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MINNEAPOLIS – After a long, winding road of free agency, Carlos Correa has re-signed with the Twins and the team made if official with a press conference Wednesday morning. “The whole process was crazy but the end game was great,” said Correa on his return. “I'm happy where I'm at right now and I'm excited that I finally get back to work. I know where I'm gonna be for a long time and I can help lead this group of young men to where we want to get from here.” “We knew this could take some time,” added Derek Falvey, Twins President of Baseball Operations. “Carlos is one of the best players in the game and he was going to have a lot of choices. We never lost touch, And Scott was great about keeping in touch with us ultimately, as things changed.” Correa’s reintroduction with the organization came the same day his 6-year, $200 million contract with the team was announced. The deal also includes four years of vesting/team options as well as a full no-trade clause. Correa will be on the Twins through least until 2028, with his final year set to be 2031 if vesting and team options are exercised. “Carlos and Daniella, they gave me a narrow list and Minnesota was always on it,” said Scott Boras, Correa’s agent. “I will say this: that Derek did not let notice go. He was constantly in communication, constantly calling, because I think they knew they're the organization that truly knew the leadership value in addition to the skill and what he [Correa] could mean to a franchise.” New executive chair of the Twins, Joe Pohlad, discussed the addition of Correa and his value to the franchise. “I think it's great for the organization, great for the fans. And hopefully what it reiterates to the fan base is that our commitment to winning, which is always kind of central to how we think about each move, it's gonna make us better.” Correa reiterated this point saying, “The main goal is to win, and by winning I don't mean making the playoffs, I mean winning championships. And I think with the core group that we have, the right guidance, the right work ethic, and the right just atmosphere in the clubhouse, we can we can accomplish those things.” The questions of Correa’s health that held up his deals with the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets were addressed by all parties. “Going into those physicals, there was no concerns on my part. My body feels great. I played throughout the whole season and never felt better. So it was surprising, but that led me here, back to the Twins and I couldn't be more happier,” said Correa. Derek Falvey also addressed the elephant in the room from the Twins side. “As Scott articulated, we feel really good about Carlos is right now. I think the structure of our contract allows you to see how we think about short term, long term with respect to that.” Falvey continued. “I would say that Carlos is ready to go. Chris walked out of the exam yesterday. He said he feels as good as he's ever felt about where he's at with the hands-on physical and otherwise. We've built the structure in a way that manages a little bit of the long-term risk associated with this. But we feel excellent about how he's rolling into 2023.” The bottom line: it was a celebratory atmosphere, from the owner of the Twins, through management, and definitely including Correa himself. Despite the circuitous journey that landed him with Minnesota, he gushed about his return. “Like you said, last year, when I came in, I felt welcomed right away from the get-go. I felt like I was part of a family. So throughout the whole process, to be able to communicate with you guys, talk to all my teammates, communicate through the whole process, talking to [Byron] Buxton almost every day, talking to [Jose] Miranda and all the guys, definitely like you said, my heart was here. So I’m happy we got this done and I want to thank you guys for that.” View full article

