Major League Baseball superstar Carlos Correa has sensationally signed with the Minnesota Twins after his deals with the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets dramatically fell through.
The star shortstop had agreed a deal with the Giants and even scheduled a press conference to announce his arrival before the franchise got cold feet. The Giants postponed their scheduled press conference to announce Correa, sparking fears there was an issue with the deal.
It was later revealed that the team had identified a problem in his medical and ultimately were not comfortable giving him the contract. Correa subsequently returned to free agency, where he was almost immediately snapped up by the Mets.
New York reached an agreement with Correa on a 12-year deal worth $315 million, but they failed to finalise the terms. The delay reportedly stemmed from concerns the Mets have about Correa's lower right leg.
As a result, the Twins have swooped. According to ESPN, Minnesota are finalising a six-year deal worth $200m to sign Correa although the deal - which has a vesting option that can max out at $270m - is pending a physical.
Correa spent seven seasons with the Houston Astros before entering free agency a year ago after he inked a three-year deal with the Twins. The 28-year-old opted out of the contract after his first season with the team, who finished with a 78-84 record.
It should come as no surprise that Correa is so highly sought-after. He is a two-time All-Star and the 2021 Gold Glove Award winner, while he won the 2021 World Series with the Astros.
After deals with the Giants and Mets stalled, Correa's agent Scott Boras reached out to other teams - including the Twins. The franchise was interested in retaining his services after he hit 22 home runs and 64 RBIs last season.
Minnesota remained in contact with Correa throughout free agency to act as a backup in case the Mets deal fell through. While the Twins will likely want to conduct their own physical with Correa, the team already understands his overall condition after conducting a thorough exam last March.
Aside from a finger injury and Covid, Correa was quite durable for the Twins. He appeared in 136 of the remaining 142 games. He was a permanent fixture in the lineup for a Twins team that suffered a number of key injuries in 2022.
