Correa agrees to 13-year megadeal with Giants (source)
Maria Guardado
@mi_guardado
Do-Hyoung Park
@dohyoungparkSAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants finally got their superstar.
After coming up short in their pursuit of the reigning American League MVP, the Giants won the Carlos Correa sweepstakes, agreeing to a 13-year, $350 million deal with the star shortstop, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. The deal has no opt-out and a full no-trade clause. The club has not confirmed the move.
Earlier on Tuesday evening, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported that the Mets were entering the fray for Correa, likely driving the Giants to move quickly to get this deal done. The Twins were also among the final teams involved in talks.
Correa¡¯s arrival will usher in a new era for the Giants, who had been looking for a new face of the franchise following the retirement of Buster Posey in 2021 and were in the mix for Aaron Judge before he agreed to return to the Yankees. Correa¡¯s megadeal easily ranks as the biggest contract in club history, surpassing the nine-year, $167 million extension Posey signed in March 2013. It also exceeded Francisco Lindor's $341 million deal for the largest shortstop contract by total value and tied Bryce Harper for the longest free-agent contract in history.
When Correa opted out of the final two years of the three-year, $105.3 million deal he signed with the Twins before the 2022 season, it came as no surprise, because he'd been clear all along that he was looking for a long-term commitment to -- and from -- a franchise that he could call home and help to develop for the remainder of his career.
He didn't find that in Minnesota -- but he has now found that home in San Francisco.
On the field, he was the same, steady Correa who anchored the left side of Houston's infield for the first seven seasons of his career -- and in some ways better. In the difficult hitting environment of 2022, he posted his highest batting average since '17, hitting .291/.366/.467 with 22 homers and 24 doubles, helping him match last year¡¯s offensive bWAR of 5.2.
And even as part of a loaded shortstop class that also featured Trea Turner, Dansby Swanson and Xander Bogaerts, Correa's bat stood out -- he led all qualified shortstops in wRC+ last season.
In fact, Correa's 39.5 career WAR marks the sixth most in AL/NL history by a primary shortstop through eight seasons -- just behind Nomar Garciaparra and Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. Correa is on quite the impressive career path -- and he's still only 28, with plenty of his prime remaining.
Correa's tenure in Houston was marked by concerns about his ability to stay on the field, but he has averaged 142 games played in the past two seasons, with his tenure in Minnesota only interrupted by two freak occurrences -- a bout of COVID-19 and a bruised finger sustained on a hit-by-pitch.
But the on-field component only proved a shadow of his true value -- as the Twins quickly discovered. An analytical and probing mind with natural charisma, Correa quickly became the leader of the Minnesota clubhouse, able to connect with the English-speaking and Spanish-speaking sides of the team alike and earning respect for his attitude and preparation.
Even knowing he might only be with the Twins for one year, Correa took an interest in all aspects of the organization's long-term future -- from developing younger players, to actively coaching the defense around him while manning shortstop, to expressing his desires to management and the front office about acquisitions and team composition come Trade Deadline time.
Now with the Giants, he'll seek a similarly prominent voice as a cornerstone player of the future -- and he'll be around to see it through.
In Correa, the Giants have a marquee player who will inject some much-needed star power on a team that will be tasked with competing with two heavyweights -- the Dodgers and Padres -- in the National League West. San Francisco, which regressed to .500 after winning a franchise-record 107 games in 2021, also upgraded its roster by re-signing Joc Pederson and bringing in outfielder Mitch Haniger and starters Sean Manaea and Ross Stripling.
There are still some holes left to be filled, particularly in the bullpen, but the Giants¡¯ big splash should go a long way toward closing the gap with their division rivals.
Adding Correa will come with one complication for the Giants, as it raises questions about four-time Gold Glove Award winner Brandon Crawford¡¯s future role with the club. Crawford, the longest-tenured Giant and the only remaining link to the team¡¯s championship era, has only ever played shortstop in the Majors, but he¡¯s coming off a down season and is entering the final year of his contract.
Manager Gabe Kapler said last week that he hadn¡¯t spoken to Crawford about a potential position change, though it seems likely that the 35-year-old veteran will be asked to shift to second or third base to accommodate Correa, who won the Platinum Glove as the league¡¯s best defender in 2021.