Carlos Correa's free agent saga continues to take new turns. Reports surfaced Thursday night that the Twins contacted Scott Boras about Correa. Image courtesy of Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports So you're telling me there's a chance? That might not be entirely true, but the Twins are doing their due diligence regarding Carlos Correa. The New York Post's Jon Heyman reported that "Carlos Correa's camp has been in contact with at least one other team" as his talks with the Mets haven't made progress. In the story, he specifically mentions the Twins as one team that has contacted Boras, but there may be others. Those talks might not be serious, but this negotiation could have other layers. Earlier tonight, Nick wrote extensively about the Twins' offseason up to this point. Part of that story focused on the ongoing Correa saga. Correa and Boras walked away from a contract with the Giants because of concerns with his physical, and the Mets' doctors have flagged the same issue. Minnesota's last known offer to Correa was for ten years and $285 million. There is no guarantee that the offer is still on the table, and the Twins would need to complete their own physical before a deal of this magnitude. Boras is also likely using this type of story to put extra pressure on the Mets to complete the deal. Steve Cohen, the Mets owner, has been outspoken about his desire for Correa to be added to the club's line-up. Heyman quotes someone in the Mets organization that said, "Ultimately, I don't think Mr. Cohen is going to let him go." There have been other reports that the Mets were trying to alter parts of the contract to get the deal done. Correa is unlikely to want to return to the open market after everything that has happened to him. From Correa's perspective, the free agent process has been frustrating over the last two seasons. Last winter, he turned down a 10-year offer from the Detroit Tigers and fired his agent before hiring Boras. The MLB Lockout didn't help his first taste of free agency, as there was a rush to sign players after the completed deal. He signed a creative contract with the Twins, so he could have the opportunity to be a free agent again this winter. There has been a lot of money handed out to the top free agents this offseason, and Correa was expecting to be in that group. Carlos Correa Free Agent Timeline March 22, 2022: Signs with the Twins for three years, $105.3 million, including opt-outs after each season. November 7, 2022: Opts out of Twins contract. December 13, 2022: Reports surface that Correa agrees to a 13-year, $350 million deal with the Giants. December 20, 2022: Giants postponed Correa's introductory press conference. December 21, 2022: Correa agrees to deal with the Mets for 12 years, $315 million. December 24, 2022: Mets doctors flag a similar issue to what was found by Giants doctors. Moving forward, the Mets are still the frontrunners to sign Correa. His family is already in a New York state of mind as he has posted pictures to social media of his child wearing a New York-themed outfit. Boras has previously worked out contracts with injury language for players like JD Martinez, JD Drew, Ivan Rodriguez, and Magglio Ordonez. However, Correa's reported contract is significantly longer and for a more significant amount of money. No matter where Correa plays next season, this type of contract provision will be a requirement. Could the Twins wind up with Correa after all or is this a ploy from Boras to get the Mets deal done? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. View full article

At the beginning of the offseason, Carlos Correa and Scott Boras publicly expressed Correa's interest in staying in Minnesota on a long-term deal. Correa went as far as to say that he was there and all the Twins had to do was pay up. There were soundbites of Byron Buxton and Rocco Baldelli pleading with the front office to keep Correa around. Of course, this was all before Correa signed a 13-year $350M contract with the San Francisco Giants. Upon Correa's signing with the Giants, many people in the Twins community were rather upset, and not without reason. It's frustrating to hear a top tier free agent say he wants to play for your team and all they have to do is pay up only to see him sign a massive deal with one of the biggest market teams in the league. Over the course of the next week, that sadness and anger slowly subsided for many fans, as the focus shifted back to the Twins and how they were going to construct the roster going forward. Who in their right mind wants to sign a 28-year-old short stop with an extensive injury history to a 13-year deal anyway? The grieving process had seemingly reached the "acceptance" stage. The signing of Joey Gallo gave Twins fans something new to argue about, and it appeared everyone had moved on. That was of course until the Giants canceled their introductory press conference with Correa yesterday morning. The speculation and conspiracy theories began to run wild on Twitter and across the internet, but it still seemed a little silly and far fetched. How can it be a full week later, on the day of the press conference, that the deal between Correa and the Giants had fallen through? Then the Associated Press dropped a bombshell story detailing the reasoning for the cancellation