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Carlos Correa's wild offseason journey has led to agreements with both the Giants and Mets that fell through over concerns about his physical. Now, it has led him back to where he started. 
This time last year, Correa was one of the top names on the free agent market, so much so that he reportedly turned down a 10-year, $270M offer. However, he had to wait out MLB’s lockout, which is when he switched agents to Scott Boras. The market for superstars was less robust when the lockout ended in early March. So, he opted to sign a three-year deal with the Minnesota Twins for $35.1M per year, but the contract also allowed him to opt out after each of the first two years.
That agreement couldn’t have worked out better for both parties. Correa thrived offensively and defensively, becoming the Twins MVP and earning rave reviews for his leadership and mentorship. He opted out of his contract, again positioned as one of the top free agents available. 
But the usually thrifty Twins declared their intention to pursue him, eventually offering a 10-year $285M contract. Alas, that appeared to be nowhere near enough. Correa agreed to a deal with the San Francisco Giants for 13 years and $350M, but that deal fell apart a week later when the Giants expressed concerns about a plate in Correa’s right leg from a 2014 injury. 
It didn’t take long for Correa to find another suitor. The same night, he agreed to a 12-year deal with New York Mets' owner Steve Cohen for $315M. However, shortly thereafter, the Mets had a similar concern, jeopardizing that deal.
Correa and the Mets worked on resolving that concern for more than two weeks, with varying levels of optimism that a deal would get done. Thursday night, that optimism was shaken when Jon Heyman revealed that Boras had engaged with at least one other team. The talks stalled when the two sides could not agree on language protecting the Mets if Correa’s career or production were cut short due to the old injury. Lenient terms on a team opt-out midway through a 12-year deal can quickly turn a guaranteed contract into a not-so-guaranteed contract.
Enter the Twins. They had re-engaged with a similar contract to the one they previously offered, though the guaranteed amount is unclear. Also, while Correa's old injury surely could provide some concerns, they had the advantage of having already observed Correa and his right leg up close for the last year. Their offer was less dependent on a physical, a key component Boras needed before walking away from the Mets’ offer. 
It was unclear to the Twins whether they were truly a serious contender or were being used as leverage for Boras against the Mets. Correa may have enjoyed his time with the Twins, but the Mets have a loaded roster, an owner willing to spend whatever it takes, and the City that Never Sleeps. Were the Twins just being used to drive up the dollars? Or to get the Mets to bend on contract language regarding the opt-out? Or did they really have a chance to land Correa?
The Twins and Boras traded multiple offers over the weekend, and confidence their status varied from hour to hour and executive to executive. They knew that Boras was also doing the same with the Mets, and it should be obvious that negotiations with the super agent Boras can be intense. Several times, the pendulum swung from “optimistic” to “pessimistic” and back again, even over the last 24 hours. 
With that said, this is obviously a stunning turn of events in terms of optics. The Mets and Giants are among the most free-spending, impulsive, uninhibited franchises in baseball regarding free agency. The Twins are on the exact opposite end of that spectrum.
Correa has quickly become one of the most publicized high-risk free agents at this level of caliber/price we've ever seen. Minnesota's front office – despite its litany of existing injury concerns – said ‘screw it’ and bypassed the inhibitions that held back big-market titans. Why? Because they feel the shortstop is everything their team needs to take the next step.
The only times the Twins have even approached swimming in waters this deep financially was when they were previously faced with losing longtime Twins fixtures like Kirby Puckett, Joe Mauer, and Byron Buxton. In 1992, Puckett was the top free agent on the market but re-signed with the Twins for 5 years and $30M. In 2010, entering his last year of team control, Mauer agreed to an 8-year, $184 million contract extension to stay with the team. Finally, last year, also entering his final year of team control, Buxton agreed to a 7-year, $100M contract with almost another $100M in possible incentives.
While Correa was with the team for only one year, he has this in common with those players: the organization didn’t want to lose him. 
Correa's impact on the team was clearly evident in 2022, when he put forth stellar production on the field and earned rave reviews of his wide-reaching impact on the organization. He’s a Gold Glove caliber defender at a premium position. He’s averaged 28 home runs over 162 games while getting on base at a .359 clip. He’s also just 28 years old, entering the prime of his career. Like those previous players, he is now positioned to be the face of the Twins franchise. 
In terms of his future fit, obviously, Correa is lined up to play shortstop for now, which pushes Kyle Farmer into more of a utility role while giving Royce Lewis plenty of time to work his way back from knee surgery. It's interesting that the Mets were planning to immediately shift Correa to third base (and he seemed totally open to it), so that could be the plan somewhere down the line for Minnesota. 
But as a 28-year-old former Platinum Glover still fielding short at a high level, there's no rush for now. The Twins got their shortstop. And more than that, they got their guy and turned around a wayward offseason with the biggest and boldest contract in franchise history.
