, of course, but the Mets lately have been doing their best to drag their followers from doubt to faith, from realism to magic.  —  With Monday night's 7-1 victory over the Phillies …

The Pitchers Who Drive Ticket Sales the Most  —  When New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka was diagnosed with a tear in his right elbow ligament earlier this month, the damage to his team was obvious.  With a 12-4 record and 2.51 earned-run average, Tanaka had been easily the Yankees' most valuable pitcher.

Cishek, deGrom named co-NL Players of Week  —  A pair of young hurlers — Marlins closer Steve Cishek and Mets rookie Jacob deGrom — were named the co-National League Players of the Week on Monday after outstanding performances from the mound for the week of July 21-27.

Morrow likely to pitch in relief upon return  —  Gibbons hoping to have veteran right-hander active by September  —  BOSTON — When Blue Jays right-hander Brandon Morrow eventually returns this season, he'll likely be pitching out of the bullpen.  —  Manager John Gibbons gave some credence …

Cole hurls five scoreless innings in rehab start  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Gerrit Cole's first rehab start for Triple-A Indianapolis won't make Pirates fans any more patient waiting for his return.  —  Taking the mound for the Indians on Monday night in Rochester, Cole blanked the Red Wings for five innings on five hits.

Bullpen remains Tigers' focus at Trade Deadline  —  Dombrowski keeping tabs on relief market even after making deal for Soria  —  DETROIT — Could last week's trade for Joakim Soria be the opener of a two-part move to upgrade the Tigers' bullpen?  Possibly.

Trader Jack?  As Seattle's GM struggles to complete deals, some rival executives wonder  —  The Mariners already have completed one trade, acquiring designated hitter Kendrys Morales from the Twins last week.  General manager Jack Zduriencik could make one or two more deals …

Worley Tosses 4-Hitter, Pirates Beat Giants 5-0  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Vance Worley tossed a four-hitter for his first career shutout, and the Pittsburgh Pirates pounded Madison Bumgarner early in a 5-0 win over the struggling San Francisco Giants on Monday night.  —  Worley (4-1) struck out three and walked one.

Carter Leads Astros Homer-Happy Win Over Athletics  —  HOUSTON — Chris Carter, Jason Castro, Marc Krauss and Matt Dominguez each hit a home run as the Houston Astros snapped a five-game skid with a 7-3 win over the Oakland Athletics on Monday night.  —  Carter hit a monstrous three-run shot …