Max Muncy returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers ' lineup on Monday, Aaron Judge was back in the New York Yankees ' batting order on Tuesday, and with that, the two teams that met in last year's World Series -- and had been underperforming to varying degrees in recent weeks -- received valuable reinforcements for the stretch run.

They're far from alone.

Now that the trade deadline has passed and less than two months remain in the regular season, contending teams throughout the sport are counting on key players returning from injury in the days and weeks ahead, hoping they might make the difference between missing out on October and winning it all. And given the landscape, which many consider as wide-open as ever, they just might.

Below is a look at some of the most impactful players

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