The Braves and Mets are playing a doubleheader and playoff berths are at stake

Here's what you need to know about Monday's important twin bills.

Both games of the doubleheader will be televised by ESPN2. The first game begins at 1:10 pm Eastern and the second is scheduled to begin approximately 40 minutes after the end of the first game.

Here's how the NL wild-card standings look entering Monday's Braves-Mets doubleheader. The San Diego Padres (93-69) already have a wild-card berth and the No. 4 seed, so Atlanta, New York and Arizona battle for the final two NL playoff spots.

Here's how the wild-card race will shake out based on the results of Monday's games:

If the teams split a doubleheader, Atlanta would be the No. 5 seed and New York would be the No. 6 seed. Under this scenario the Braves, Mets and Diamondbacks would all finish with identical 89-73 records, but Atlanta and New York would get the nod because they had the two best records in this season's play among the three teams (the Braves went 5-2) and the Mets were 4 against the Diamondbacks. -3 goals were scored). Atlanta will be the No. 5 seed and will play the Padres due to a 7-6 record against New York this season. The Mets will face the Milwaukee Brewers as the No. 6 seed.

Whoever wins the first game of the doubleheader will be guaranteed a playoff berth, and one would think the Game 1 winner would rest plenty of starters in Game 2 to save them for the playoffs, which begin Tuesday to determine which team clinches the wild-card berth. will rise monday For example, the Braves will start rookie Spencer Schullenbach in Game 1 in hopes that they can save ace Chris Sale for the playoffs. Schullenbach pitched 14 innings against the Mets this season and allowed just one run. Sale will get the nod in Game 2 if the Braves' season is on the line.

Likewise, the Mets will start Tyler McGill in Game 1 with the hope that they won't have to use Luis Severino in Game 2.

If Atlanta wins both games, the Braves will be the No. 5 seed and the Diamondbacks will be the No. 6 seed. In this scenario the Mets would miss the playoffs.

If New York wins both games, the Mets will be the No. 5 seed and the Diamondbacks will be the No. 6 seed. In this scenario the Braves will miss the playoffs.

The Mets have actually been in a similar situation before. In 1973, the first two games of New York's final four-game series against the Cubs in Chicago were washed out by heavy rains, necessitating consecutive Sunday and Monday doubleheaders. The two teams split Sunday's doubleheader, meaning the Mets must win at least one of Monday's two games to take the NL East crown over the St. Louis Cardinals. New York won the first game on Monday to clinch the division title, and the meaningless second game was not played.