Nope...it's out his hands because whoever offers the most money is where he goes. No discounts. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
So he’d be making a decision to prioritize money over anything else. That’s perfectly fine, but he still is making the decision. It’s completely “in his hands” to choose what offer he wants to accept. It is out of his hands what the Astros ultimately offer.
I’m generally against these massive, really long contracts and I don’t think the Astros should do a 10 year contract. Given the season he’s put together and the current market an 8 year 240 million would be something I’d be happy with the Astros offering. I don’t know the real implications of what that would mean in terms of payroll, etc. but that’s the max length I think would otherwise make sense and might actually be something he’d sign. He’d be thirty five at the end of the deal, so very likely on the downswing, but hopefully still productive. I don’t know what salaries will be like in 8 years, but I expect there will be some inflation and 30 million in 2029 may not as hard to handle as it would be today.
It's actually in the Astros's hands. If you give an offer that is equal to other teams, he will stay. They pretty much have the right of first refusal.
And if/when the Marlins are non-competitive 3 years into the deal, they trade him to a big market team for salary relief. Carlos would have to weigh that as part of any future decision, given that he's never played on a losing team before. The Astros could also consider moving him (or any long-term signed player) at the time where they need to hit reset or need an influx of minor league talent. No team is truly "stuck" with a guy, unless that player just falls off a cliff production wise.
No that is still in his hands. He gets to decide if where he plays and who he plays with matters more than $. I know we as fans always say go with the money because that is part the Sports business, but its doesn't have to be that black and white. In fact, many regular people do not move to different parts of the country just because of the money because of family and other considerations. As for the Astros, the question is what kind of window are they trying to have. One like the 90's Braves or say the 00's Cardinals, versus one like the late 90's Yankees.
Think folks are underestimating his ability to turn a franchise around. He did ours. But the franchise has to commit long term. But if I'm Correa, go big market, bet on myself and be one of the few too cash in off the field with a big brand. Miami has some potential as a market, but it can't seem to wrap it's head around what it has.
A major reason why the Astros have had one of the best offensive stretches in the history of baseball over the past 4+ years (2017-current) is because they have outstanding hitters who play premium defensive positions. Having top hitters playing both shortstop and second base is incredibly rare, and in today's game, it essentially leaves an American League team with only the catcher spot as an offensive weakness. So you've got a lineup with potentially 8 hitters who are at or above an 0.800 OPS. That's very difficult to achieve, and impossible to achieve without a stud hitter who also happens to be a great fielding SS -- Carlos Correa. General managers can find offensive talent at the 1B and OF positions -- that is achievable without breaking the bank. If we re-sign Correa, then we ensure that our offensive advantage is maintained for years to come. I would even prioritize the Correa signing over future Tucker/Alvarez signings because their defensive contributions are negligible (Alvarez is a defensive liability).
Yep. It's one position that you have to overpay a little bit because shortstops that are above average offensively and defensively are really rare.
He's on the upswing again. Really curious as to his medicals regarding his back. If its truly remained sound due to better training regimens, this should change the long term risk assessment. I am impressed he's been able to stay healthy/productive and has actually played the most games of anybody on the team.
Amazing how that happens in a contract year... It is going to suck losing him just like Springer. Maybe a miracle with the new CBA will change things...
Seems like the back made it through last year as well, albeit abbreviated. The freak rib fracture injury in 2019 (which we'll never know exactly what happened) is the sentinel event that really derailed his trajectory given his numbers he put up that season (his ability to bounce back from bad 2018 was a huge question mark). Without that and the subsequent rehab issues, things likely very different from a risk point of view, and the Astros consider a different starting offer this past off-season. Thus far, I completely understand both sides' viewpoints. Crane would likely have to take full control over negotiations (as he did with JV/Altuve) to try and come towards a solution.
Two way shortstops aren’t so rare anymore. Certainly, there are tiers, and correa is at or near the top tier. But the light hitting, defensive SS of old, like Adam Everett, is not the staple anymore. Today’s MLB could be just a blip Golden age at SS, but it’s hard to ignore the number of plus hitters who play SS. Again, not necessarily at correa level, but plus hitters. this off-season will be fascinating. Some good SS FAs will end up settling for shorter term/albies big dollar deals because there aren’t enough teams willing to hand out Lindor contracts.
Correa didn't turn our franchise around all by himself. He was one piece among many. Committing long term to a guy who has missed significant playing time in 4 of the 7 years he has been in Houston is just plain bad decision making. How can those in favor of a long signing ignore this? https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/32653/carlos-correa I watch games and see what he does. He is a great player, no doubt. But 8 or 10 years? Players become more injury prone with age, not less.
Correa is currently 8th in Wins Above Replacement (6th if you remove pitchers). He's ahead of guys like Shohei Ohtani and Fernando Tatis Jr. because he plays a premium position. He's going to get a mega contract. Look out 10 years $350 million.
Most 8-10 year contract players don’t play on the same team for the entire length of the deal, unless the team is constantly in contention because of them. No player stays healthy for their whole career, regardless of whether they had fluke injuries early or overuse injuries late. The Astros have a strong window of contention for the next 3-5 years pending their young starting rotation continuing to grow, Bregman/Altuve staying healthy through the remainder of their contract, and Alvarez/Tucker continuing to improve. They will have payroll flexibility to take on salary starting as soon as next year (moreso if they have a deep playoff run). They should be able to accommodate stars for that duration. Crane knows that Houston only supports winning teams.
