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    Resetting Expectations for Carlos Correa

    Nick Nelson

    By Nick Nelson

    If he makes it back at all this year, the Twins probably need to be hoping for their All-Star shortstop to help them in the playoffs, rather than helping them get there.

    Image courtesy of © Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

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    Carlos Correa was having one of the best seasons of his career. He was on a scorching midsummer heater -- slashing .360/.418/.596 in his previous 35 games -- when he was scratched from the lineup 90 minutes ahead of game time on Jul. 13 with a bruised heel. Days later, he was diagnosed with the dreaded plantar fasciitis, which severely diminished his play for most of last season, albeit on the other foot.

    Correa and the team initially expressed optimism that this would be a less serious ordeal.

    "It doesn't look as severe as it did last year," said Rocco Baldelli at the time. Sadly, their optimism was misgiven. This has developed into one of the most significant injuries of Correa's career, threatening to shut down his amazing age-29 season and cast long-term concern for a foot that was a subject of much scrutiny during Correa's free-agent odyssey.

    It's now been 48 days since the shortstop played a game, and there's no end to his absence in sight. Weeks and weeks have passed without meaningful updates on a concrete timeline. Correa admitted to reporters last weekend that he experienced a "minor setback" earlier this month, and still wasn't able to run at full speed or in cleats.

    In his Wednesday article for The Athletic, Dan Hayes shared that, per a Twins source, "Buxton [is] much closer to rejoining the big-league club than the All-Star Correa, who is making only incremental progress." Even at that, "Buxton might not begin a rehab assignment until early next week."

    If Buxton is considered "much closer" to returning than Correa, and he's not even poised to start a rehab assignment until the first week of September, what does that imply? We're running out of time for "incremental progress" to result in a return to play. Reading between the lines, it feels like the Twins are shifting their objective from trying to get Correa back for a late-season push to getting him back for the actual playoffs, in some capacity, if they're able to get there.

    That last part may be a tall order. The Twins are now just three games ahead of Boston for the final playoff spot, and while Boston's not an especially great team, neither is Minnesota minus its best player. The Twins have hung in there admirably in Correa's absence, but heading into their eighth week without the team MVP, they appear to be falling apart at the seams. 

    On the bright side, the schedule is about to get much easier, and the Twins still do have some cushion for that last Wild Card berth. Even if pushing to overtake the division without Correa feels less realistic, they still have a chance to hang on and get him back in time to make an impact when it matters most, just like last year.

    At this point, that seems to be our best hope. Unfortunately, it's time to come to grips with the reality that Correa probably is not going to make it back to have much of an influence on the outcome of the regular season.

    Nick is a co-founder of Twins Daily who's been writing about the team for more than 15 years.
    Follow Nick Nelson on Twitter: NickNelsonMN

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    Featured Comments

    cmoss84

    cmoss84 984

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    3 hours ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

    Add in Lariano blowing out his arm just when it looked like we had 2 aces and a real chance in the playoffs.

    Man. Had an opportunity to watch him pitch with tickets right behind home plate. Other people thought I was crazy, but I always said Liriano was better than Santana pre-injury. I mean...2 foot swing and misses were normal against his slider. Such a bummer. 

    Hosken Bombo Disco

    Hosken Bombo Disco 18,612

  • Community Moderator

    • Posted

    11 minutes ago, cmoss84 said:

    I'm guessing the Twins use a spring training approach with CC and BB. Start playing catch soon (if they are not already), then long toss and batting practice, followed by a week long rehab stint. Maybe 10 games left in the season before they return...unless, like others have mentioned, we lose our WC lead. 

    For Correa, I think they will use the Miami series as a “rehab” and if he can’t get through that, then they will know they can leave him off the postseason roster. The Baltimore series at the very end might work too if nothing is at stake.

    There is just too much to lose by putting Correa on the postseason roster cold, and then watching him crumple to the ground on national television suddenly, or what is more likely and less dramatic, need to be removed between innings. 

    bean5302

    bean5302 9,281

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    1 hour ago, mnfireman said:

    While this is true, the Twins biggest injuries have been at CF and SS, the team did not anticipate this and therefore have no MLB caliber replacement at either position.

    I mean, who could possibly anticipate Buxton not putting in a 150 games?

    bean5302

    bean5302 9,281

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    2 hours ago, chinmusic said:

    Maybe, but in terms of injuries plus not preparing for them (which requires spending), the Twins stand alone.

    Does not require spending. My offseason plan had the Twins trading assets to Boston to get Jarren Duran, my backup was Wilyer Abreu. Falvey had anywhere from $20-40MM of salary to spend depending on how he handled the offseason. He got caught sleeping behind the wheel yet again, let the buyers fill their baskets and there was no demand left for guys he should have moved, and no payroll capacity left for positions he needed to fill.

    1985Fan

    1985Fan 601

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    I think it was Bud Grant that said the best ability a player has is availability. Buxton and Correa don’t have the durability gene, so we shouldn’t expect to see 140 games out of either of them.  When they tie large part of the payroll on a shrinking revenue team, that’s a problem. It isn’t about whether or not Buxton or Correa want to play, it’s about they aren’t playing. That’s a huge problem for this team this season and the rest of their contracts. 
    It does make clear that guys like Jose Ramirez are worth their weight in gold. 
     

     

    DocBauer

    DocBauer 22,263

  • Old-Timey Member

    • Posted

    Correa back mid September is fine by me. Gives the last couple of weeks to shake off any rust and get ready for October.

