How Carlos Correa became a Minnesota Twin — in one day
By Ben Verlander
FOX Sports MLB Analyst
For Carlos Correa, this offseason was one of a kind.
He became a dad, he endured a 99-day MLB lockout, and he was in constant negotiations before and after the lockout as the top free agent on the market.
It all started when the Houston Astros walked off the field at the end of the 2021 season after losing the World Series to the Atlanta Braves. At that moment, Correa officially became a free agent for the first time in his career.
Originally — as in, before the lockout — Correa was determined to get a long-term deal worth around $300 million. But the lockout threw a wrinkle in that plan.
Correa joined me this week on "Flippin' Bats" to discuss the offseason and his mindset throughout it.
Watch "Flippin' Bats with Ben Verlander" on YouTube, or subscribe on podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts.
"After the lockout, there were no long-term deals out there," he said. "There was not enough time."
"I wanted something short term, AAV, opt-outs and a team that wanted to win, and when we talked to Minnesota, they offered all that and more, and it was pretty easy to make that decision."
What might surprise some fans is how quickly Correa's Twins deal came together.
I asked Correa how long he had been talking to the Twins before he signed with the team.
"It was that same day," he said. "We had a conversation that day around noon, and by 11 p.m. at night, it was done."
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Carlos Correa shares with Ben Verlander on "Flippin' Bats" that the New York Yankees never made him an official offer in free agency.
That's right: The best free agent on the market didn't have a single conversation with his new team until the day he signed.
"They knew what I wanted the moment we started talking," he said. "We worked it out, we had a Zoom call, we talked, and right away — 10 or 11 hours at most — the deal was done. It was that day, and I had never talked to the Twins before."
And now Correa is set to be the highest paid infielder (by average annual value) in MLB history.
What Correa brings to the Twins makes him worth every dollar.
He’s fantastic defensively, great at the plate and perhaps the most clutch player in baseball.
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Ben Verlander hands out his early report cards for the biggest free-agent moves of the offseason, including the Twins' Carlos Correa, the Dodgers' Freddie Freeman, the Phillies' Nick Castellanos and more.
Correa is a good friend of mine, and it was awesome having him on the show for the official premiere of the second season of "Flippin' Bats."
Check out this week's episode to hear the rest of our conversation, including his best memories with the Astros, his decision to switch agents in the middle of the offseason and much more.
Ben Verlander is an MLB Analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the "Flippin' Bats" podcast. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Verlander was an All-American at Old Dominion University before he joined his brother, Justin, in Detroit as a 14th-round pick of the Tigers in 2013. He spent five years in the Tigers organization. Follow him on Twitter @BenVerlander.