NEW YORK — Carlos Correa, the superstar infielder who on Wednesday agreed to terms with the Mets after a deal with the Giants fell through, was here on Thursday to undergo his physical exam, his agent, Scott Boras, said.
That step is not a formality: The Giants deal evaporated after the team expressed concern about the player’s health. San Francisco had reportedly agreed to terms with Correa on a $350 million, 13-year contract last Tuesday, and the parties signed a letter of agreement. On Monday, the team announced it would hold a press conference the following day. But three hours before it was scheduled to begin, the team announced the press conference had been postponed.
Some 14 hours later, Correa had agreed to terms with the Mets on a $315 million, 12-year deal.
In a statement issued Wednesday, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said, “While we are prohibited from disclosing confidential medical information, as Scott Boras stated publicly, there was a difference of opinion over the results of Carlos’ physical examination. We wish Carlos the best.”
Boras said on Thursday that he expected Correa, 28, would pass his Mets physical, and that the deal would become official shortly after the results came back some 24 to 48 hours later, likely before Christmas. (Mets GM Billy Eppler did not comment.)
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“There is no current issue with Carlos’s health whatsoever,” Boras said. He added, “All the conjecture and evaluation of him has been about, you know, physicians using their crystal ball for years to come.” He said that Correa, who spent last year with the Twins, was examined after the season by Christopher Camp, Minnesota’s team doctor and an orthopedic surgeon on the staff of the Mayo Clinic. Boras said that Camp had written “a long letter passing him, and with that came a recommendation for over a 10-year contract.” (Boras said that the Twins, who are more familiar with Correa's recent health than anyone else, had offered just that.) The agent said he had shared that letter and the results of the exam, along with “comprehensive medical records [and] all the imaging that has been taken prior to that, and so they have a full account of the player prior to [making an offer].”
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He added that the fact that the Giants wanted to continue discussing terms, rather than scrapping the deal altogether, indicated that they believed Correa is healthy.
Boras said that Correa and his family (his wife, Daniella, and son, Kylo, along with Carlos’s parents and brother and Daniella’s parents) were gathered in a hotel in San Francisco around 8 a.m. on Tuesday—three hours before the scheduled press conference—when the Giants informed Boras they needed more time to review the results of the physical and would be postponing the press conference. Boras said he asked how much time, and Zaidi told him 1 p.m. Later, Boras said, Zaidi asked for more time. “And then I advised them that I had to pursue alternative measures on behalf of Carlos with other teams,” Boras said.
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He immediately texted Mets owner Steve Cohen, who had belatedly tried to join the Correa sweepstakes the first time around. At the time, Boras said, he had proceeded with the Giants because they were far into the process. But on Tuesday, Boras said he texted Cohen, who was on vacation in Hawaii, “Welcome to Correa-Mas. It’s your lucky day.” Cohen was eating dinner and drinking a martini; Boras said he asked if Cohen had three olives for a great third baseman. (Correa has played every defensive inning of his eight major league seasons at shortstop, but New York already employs Francisco Lindor at that position. Boras said that Correa told every team he met with that he was willing to play wherever on the diamond they wanted him.)
They agreed to terms late that night, and Correa celebrated, Boras said, by tackling him exuberantly. Correa would pass his physical, Boras said, but after that, he was not so sure about himself.