as an injury that popped up during Correa's physical with Giant's team doctors. Wow! What a change of events! The Twins might really have a shot to land Correa again! Nope. They would see a second opportunity fall by the wayside as the New York Mets would slide in and swipe Correa for $315M over the next 12 years. What a bummer. Fire Derek Falvey right!? Relax. Let's take the blinders off and think about this for a minute. Carlos Correa chose to take a 12-year $315M deal with the New York Mets. The Mets have a shortstop in Francisco Lindor, so by signing with the Mets, Correa has agreed that he will move to 3rd base. It is commonly known that position players, especially all-star short stops who have won a platinum glove just two years ago, don't usually enjoy being asked to change positions. Players as good at the position as Correa normally see this as a slap in the face, and will laugh at any deal that requires them to give up their position. Playing short stop is the alpha male position. He's the dude of the infield. It's rare to see as willing a shift off the keystone as we've seen with Correa signing with the Mets less than 24 hours after the deal with the Giants fell through. After all, the Twins offered a 10-year $285M contract for him to play short stop for the team he claimed to love and want to remain a part of. So why would he take less money per year to play for the Mets? He didn't want to play for the Twins. There it is. I said it. Maybe it's time to at least consider this thought as a possibility. Maybe Correa and his agent, who is among the best negotiators in sports, used the Minnesota Twins. Maybe there was only one team last year willing to give him what he wanted in his prove it deal last year, so he decided he would head up north for one summer and play in Minnesota. Maybe him and Boras constantly sang their praise of the Minnesota Twins as a technique to get other teams to raise their offers and start a bidding war. Maybe all of this worked. Think about it, the two teams he decided to sign with are two of the biggest market teams in sports. They constantly shell out as much, if not more money than any team in the league. They're almost always competitive. If he was to eat up almost $30M per year with the Twins, would they be able to field a consistently competitive team over the course of a 10-13 year contract when their payroll sits at around $160M? Maybe, but aren't the odds of success better with a team who's payroll is approaching half a billion dollars? This isn't even to mention the sketchiness of the mystery injury that ultimately led to the Giant's deal falling through. Correa came into Minnesota with a history of injuries and IL stints. This was the reason for the 3-year deal with all the opt outs. If he got hurt, he could just try again the next year, all on the Twin's dollar. What could the Giant's doctors have found that would have caused them to back out? It must have been severe in their eyes to cause them to let go of one of the biggest free agents on the market. This mysterious injury should be a major red flag that would cause pause to anyone, except Mets owner Steve Cohen apparently, until they got their hands on him for their own extensive medical evaluation. As the dust settles on what was a shocking and unique change of events, Twins fans again find themselves angry. But I ask, are we aiming our displeasure at the right people? Correa chose two huge market teams over the Twins, and the one he ultimately ended up with won't even allow him to play the position he won a platinum glove at just two years ago. In my opinion, they used the Twins as leverage to get what Correa ultimately wanted, a long-term deal on a big market team. We shouldn't fault the front office for not raising their offer from 10-years $285M after Correa had a foggy medical evaluation. If the events that transpired yesterday resulted in the Twins raising their original offer, I would find that quite concerning. Raising their offer would have been negligent and down right bad business. Correa had his chance to come back to the Twins and play short stop, and at the end of the day he chose to take less money per year to play 3rd base for the New York Mets. Maybe we should stop pointing the blame at the front office for their inability to convince Correa to stay, and redirect it at Correa and Scott Boras for just flat out not wanting to be in Minnesota long-term. Maybe I'm way off here, but I agree with the front office for not going 12 or 13 years, especially after the shady medical evaluation done by the Giants. Let me know what you think, and as always, Go Twins!

