Carlos Correa’s free agency has just got another surprising twist. After his moves to the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets didn’t materialize, the All-Star shortstop now decided to return to the Minnesota Twins.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, Correa and the Twins have agreed to a six-year, $200 million deal. The contract, which is pending a physical review, includes a vesting option for additional four years and $70 million.
After a strong 2022 campaign with the Twins, which saw him bat .291 with 22 home runs, Correa opted out of the final two years of his contract to hit the free agency. The 28-year-old immediately became one of the biggest names on the market and ended up landing a 13-year, $350 million contract with the Giants.
However, the deal with the Giants came to a halt hours before Correa was set to be officially introduced as the franchise expressed concerns about his surgically repaired left ankle. The San Francisco team wanted more time to reconsider their commitment, but the player’s agent Scott Boras quickly pivoted and got a 12-year, $315 million offer from the Mets.
The Mets ended up pulling the plug as well since they discovered the same issues with Correa’s ankle the Giants did and wanted to renegotiate. The two sides spent a couple of weeks trying to settle their differences, but the talks went nowhere.
At that point, Boras circled back to the Twins, who were more comfortable with offering a longer deal to Correa since they already had him in the building for one year. As a result, they are getting one of the best shortstops in the game on a deal that could easily turn out to be a bargain.