The Twins are in it to win it. Let's go.
 

So many thoughts role through my mind as I think about the news that the Twins are optioning shortstop Royce Lewis to Triple-A St. Paul and will activate Carlos Correa before the Wednesday afternoon's game. So I thought I'd just start jotting them down. 
*** Click here to listen to @Seth Stohs and @Dave Overlund discuss the Lewis option decision on WJON Radio in St. Cloud.  
What more could Lewis have done?
Nothing. He did everything the Twins could have hoped during that 11-game stretch, and more. Put another way, he likely made this decision incredibly difficult. 
After going 2-for-4 with a double and a home run on Tuesday night, he is hitting .308/.325/.564 (.889) with four doubles and two home runs. In 11 games. 
As impressive as he was at the plate, he was equally impressive at shortstop. Yes, he had a couple of errors, but he also made some plays that were tough and showed that he absolutely can play the position. His arm is plenty strong. He's got good range. His instincts at the position have come a long way. 
Stick to the Plan
We speak so often of not being swayed too much by a small sample. While 11 games is a nice little stretch, it is still less than 40 plate appearances. 
When Carlos Correa was injured, the plan was for Royce Lewis to come up and play shortstop until Correa returned, whether that was two months (as initially feared) or two weeks (as became the reality). When Correa returned, Lewis would be returned to St. Paul and continue to get everyday playing time and at-bats and reps at shortstop and such. 
Royce Lewis looked the part of Big Leaguer
Despite spending the Covid-shortened 2020 season at the alternate site and missing all of the 2021 season after surgery for a torn ACL, Lewis got off to a terrific start in St. Paul. And, as mentioned above, Lewis was immensely impressive during his time with the Twins. Forget about the numbers for a minute (and that's not easy to do), Lewis looked like a future star. He looked comfortable at the plate. He looked confident. He looked relaxed. He was clearly having the time of his life as evidenced by frequent big smiles and conversations on the field with teammates and opponents. He showed his great speed. How showed his power potential. He showed his willingness to use the whole field. He looked comfortable at shortstop. He never looked overwhelmed. And while he had just one walk in his time with the Twins, he seemed to control his plate appearances quite well. 
If you're a chemistry person, seeing how well he fit into the dugout was certainly encouraging. Smiling with teammates. Congratulating teammates. The hugs we saw him get from Ryan Jeffers, Byron Buxton, and others. Sitting on the bench, observing the game, often sitting between Correa and Buxton. Lewis also shows leadership skills. Lewis is not one to take over a locker room, and yet, you'd be hard-pressed to find any former teammates who didn't love him. Again, even with him being the new guy on the roster, he showed that he can lead on the field. 
The Role Moving Forward 
Clearly, the plan would still be for Lewis to be the team's primary shortstop of the future (much depending on what Correa decides in the offseason. However, because Lewis is a special talent and just made a great first impression, the team will want him in the big leagues more. To do so, it appears that he is going to play around the diamond for St. Paul. 
Remember, Lewis played shortstop only during his senior season of high school. He played third base his first three years of high school ball because J Serra had Chase Stumpf as their shortstop. But that's been six or seven years since he's had any regular time there. He has played some second base in the past, on Team USA rosters, and in the 2019 Arizona Fall League. During his MVP AFL stint, he also played a bunch of centerfield, and he made highlight-reel plays there. Can he play left field or right field? Presumably yes, but he hasn't spent a lot of time in those spots. Could he play first base? Of course. 
So, the question becomes, should he get a little bit of time at these other positions in the big leagues, or should it happen in a less stressful minor-league situation? I think a case could be made for either side. I certainly don't disagree with Glen Perkins' thoughts. 
However, they have made that decision, to have Lewis get a little time at those positions in the minor leagues. My thought is that doesn't need to take real long, maybe two or three weeks. Get him two or three starts at each position that they can envision him playing, and then get him back up to the big-league club. 
Summary
This is going to be made into a huge talker and topic among Twins fans. While I would love to see Lewis remain in the big leagues, I can certainly see the value of letting him play some other positions at Triple-A before bringing him back. I do think that making too much out of an 11-game stretch is never a good idea, and sticking to a plan makes sense. It especially makes sense with a guy who has missed so much time the last couple of years and just wants to and needs to play. 
The Big Picture
The future of Royce Lewis is incredibly bright. The talent is immense. The charisma and intelligence are there. The confidence and the drive to not only succeed but to thrive, is something that Lewis has always possessed. Regardless of this decision and whatever timeline the Twins front office puts on his return, I can't wait. 
*** Click here to listen to @Seth Stohs and @Dave Overlund discuss the Lewis option decision on WJON Radio in St. Cloud.   
Feel free to discuss, but please be civil with each other.