    The whole plantar thing is a freak type of injury. From personal experience, it can often be caused by footwear. My guess is that's PROBABLY the issue something that has to be addresses, and from reports, he's trying different shoes now, and needs to re-visit the issue before next offseason as well. My guess, he needs better arch support.

    But last year it was his left foot. Problem seemed solve. Suddenly it happened to the right foot this year. It isn't necessarily chronic if they figure out what caused it. But after he was OK late in 2023, and the first half of this season, it's nothing that probably couldn't and shouldn't have been expected to appear again. Especially to the OTHER foot. 

    Correa is a GAMER. If he could play at anything close to an acceptable level, he'd be out there. And this is simply not something the Giants or Mets could have forseen in 2 years ago.

    Lee will be back first. He helps stabilize the INF and allows Castro to move around and help the overall lineup construction. All is not lost, but Correa back in a couple/few weeks makes a real difference.

    Joe A. Preusser

    Joe A. Preusser 1,619

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    12 hours ago, LambchoP said:

    It just seems real sad to me that our teo "superstars", our highest paid players, can't be bothered to play these very important games to get us into the playoffs. But, if the rest of the team is able to rally and get us in as a wildcard team, both Correa and Buxton will swoop in at the last moment to play in the playoffs in front of a national audience. Not a good look, our highest paid players are way too comfortable sitting on the IL for long periods of time. I know Bucks contract has incentives, but I bet these injuries and timelines would be completely different if they're contracts were dependent on amount of games played. Buxton will always be a half season type of player and Correa is moving in that direction too. If the Twins, a team with serious payroll limitations, are going to pay 50 million dollars per year on two part time players, it's going to be real tough to field a competitive team around them. You have to include Lewis in this discussion as well. Long story short, our three best players are essentially only going to be part time players because of injuries:(

    Oh boy, way to start off the thread with a hot take guaranteed to get you loved and admired by the fanbase.  Forget logic, forget reasoning, forget positivity, I just want to see the world burn.   

    Lash out, cry out, hate, despair,  angst, frustration,  burn, it, all.  

    Find a new hobby.

    saviking

    saviking 1,095

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    This is why I never liked the Correa signing. And it wasn't about Correa himself. It's because of the risk you take putting such a high percentage of your available funds into just one player, and even worse, if it's an older player with a very long-term contract. 

    Would it be worth it if Correa had a 4.0 war every year and played 90% of the games? ABSOLUTELY

    But that's like putting all your money on number 8 at the roulette wheel and having them spin. Small market teams should never put themselves in that position. 

    That said, we own Correa for the foreseeable future so here's to him coming back for the play offs and giving us 4.0 WARS until the day he retires.  

    DJL44

    DJL44 16,605

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    20 hours ago, chinmusic said:

    Maybe, but in terms of injuries plus not preparing for them (which requires spending), the Twins stand alone.

    I think the Dodgers take the crown. They actively seek out injured players. There is more scouting for depth but a 40 man roster full of injured players is not a great way to make it through a season.

    JD-TWINS

    JD-TWINS 6,210

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    On 8/30/2024 at 10:58 AM, LambchoP said:

    It just seems real sad to me that our teo "superstars", our highest paid players, can't be bothered to play these very important games to get us into the playoffs. But, if the rest of the team is able to rally and get us in as a wildcard team, both Correa and Buxton will swoop in at the last moment to play in the playoffs in front of a national audience. Not a good look, our highest paid players are way too comfortable sitting on the IL for long periods of time. I know Bucks contract has incentives, but I bet these injuries and timelines would be completely different if they're contracts were dependent on amount of games played. Buxton will always be a half season type of player and Correa is moving in that direction too. If the Twins, a team with serious payroll limitations, are going to pay 50 million dollars per year on two part time players, it's going to be real tough to field a competitive team around them. You have to include Lewis in this discussion as well. Long story short, our three best players are essentially only going to be part time players because of injuries:(

    They can’t be bothered to play - that’s your take - really? They’ll swoop in for notoriety in the playoffs - you mean there’s not enough media coverage EVERY DAY of the season? Come on man! Everybody is frustrated with injuries……….is Ryan and his $770K salary sitting out just because he’s lazy as well or maybe not paid enough - he just decided to fake it in the MRI?

    Over a dozen thumbs down is hard to accomplish.

    JD-TWINS

    JD-TWINS 6,210

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    19 hours ago, bean5302 said:

    Does not require spending. My offseason plan had the Twins trading assets to Boston to get Jarren Duran, my backup was Wilyer Abreu. Falvey had anywhere from $20-40MM of salary to spend depending on how he handled the offseason. He got caught sleeping behind the wheel yet again, let the buyers fill their baskets and there was no demand left for guys he should have moved, and no payroll capacity left for positions he needed to fill.

    Are people supposed to believe you proposed a trade for Jarren Duran in offseason? He had 1.3 WAR combined over parts of 3 seasons in Boston (he hit .295 last year and was the last guy they were trading with years of control left) and this year he’s got a WAR of 8.5. You must be related to Nostradamus.

    CCHOF5yearstoolate

    CCHOF5yearstoolate 1,033

  • Verified Member

    • Posted

    On 8/31/2024 at 2:10 PM, JD-TWINS said:

    Are people supposed to believe you proposed a trade for Jarren Duran in offseason? He had 1.3 WAR combined over parts of 3 seasons in Boston (he hit .295 last year and was the last guy they were trading with years of control left) and this year he’s got a WAR of 8.5. You must be related to Nostradamus.

    Some people just can't help patting themselves on the back, to the point they feel the need to say outrageous things like this. It's an odd sensation. 



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