Carlos Correa to the Twins - 3 Years, $105 Million

I'm not so sure about that. We'll see.

His value will drop significantly when he inevitably can't play shortstop in his mid 30s. Again, could be wrong, but we'll see.

 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/0HVQ160TF5U?start=05&end=07

 

The Phillies (they always spend big every year) are another team that might go after a FA SS.

 

He’s built like Ripken… and his elite arm will make up for the slight loss of speed/reflex one may get as they get older.

As expected, the strange moving of the goalpost Correa critiques have come up again… went from he’s crippled/damaged forever, to he just wants to be in a big market, to he’s delusional to demand more money and deserves not to make the playoffs (strange one there).

 

He is an incredible fielder. He is one of the best overall defensive short stops I have seen and his skill set will age really well. He needs to stay healthy but defensively he is arguably as good as Arenado is at 3rd.

 

It’s amazing to see a player that is both overrated and underrated at the exact same time…

 

Correa is a lightning rod for stupid takes for some reason.

 

The intersting thing to me has been watching the perception of his big ego and attitude.

At first he was confident, and just the type of guy you want to build a team around. Then it became a bad thing because he was overrated and going to a big market inevitably.

Then it became a good thing again because he was a locker room leader and prime time player. Now it's a bad thing again because he's...not an Astro I guess.

 

Yep. And, I’m still convinced that there is a lot more power there to be had when he becomes a pull side guy later in his career. He likes to drive the ball up the middle and to the opposite side because he can and that’s what great hitters do, let the ball travel and hit it hard up the middle. But that’s the big part of the park and suppresses power.
its not at all hard to imagine him moving to 3B and playing really we’ll there between 32-35 and then spending 3 years at 1B as a still good defensive player (for a 1B) while becoming more of a dead pull hitter and hitting 35 or 40 HR’s a year while also striking out more and hitting for a lower BA. Much like Biggio when he kept yanking balls down the LF line and his 25 Hr power made up for the other skills he lost. (Maybe not made up for them but allowed him to remain playable).

 

You think the Braves will opt for Correa over Swanson?

 

Agreed.

There’s just a heavy contingent of fans here that don’t want him to succeed (for some reason)… like they’re waiting for him to get injured so they can point out that he’s injured again. Or they’re waiting for him to not make the playoffs so they can say he chose the wrong team. Or they’re waiting for him to not live up to the next big contract he signs. Or they’re waiting for him to go to a big market like NY or LA and then they’ll say that’s what he was always trying to do…

 

I don’t think it is out of the realm of possibility. The Braves have been trying to reach a deal with Swanson for months. If his asking price is too high there are a number of options out there including Turner, Correa, Bogaerts.

The Twins can try Lewis again at SS. The Braves have Grissom but don’t seem as set. The Dodgers could try and move Lux there.

There could be a lot of revolving pieces at SS around the league.

I know the GM of the Dodgers and Braves are both big fans of Correa.

Philadelphia, Mariners and Cubs all could be involved in the market at well.

 

I hope Carlos does well except when he plays the Astros. He is an enormous talent and I would like to see him put it all together. He could put up Frank Robinson type numbers.

 

Don't know about all that, but he hasn't been the most healthy player throughout his career and it wouldn't shock me to see him continue to get banged up as he hits his 30s. Still a really valuable player no doubt.

 

If the money is anywhere comparable then yes, 1000%.

 

His health for the last 3 years has exceeded almost every star or high priced player on the Astros.

All players get banged up. The concern with Correa was his back, and the age it started bothering him, as those issues sometimes can flare up randomly and surgical procedures rarely keep things as good as they were prior (as opposed to TJ or ACL reconstruction).

But since he's implemented a better training regimen, and given that no surgery was required, I'd say 3 years of back-free troubles should alleviate a lot of those worst-case scenario concerns.

"still a really valuable player" is selling him short... he's one of the best two-way SS's in the game and he's not even 28 years old.

 

I am still a huge fan of Carlos Correa. I don’t hold any bitterness about how the Astros and Correa went their separate ways. Two sides that mutually agreed, that their best interests would be better suited taking a path away from each other.

And so far it’s looking like a win for both philosophies. The Astros had money to offer Alvarez a sizable contract extension, they have a young, talented, team controlled guy, and hungry defensive wiz in Peña, and they will have some money to offer some other guys they intend to keep long term.

And Correa proved that he didn’t just have a 2021 fluke healthy season, as he has had a stellar 2022 campaign. I think he is well on his way to getting the type of contract he’s been inkling for, since he started negotiations with the Astros.

So, I think by parting ways both parties are still in great shape. Though, due to their preparation, they helped put themselves in a position where they didn’t need to hold each other hostage for the terms they were seeking for themselves.

 

My current guess for Correa’s contract is $260M/8yrs with games played and award incentives to tack on another potential $25M. Baltimore, Philadelphia, Atlanta, St. Louis, and Chicago Cubs would be my early leaders, with the Dodgers, Angels, Marlins, Giants, Mariners, Yankees, Red Sox, Twins, and Diamondbacks all lurking. The market for SS is going to be robust.

 

I find it interesting that Correa is such a polarizing player that there is this much conversation about him after he's left the team. I know his contract situation (possibly being a FA again this offseason) is part of that, but there wasn't NEAR this much Springer discussion once he left the team.

 

Because Springer seemingly showed no interest in staying, whereas Correa did. Correa is also younger and has more prime years ahead of him than Springer. Lastly, Correa plays a much harder to replace position... although the Astros will likely be just fine with Pena (and ironically are still trying to find Springer's true replacement).

The Astros-Springer relationship was already damaged when they delayed his callup and tried to force him to sign the Jon Singleton extension to get promoted earlier. That lost 1-2 years of earning potential is something he'll never get back. Then apparently they still low-balled him on potential contract extensions early on. Nothing like what Bregman got or Alvarez got was ever on the table, granted the Astros have far more resources now built up with all the years of success than they did back in 2015-2016.

Finally the scandal likely pushed things over the edge... although I thought he was ready to move on well before that.