From the moment he signed with the Minnesota Twins, Carlos Correa was going to opt-out of his contract. Now with that having officially happened, the front office must decide whether they can bring him back, or if there’s an alternative that’s more plausible. Enter Xander Bogaerts. Image courtesy of Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports Carlos Correa accomplished his goal of securing the most lucrative average annual value among infielders in major-league history. His $35.1 million last season topped Scott Boras client Anthony Rendon’s guarantee with the Angels. Although the deal was for technically three years, the opt-outs assured us that Correa was always going to hit the market again in hopes of securing a long-term payday. Minnesota certainly could opt to bring Correa back, and they should put a strong foot forward to do so. If he can be had for less than 10 years or under $300 million, it may be a possibility. If he can’t, and that does seem likely, then pivoting to another option makes sense. Despite strong shortstop prospects in the form of Royce Lewis, Brooks Lee, and Austin Martin, it would be preferable to see Minnesota avoid a stopgap shortstop option. A Jose Iglesias type could certainly hold down the position, but that would do little to reinvigorate an offense that needs to replace production. Dansby Swanson is coming off arguably the best year of his career, and Trea Turner is going to land somewhere in the same realm as Correa. That begs the question of whether Xander Bogaerts can be a middle ground, and if he represents enough of a replacement for Minnesota. At 30, Bogaerts is a bit older than Correa. His 117 career OPS+ doesn’t reflect just how good he’s been of late. He owns a 133 OPS+ since 2018 and has three All-Star game appearances along with three Silver Slugger awards. Bogaerts has been a pillar of health as well. He’s never played less than 136 games in a full season and is as reliable as it gets to be on the field. Correa is the superior defender, and that’s noteworthy for a Twins team lacking defense. Rocco Baldelli’s infield was not good a season ago, and removing arguably the best person with the glove doesn’t help change things. The Twins almost certainly won’t have a shortstop that can throw like Correa ever again, but replacing his offensive production could be equally key. Although Bogaerts has hit 30 homers in a season once during his career, you can more realistically bank on him to be in the 15-25 range. He’ll pile up doubles and brings a very good approach to the plate. Boston not being able to get a long-term deal done with him allows the open market to share their feelings, and the Twins should be having conversations with him as well. Like Correa, Bogaerts is represented by Boras Corp. The Twins front office should be seeing where they can place themselves in discussions regarding both players by feeling out the individual markets and expectations. If they determine an inability to play at the higher level, finding out how a match can be created with the Aruba native makes too much sense. I’d imagine the Twins would prefer continuity in the form of Correa. He’s been here, is a known asset, and is already a fan favorite. That said, spending less to get a superstar with similar talent has value too, and the package Bogaerts brings is hardly something to scoff at. What do you think? Is Bogaerts enough of an option to replace Correa on both sides of the ball? View full article

The Minnesota Twins have plenty of money to spend this offseason, and there’s some great fits that will cost a lot. How does this front office work to ensure they can land the big fish, and is there a way for them to get creative in hoping it helps? Image courtesy of Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports Over the years we’ve heard Derek Falvey and Thad Levine use plenty of buzzwords when describing their process as heads of the Twins' front office. One comment that has been made was a willingness to “get creative” in signing new contracts. Creativity leaves plenty to the imagination, but we certainly saw a new way of negotiating when Carlos Correa was signed last spring. Prolific agent Scott Boras negotiated a $105.3 million deal that was tied to a three-year term. Except, as we knew from the moment Correa agreed to put on a Twins uniform, he was only going to be with Minnesota on this deal for a single year. The Twins allowed Correa to have opt-outs after each of the first two seasons in this deal. He was always going to exercise that following a successful year one, and would’ve had a safety blanket in year two had he needed to opt back in. So, do opt-outs allow Minnesota a way to put contracts a bit more in favor of the player? Maybe someone will offer Correa a $350 million contract over the course of ten years. It’s hard to see Minnesota coming close to that, in terms of duration or money. What they could do, however, is to put a shorter deal together with a bit less money, but allow Correa to opt out in year two or three. The ability to again rip up a deal and continue working towards more money is certainly an advantage for a player. Revenues continue to increase in baseball, and year over year, it’s understandable