After Correa hits IL, Twins piece together comeback win

CINCINNATI -- The aggravation of Carlos Correa’s plantar fasciitis in his left foot now involves a full tear to the central cortex of the fascia and discomfort that sent him to the 10-day injured list on Wednesday, but the Twins remain confident that the shortstop will be active and available for postseason games.

Acting manager Jayce Tingler said the organization is “super optimistic” that Correa will be ready for the playoffs, and the shortstop put his belief in no uncertain terms before the Twins reached the cusp of an American League Central title with a 5-3 come-from-behind win over the Reds in Wednesday’s series finale at Great American Ball Park.

“I'm very confident,” Correa said. “Very confident. It will take a lot for me not to play in those games. They're way too meaningful and they're way too important not only for the organization, but also for myself. Yeah, I'm confident I'll be there.”

• Games remaining (9): vs. LAA (3), vs. OAK (3), at COL (3)
• Standings update: The Twins (81-72) hold a nine-game lead on the Guardians (72-81) and a 9 1/2-game lead on the Tigers (71-81) for the American League Central title. Cleveland (7-6) and Detroit (8-5) clinched the tiebreakers over Minnesota by winning their season series. Minnesota is currently the third-best division leader, meaning it would host a best-of-three Wild Card Series vs. the final Wild Card entrant starting on Oct. 3.

The Twins can clinch the division while they are idle on Thursday, if the Tigers lose to the A's and the Guardians lose to the Orioles.

To get to this point even in the absence of Correa and Royce Lewis, who remained day to day with a tight left hamstring as he awaited a Thursday morning MRI in Minneapolis following his exit from Tuesday’s game, the Twins pieced together a clutch comeback in the ninth inning behind small ball from Willi Castro and a two-run, go-ahead knock from Jorge Polanco.

“I think the players and the staff that are around Carlos and Royce, they understand what they’ve been playing through,” Tingler said. “We probably actually view this as a good thing. It’s a chance to get a little down time to try to get as healthy as we can. We view it as a positive. Those [other] players in there, they are bold; they’re brave; they’re fearless.”

It served as yet another win emblematic of the Twins’ next-man-up success highlighting their depth this season -- but for them to be at their best in the postseason, they need Correa and Lewis back, too.

Correa has been dealing with pain from plantar fasciitis since May, and it has impacted everything from his defense to his swing, playing no small part in why he has posted career-worsts in most offensive metrics this season -- he’s hitting .230/.312/.399 in 135 games. He tore the fascia when planting his foot on a popup in shallow left field on Monday against the Reds.

But Correa and head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta indicated that the tear will be a positive in the recovery process from the plantar fasciitis, as players in similar situations have had the tear ultimately help alleviate the discomfort -- and Correa said he’s already been in contact with players like Ramón Laureano and Jonathan India who have been through the process.

“I'm hopeful that's the case for me and it's a one-and-done type of thing only this year,” Correa said. “Looking forward, I don't want to deal with this for much longer.”

Correa said the expectation is that he’ll need three or four days for the new discomfort in the heel to calm down. Paparesta said this rest period will help address the inflammation and swelling stemming from the new injury in the heel, where the fascia -- a band that connects the heel to the toes -- originates.

Both Correa and Paparesta indicated that a return in time for the Twins’ final regular-season series against the Rockies could be a possibility.

“Nick has dealt with this before with other players,” Correa said. “I'm trusting him that he has the best interest for the team and for myself going down the stretch late in the season. He knows that if I feel good in a couple days, I'll want to go out there and play and keep fighting through this. But the smart thing for me to do is make sure it heals properly.”