Fort Myers, Florida. Carlos Correa chose Minnesota late Friday night to serve as a staging ground for the second half of his All-Star, Gold Glove, Borderlands MVP career, accepting a contract that makes him the highest-paid player in the Twins’ long-time history as he chooses to stay.
Technically, Correa’s contract runs for three years and pays him $35.1 million in each, or more than half again as much as Joe Mauer’s annual salary of $23 million, the previous highest salary of his twins ever.
But the twins also gave Correa the right to tear up the contract next October or 12 months later and become a free agent again, an option he’ll almost certainly exercise to pursue the $300 million deal he’s been looking for this season.
Whether he stays Korea for seven months or a decade, the twins and their fans will always be able to savor the late-night thrills of baseball’s most valuable free agent as they emerge from the most successful singles season of his career, Minnesota. Not to mention the possibility of a pinch I dream of putting him in the middle of the lineup.
“We’re going to be good,” said Jorge Polanco, after hearing that his double-playing partner was one of the top five players in the Premier League last season. “We’ll be good, really good.”
So one of baseball’s top agents secured a three-year, $105.3 million deal with his annual salary making him the fourth highest-paid player in baseball, with opt-outs after 2022 and 2023 in a business deal by twins and agent Scott Borras.
The twins won’t make the deal official until they pass Korea on the actual Sunday. Korea has already changed the wallpaper on his Twitter account (@teamCJCorrea) To Target Field, though.
Shortstop has been a glaring area of need for the twins in this off season, and it’s their biggest priority along with merchandising. The twins seem to have gotten a short starting point last weekend when they replaced Mitch Garver to Texas for Isiah Kiner-Falefa. But a day later, the twins turned Keener Valiva and Josh Donaldson into the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and Jio Urcella. This trade also eased the burden on the twins for the remaining two years of Donaldson’s contract, by about $50 million.
With some cash on hand, the Twins’ front desk has been working hard for other deals, but their phones have been pretty quiet over the past week. Correa’s deal came together so quickly and unexpectedly that many believed the twins were more in the market for a free-shortstop Trevor Story agent.
“I knew they were looking for someone,” Polanco said. “And I’m glad they had a good idea in mind, a great one.” “He’s a good hitter, a good player.”
Top two places from 2012
Correa was the first pick in the 2012 draft against new teammate Byron Buxton, and became a two-time All-Star with the Houston Astros, helping them to the playoffs in six of his seven seasons. The 27-year-old won the 2017 World Championships, played in two other groups, and was AL Rookie of the Year in 2015.
The Puerto Rican native, who made his league debut at the age of 20, averaged 981 on the field and averaged 0.279 last season, hitting 26 home runs. He also won his first Gold Glove and, according to baseball references, has the fourth best WAR (Win Over Substitution) in the Major Leagues at 7.2, trailing only Angels bowler- DH Shohei Ohtani, Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler and Toronto (now Texas) pitcher Marcus Simin.
Correa has a .413 average career at Target Field, where the Astros swept the Twins in their best three-pointer streak of 2020.
However, during their 2017 championship season, the Astros stole banners in home games by using a video camera on the field to see signals from the rival catcher. The MLB imposed heavy penalties on the team and general manager Jeff Lono and manager A.J. Hinch were fired, and Correa said: “We were wrong in everything we did in 2017. It’s not what we stand for. It’s not what we want to portray as the organization, and we were We are definitely wrong about all of that and we feel really sorry.”
Correa’s arrival means Polanco can focus on second base, as he played most of last season with great success, when he hit his career highs with 33 home points and 98 RBI points. Luis Ariz returns to the companion role with Urcella in third and Miguel Sano at first base.
“I can’t get here until we start getting to know each other,” Polanco said.
Louis is still on board
One interesting aspect of Korea’s contract is his opt-out, which means he can be with the twins for only one season. The twins may only need it for so long, with potential senior Royce Lewis in the pipeline.
Boras is also Lewis’ agent.
Before the pandemic that called off minor league ball in 2020 and Lewis ruptured the ACL in his right knee last March, Lewis was the near future. He played his first game since Spring 2020 on Friday, so getting the 22-year-old into the big business by this season has been in huge demand.
“We needed a little pit stop,” Lewis said. “I’m not in the big league team. So I’m just here to improve myself and keep gaining some knowledge and wisdom about these guys.” “So I think it’s a great idea.
“…If I’m in the big leagues, that’s a different story. But I’m not. So they have to do what they have to do to win there.”
Correa’s salary of $35.1 million for 2022 is behind Max Scherzer ($44.33 million), Yankees player Gerrit Cole ($36 million), and Angels center player Mike Trout ($35.54 million).
It’s possible the Twins haven’t finished adding players in spring training – they signed loyalist Joe Smith later on Saturday and could focus on another deal to get a starting bowler, although they are likely to give up some big possibilities. They have already sent their top pick in the 2021 draft, bowler Chase Petty, to the Reds to acquire Sonny Gray, who tops the starting list this season.
But there is no doubt that Correa is changing the expectations of the Twins’ season, perhaps giving them the best defensive alignment in midfield in the league.
Right-wing leader Billy Uber said of Correa, Polanco and Buxton behind him: “The middle of our square will be closed.” “It would be great to see these players playing there.”
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