that yearly valuations would also rise. We haven’t seen an extensive track record for contracts with opt-outs included in them; they are somewhat of a new negotiating tactic. That means it’s hard to pin just how much players or agents value them, and while they aren’t specifically a monetary gain, there’s a value they theoretically should carry as well. This isn’t just a Correa discussion either. Six other prolific free agents opted out of their contracts to enter free agency this offseason. Regardless if it was Xander Bogaerts or Jacob deGrom, each of those decisions was made based on the ability to secure a larger payday on the next contract. Some of those players did so at a similar age to Correa, while others are much older and looking for a short-term deal that will pay substantially more than their previous guarantee. As the Twins try to angle their way toward acquiring talent, they’ll need to find opportunities to differentiate their offers. It really doesn’t matter what level of financial security the Pohlad family has, as dollars are going to be handsome across organizations as a whole. If the Twins can make lucrative financial deals a bit more player-friendly in terms of an opt-out or full no-trade clause, they should certainly be willing to do so. It’s hard to see a talent like Correa walk after just a season because he had the ability to opt-out, but it was that opportunity that provided a way for him to sign here in the first place. Is utilizing opt-outs something you’d like to see the Twins do more of even if it relates to a lesser commitment from a given player? View full article

Fort Myers, FL - The Minnesota Twins started their morning in Fort Myers by settling into an auditorium in the Academy. LaTroy Hawkins, Rod Carew, Royce Lewis, and a host of media were present. Scott Boras entered, then did Minnesota’s front office and other dignitaries. Everyone was there for the man of the hour, Carlos Correa. As he put on that #4 jersey, it became official; he’s a Minnesota Twin. If there were two takeaways from this morning’s press conference, Carlos Correa was impressed with Twins leadership and that he’s here to win. Derek Falvey noted his appreciation of the support from ownership in saying, “A momentous day like this, a significant contract like this with a player of Carlos’s stature only happens with the partnership and support of ownership.” Leadership starts at the top, and Correa noted the warmth he felt in an initial Zoom call with Falvey and new manager Rocco Baldelli. “I talked to Rocco, I talked to Derek and Thad, and they made me feel like this was the place for me to be. They made me feel like this was going to be my next home. And when I got off the Zoom call, I told Scott, let’s make it happen. And I told my wife to start packing.” Communication is a big thing for Correa, and in talking through his desires to be in Minnesota, he continued to communicate a desire for winning. Going to a place where he could win was necessary, and there’s no ambiguity as to whether he feels the Twins are a team capable. “I told Rocco, and I told Derek, we’re not seeing this like a one-year thing, we’re seeing this as I want to build a championship culture in this organization, I want to show you guys what I can do, what I can bring to the table, so we can have a long-term relationship at some point.” While there is an opt-out following the first year, Correa’s agent Scott Boras sees this as an opportunity for Carlos to do damage in a place he’s been very successful. “He had told me, 'these are some of the places I see the ball really well.' When he mentioned Minnesota and I went and looked up, and I said, wow, he just has a very small 1.200 OPS over there… I know this, all the AL Central, the Twins have a new explosion weapon, C4.” Correa has played for some great managers in A.J. Hinch and Dusty Baker. Knowing that communication is so vital between the leader of the team and a leader in the clubhouse, it was exciting to hear how glowingly the new shortstop talked of his skipper. “For me, it was just the vibes I got and how they made me feel, especially talking to Rocco and hearing so many great things about him from all the players that played for him. I want to be in a place where I want to feel like I can communicate with my manager, and my manager's going to have my back all the time. That's exactly what I got from Rocco, and he's the guy I'm going to be working closest with. When I feel like I have a manager that I can trust, and I can communicate with, for me, that's a game-changer." A critical focal point remained as the conversation drew on for Correa and the Twins. This was going to be a partnership about winning. Correa has been in situations where the results have taken time, but he’s also experienced the pinnacle of a World Series ring. He said, “The conversations we had were about two and a half hours…it was all about winning. When I get that from them, that makes me excited because I want to take up that challenge. It was not long ago that I was playing for an organization that was last in the big leagues the year before I got there—losing 100-plus games. I know what it takes to build a championship culture within the clubhouse. It starts within