Carlos Correa Accepts $105.3M Contract With Twins


Carlos CorreaThe star defender who helped lead the Houston Astros now a tainted 2017 World Series titlefound an unexpected home: the Minnesota Twins.

Correa has agreed to join the rapidly rebuilding Twins on a three-year, $105.3 million contract, rather than sticking to the massive long-term deal that was once envisioned for him. Details of the contract were confirmed by a person familiar with the negotiations, who was not authorized to discuss it publicly as it awaited a physical examination.

While the length and overall value of the deal is much smaller than what was deployed before the lockout, the benefits to Correa are clear: After each of the first two years, there are opt-out options that allow Correa to re-enter the market as soon as possible. Los Angeles Angels’ Anthony Rendon has an average annual valuation of $35.1 million, which replaces the deal he signed two years ago, which was previously the highest-rated deal for a home player.

Only pitchers Max Scherzer ($43.3 million) and Gerrit Cole ($36 million) and outfielder Mike Trout ($35.5 million) have higher annual averages on their contracts than Correa. Cot’s Baseball Contracts.

While Correa’s new team did not officially announce his arrival Saturday morning, Correa changed the photo on his Twitter profile to one of the Twins’ home stadium, Target Field, in Minneapolis.

Correa, 27, has joined a team that has been overhauled this season. Twins front office after a 2021 season with 89 losses rebuilt the team’s home By trading Josh Donaldson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa to the Yankees in exchange for catcher Gary Sánchez and third baseman Gio Urshela. They also traded starting pitcher Sonny Gray.

And now the Gemini has gotten a whole lot bigger, adding this season’s top-ranked free agent and one of the best overall players in baseball. A cornerstone of an Astros field that has led the team to three American League pennants in five years, Correa had perhaps his best season in 2021.

According to Baseball Reference, he reached .279 with 26 home runs and .850 plus slowing percentage at base, and also led the way in defensive wins over reserves in the major leagues. He won the AL Platinum Glove, an annual award given to the best defender in every league, regardless of position.

Injuries slowed Correa at times during his seven years at Houston, while he hit .277 with .837 OPS and had at least 20 home runs in five seasons. He was a vocal team leader and lived up to his hype to the fullest. first general election in the 2012 draft.

Correa’s short, flexible contract with Minnesota contrasts sharply with the contract Corey Seager received when he agreed to leave the Los Angeles Dodgers this winter. A brighter hitter than Correa, a far less successful defender, Seager signed a 10-year, $325 million deal with the Texas Rangers.

News of Correa’s departure reverberated at the Astros’ spring training facility Saturday morning. First baseman Yuli Gurriel, who has been Correa’s teammate for six years, said Correa was “too active” to text the Astros players on Friday night and had trouble sleeping because of the big decision on Correa’s plate.

Gurriel said the Astros players were surprised and hopeful for Correa to return. He said he never imagined Correa would be in Minnesota, but he understood the commercial side of the sport.

“We will miss him,” Gurriel said. “He’s helped me a lot here, not just in defense, but also in many things I need to get better at, like sabermetrics.”

Astros Manager Dusty Baker said he heard the news from his wife Saturday morning. He didn’t want to talk much about it until Correa’s deal was officially announced, but said, “It’s not very good news if it’s true.”



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