1st Down: Sources indicate that Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald will indeed be staying in LA. After months of speculation that he could leave, whether that be for retirement or possibly another team, his agent has landed him a huge deal that makes him the highest-paid non-QB in the NFL. The reports suggest that his reworked deal will be worth $95 million over the course of three seasons, with $65 million to come in the first two years and an option to either retire or return for a third season for another $30 million. Donald, who is 31 years old, has won the defensive player of the year award three times and helped the Rams to a Super Bowl win this past season.
2nd Down: The Texas Longhorns have made history at the Women’s College Softball World Series. The unseeded team is the first to ever make the WCWS Finals after a stunning performance on Monday that saw them beat Oklahoma State twice on the night to book their spot against rivals Oklahoma in a best-of-three series. The Longhorns won 5-0 in the opener to force Texas into the loser’s bracket and then came back from five runs down to win 6-5 in the night cap. Earlier in the day, the Sooners were forced to respond to only their third loss of the season, a 7-3 reverse to UCLA. They did respond, tremendously, beating them 15-0 in the second game to set up a meeting with one of their biggest Big 12 rivals.
3rd Down: The New York Mets got a sublime showing from Eduardo Escobar on Monday evening as they went to San Diego and claimed an 11-5 win over the Padres. Escobar accounted for six RBIs and hit for the cycle, completing it with a clutch ninth-inning triple, to help his team claim the eighth win from their last ten and put them nine games clear of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. Carlos Carrasco was brilliant on the mound, too, pitching seven innings and conceding just two runs before handing the ball over.
4th Down: Following months of inactivity, Phil Mickelson is returning to the game of golf… at the LIV Golf Invitational Series’ inaugural event. Mickelson had long considered playing in the new league and has been intrigued to stick it to the PGA Tour, and the 51-year-old has now officially decided to dive into the pool and declare for the tournament after months of conjecture. He also stated that he intends to play in the US Open on June 16th as well, so it will be interesting to see how the Tour handles this and how well he plays in London this week.