the clubhouse and all the way up to the front office. I see that here with the talent that we have, and I see that we can get so much better in order for us to accomplish that goal to ultimately win a championship." Correa was taken the pick before Minnesota Twins Byron Buxton in the 2012 draft. He’s excited to play up the middle with him and has a history of playing alongside him in showcases as they were growing up. He fondly remembers the pre-draft process in Minnesota, “A 17-year-old hitting tanks in Target Field felt pretty cool.” It may be surprising that the Twins are landing such a supreme talent, but Boras thinks that will become more part of the norm. Taking over Correa’s free agency in January after his previous representation went through changes, Boras noted that Minnesota is a place he has young guys like Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff, and Austin Martin. Also, in talking about the vast revenues clubs see before the season even starts, he shared a belief talent acquisition will change, saying, “The truth of it is, you’re going to see franchises sign a franchise player, maybe the top franchises will sign two or three. That kind of thing. You’re going to see that with regularity in the game because frankly, it’s a component that is necessary for winning.” At the end of the day, it’s more than apparent that Carlos Correa is extremely excited to be in Minnesota and believes in the ability to lead this organization to a championship and have the leadership in place to supplement him getting there. After a few days focused on public relations, it was back to business for the talented shortstop. He took live at-bats for the first time since the World Series, and he said he hopes to see game action for Minnesota by this weekend. While we may still be pinching ourselves, this is now very much real life. The Twins hauled in a big fish, and it seems like he wants to be here to stay. MORE FROM TWINS DAILY — Latest Twins coverage from our writers — Recent Twins discussion in our forums — Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email View full article

The opinions of an agent regarding a baseball front office overhaul aren’t usually considered terribly important. However, when that agent is Scott Boras, the comments he makes tend to be worthy of closer attention from both fans and the media. In this case, the front office in question is the Minnesota Twins, which has brought in two key executives to run the team. Former Cleveland Indians assistant general manager Derek Falvey was named the Twins’ chief baseball officer and Thad Levine was tabbed as Minnesota’s general manager after working for the Texas Rangers. Boras met with the duo to get acquainted with them during the annual general managers’ meetings being held this week in Scottsdale, Arizona. During this period, agents often lay the groundwork with teams to consider potential discussions about players they represent. After the meetings were over, Boras offered praise for what he perceives as a different approach to the Twins’ past dealings with him. Much of those past discussions were with the team’s former general manager Terry Ryan, who was fired in July. While Ryan was able to build a number of winners during his two tenures with the team, his approach focused more on traditional aspects of scouting and assessments of players. In contrast, both Levine and Falvey have moved up during their respective careers by paying closer attention to the analytics side of the game. The analytics approach has been used in the past by franchises with tight budgets, a group that includes the Twins. Most notably, the Oakland Athletics enjoyed an extended level of success, which led to the book and movie, Moneyball. Crunching numbers is often at the heart of analytics, with the idea being that it will help uncover less expensive options that will produce for a team. The Pohlad family, which has owned the team for more than three decades, has never been one to throw out the kind of money that Boras usually asks for with his clients. Ryan and Boras generally had few discussions, though Boras respected his baseball acumen. However, Ryan generally would hold on to a draft pick rather than give it up to sign a free agent, no matter if it was a Boras client or not. Boras has a number of free agents available during this offseason, with Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson one of the main options. However, he’s been given a $17.2 million qualifying offer from the Phillies, so he’ll either be re-signing with them or asking for more. Neither option makes it likely that he’ll be wearing a Twins uniform in 2017. Another key player among Boras free agents will be Baltimore Orioles catcher Matt Wieters. With the Twins’ starting catcher, Kurt Suzuki, also a free agent, this would seemingly be an option. However, it isn't likely that the team will meet Boras’ asking price for a player who made $15.8 million last year. Still, the melting ice in this once-frosty relationship is a good sign. The Twins were overconfident going into the 2016 season, and are now being much more realistic about their team. The amicable relationship with Boras should serve as a catalyst for some big offseason moves.