NFL

Patriots sign DT Davon Godchaux to two-year, $21 million contract extension

Godchaux is a quality nose tackle, but this extension will keep him in New England past his 32nd birthday. For a rebuilding club like the Patriots, that’s too much of a commitment for a player that’s too old. This pact also contains $16.5 million guaranteed — an overpay for Godchaux, who tallied 56 tackles in 2023.

Grade: C-

NBA

Cavaliers sign C Jarrett Allen to three-year, $91 million contract extension

The Cavaliers, after inking Allen, Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley to extensions this summer, are betting big on their core. It’s not a bad decision, either. Sure, there are at least several teams that are comfortably better than Cleveland, but the Cavs can argue that they’re close to contention. After all, Cleveland has won 99 games over the past two seasons, and any major injury to a contender puts the Cavaliers one step closer to challenging for a title.

Allen’s fit in the Cavaliers’ frontcourt has been somewhat clunky with Evan Mobley, but the duo, plus Mitchell and Darius Garland, gives Cleveland one of the league’s best quartets. Now, the group will almost assuredly be together for at least another season, and with each player well under 30, the outlook is bright for the Cavaliers.

Last season, Allen averaged 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. As a center in his prime, the 26-year-old should maintain that production for the next few seasons.

Grade: A-

Grizzlies sign SG Luke Kennard to one-year, $11 million contract

The 2024-25 season will be a big one for the Grizzlies, a franchise ravaged last season by missed games from key players. Looking to compete again this year, it was a near no-brainer to bring back Kennard, one of the NBA’s best shooters. The swingman is a career 43.9 percent shooter from deep, and at 28, still offers enough in other areas to contribute off the bench. This price is more than fair for Memphis.

Grade: A-

MLB

Marlins 6, Rays 2

The Marlins practically blew up their whole roster at the trade deadline, so it’s fitting they won their first post-deadline game. Miami has two hitters, Xavier Edwards and Jake Burger, playing well lately, so it’s no shock that their hot streaks continued yesterday. Edwards and Burger combined for five RBIs in this contest.

The Rays, like the Marlins, traded away plenty of talent in recent days, but Tampa Bay’s sell-off was more unexpected. The Rays are still 55-53 — four games behind the AL wild-card race — but I expect the club to trail off quickly.

Taylor Walls defends well at shortstop, but his bat has no place in a major league lineup. Walls finished 0-for-4 in this game, dropping his batting average to .144.

Yankees 6, Phillies 5

The 65-43 Phillies have dropped four in a row, but I don’t think Philadelphia’s mini swoon is worth reading too much into. For starters, the Phillies still have baseball’s second-best run differential, behind only … the Yankees. That alone is a strong sign that Philadelphia is a good team. Plus, summer slides happen all the time in MLB.

It’s not the best time for a losing streak, though, as the Phillies have a 10-game trip out west ahead versus some heavy hitters. As the Mariners, Dodgers and Diamondbacks await, Philadelphia needs to find its groove again.

Orioles 10, Blue Jays 4

Yesterday was all about Jackson Holliday. The 20-year-old struggled mightily in his first MLB stint, hitting just .059. Nobody gave up on the top prospect after he was demoted back to Triple-A, however, and rightfully so. The second baseman has tantalizing talent and displayed it in this game, smashing a grand slam in the fifth inning. The arrow is only pointing up for Holliday.

Twins 8, Mets 3

If the Twins are going to advance to the ALCS for the first time since 2002 this season, they’re going to have to do it with a high-powered offense. In this tilt, Minnesota’s offense was nothing short of that, chasing the solid Luis Severino after just three innings.

Braves 6, Brewers 2

It’s not a stretch to say Matt Olson is the most important player for the Braves the rest of the season. The first baseman isn’t as valuable to Atlanta as Austin Riley, but there’s more variance with Olson’s performance. Currently, Olson has 17 home runs — the Braves probably want him to reach 30 by the end of the year. If he gets hot, look out.

Royals 10, White Sox 3

I have nothing on the White Sox at this point. Chicago, of course, sold at the deadline, but didn’t get nearly enough in return for its outgoing players. That could set the franchise back for another year or so. That’s the long-term situation. The short-term status? The White Sox have lost 17 games in a row. Chicago is 27-84! Twenty-seven and eighty-four!

Cardinals 10, Rangers 1

Did the Cardinals receive a time machine along with Tommy Pham? The left fielder was an under-the-radar addition by the team, and the 36-year-old has had an excellent first two games with St. Louis. On Tuesday, Pham hit a grand slam, and followed it up yesterday with three hits and two RBIs.

The season is getting away from the 52-57 Rangers. Texas is eight games back of a wild-card spot, but luckily is only five games behind in the AL West. Either way, the Rangers are in trouble, especially considering the momentum the Mariners have.

Diamondbacks 5, Nationals 4

Not too many teams have it better than the Diamondbacks at the moment. Arizona, now 58-51, is starting to look a lot like the unit that advanced to the World Series in 2023. One area to shore up, though, for the Snakes is the closer situation, where Paul Sewald should be finished. The righty walked three and allowed a hit in his failed save bid yesterday.

Red Sox 3, Mariners 2

Seemingly game by game, Jarren Duran establishes himself further as one of baseball’s best leadoff men. Armed with game-changing speed, Boston’s No. 1 batter is hitting .292 with 23 stolen bases. Duran got on base three times yesterday.

When Seattle loses, it’s usually because of poor hitting. That was the case again in this contest, as the Mariners managed just one extra base hit. The club had high hopes for Jorge Polanco after acquiring the second baseman from the Twins last winter, but he hasn’t been much help for Seattle offensively. Polanco went 0-for-3 yesterday, dropping his OPS to .644.