Carlos Correa is Proving He is Worth Every Penny

He'll hit better next year.  He'll continue to lead this year.  He'll teach the Royce Lewis's, Juliens, Brooks Lee's of the world how to become winners.  $200 million isn't that much in a long term contract any more and we all know the Twin's have that kind of money to spend.  Loved the signing when they got him back and still love it.

You're making the assumption that other SS couldn't have been good defensively and hit a few singles. Correa is a very good SS and a smart player but he's not the only very good, smart SS in MLB.

11 minutes ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

the throw home in game 1 was absolutely unbelievable.  There may not be another shortstop alive that can make that throw happen.

This is some pretty extreme hyperbole. People brought up the Jeter throw as an immediate comparison. If an awful SS like Derek Jeter can make a similar throw there are plenty of SS who can make that throw. It was a great play but Carlos Correa is not the only MLB SS who can make great plays.

Carlos is an amazing defensive shortstop. I think Kyle Farmer is a perfectly competent major leaguer. But if he was at short and Jake Cave was in center field this year, we would just all be left complaining about the Vikings right now. 

Carlos is very gutty too. You have to admire in every respect how he has comported himself through injury and his free agency journey. 

Even with his poorer than usual numbers this season they weren't that bad. He still produced clutch moments (go ahead double at NYY, walk off homer v Brewers for example). And his defense has been excellent. Besides, you don't sign players like Correa to get to the play offs. One player, no matter how good, can get you to the play offs on their own. Ohtani is two elite players in one and the Angels were still rubbish. You sign the likes of Correa to win IN the play offs. Carlos Correa loves the play offs. He thrives in that high pressure, high stakes environment. And it is rubbing off on the team around him. Of course Correa won't be happy with his numbers in the regular season. But he's not going to dwell on it. It's like a switch has been turned on in his brain now we're in the play offs.

I listened to a bit of Baker's press conference earlier. He said we're not playing Carlos Correa, we're playing the Twins. I'm sorry buddy, but right now, Carlos Correa IS the Twins. He has driven his mentality, his hunger, his drive into the rest of the roster. Royce Lewis is hitting at MVP level, Lopez and Gray are pitching at Cy Young level. Duran closed out two close games in his first play off series. Kepler is a hitter re-born. 

People have been saying that the Giants and Mets have dodged a bullet. Nonsense. Correa has made us genuine World Series contenders. 

STatcasts defensive numbers are worthless, IMO. For over 150 years it was known that there is no way of measuring the infinite array of subtleties that make a defensive player strong or weak. Range is one such  non measurable talent.

The best thing we’ve had is scouts with trained eyes who have been watching SSs or CF, or 2B for years. And that’s still the best thing. For anyone with a ton of experience watching baseball, or a Roy Smalley, Latroy Hawkins, Terry Francona or even anyone that watched all of the Twins games this year, they know that Correa had a sensational defensive season. 

It’d be like watching Jordan and then someone quoting a new stat that had not existed for 97% of basketball history and they say Jordan averaged -1 field goals per average defensively for his career.

On what scientific principle is OAA, Zone ratings and all these other defensive metrics that have wildly counter-intuitive results based?  If a SS like Correa, say, played in 2022 behind a fly ball staff, sure he’d have less outs than average. It’s what he does with the balls hit to him that count.  it’s his judgement. And that rocket arm. His diving stops. His superior work in turning double plays. Coming from closer to 2nd base to field a slow roller and use his superior arm to miraculously throw out a runner. And using his veteran judgement to put on a play with the pitcher to pick off a runner at 2nd. That was a thing of beauty!

He has the strongest arm of any SS I’ve ever seen play and I’ve been avid since the 64 Twins. How many hits did that save the year and how many DP turned just because of his rocket arm? No stat can say. One could say Correa average 90 mph on his throws to 1st and player B averaged 91. That would be fatally flawed too because on maybe 10% of the plays, he eases up based on his judgement that he doesn’t need to unleash the full fury of his usual blistering throws.

I just feel a lot of distress for the fans that are being raised on these numbers. I think they’re really a crutch for those that don’t watch all or even most of the games. The bad habit has even seeped into some of the bloggers and baseball writers that write for somewhat respected publications. They’ve seen few of the Twins games but readily quote "advanced defensive metrics didn’t like  Correa’s season. Advanced defensive metrics are like corporations. They have no heart and they have no soul. They are rote in only caring about 1 stat - profit turned above and beyond all other human considerations.

I do feel a whole generation is being raised on a group of statistics that are entirely unprovable and wildly misleading.  Everyone would be done a favor if the scouts 20-80 consensus came back into use rather than OAA, etc.

I've been watching baseball since the '40s and I've never seen a better play.

Okay people are blowing the play in game way out of what it was.  First, to say "extraordinary display of baseball wit and incredible arm strength." Is just not accurate.  The arm strength part yes, and the throw was perfect in the situation.  Not taking away from that.  

However, people are acting like no other player would have done what CC did.  Watch the play and you will see him just standing there until the ball rolls past Polo.  Okay so he was being a little lazy expecting his teammate to make a play.  Personally, I think CC should have been running to back up the play and or to cover 3rd, but he just stands there.  Then when he see the ball rolling in the middle of no where, and he is the closest guy to it, I would not say it was extraordinary baseball wit to figure out he should go get it.  I mean do we say how amazing a play someone makes when they grab the ball and are closest to it?  Really, the fact that he took no effort to back up the play, like we are taught in little league, the runner does not even try to go home.  Maybe CC thought of that, like he was playing some game of dare the runner he will get there first, but my guess he just assumed Polo would stop the ball, then when it did not happen he did what any player would have done and go get it, and then his arm and perfect throw makes the good play.  

But please people stop acting like no other player would have had the mind to go grab a ball that is just rolling and he is closest to get it.  If he would have just stood there and watched it would have been upset he never moved and how dumb of a play it was. 

All that being said, we do not win the series without him, and his leadership has shown.  He telling Gray that they could do the pickup, and he calling it himself shows he does have a good mind for what to do and when. 

With Correa and P. Lopez leading this team by example I feel this team will reel off deep playoff runs for the next 4 years. Who knows maybe even a World Champion's parade!

1 hour ago, Jocko87 said:

Easy on the hyperbole please.  There are lots of players who could have, and have made those plays, in big situations as well. I love Carlos, but he’s not the only baseball player in the world. Let’s be realistic.

That said, what makes him special is that he made all of them, at all the right times and can reasonably be expected to make them the next time.  Clutch is hard to measure but easy to see. 
 

I get your point but as far as other players making that play you can cross off anyone that doesn’t have an elite arm. Correa threw an absolute bullet to the plate and got him by a whisker. Anyone with less than an elite arm is not making that play 

All of the defense and leadership is great... but what gets me excited was watching him run to third in the 8th inning last night. That was not the sprint of someone who has a rough bout of plantar fasciitis. If it is possible that the tear was healing to some extent (as has been suggested) we might see some massive upswing in all areas of his play this October. 

Could just be the adrenaline in the situation made it painless, but I don't feel like I've seen him running like that all year. 

34 minutes ago, Fritzderkat said:

I've been watching baseball since the '40s and I've never seen a better play.

You should have watched Ozzie Smith and Cal Ripken in the 1980s.

15 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

You've said that he was "just standing there" on a few threads now. Have you actually gone and looked at the play? I'm not saying it's the greatest ever, but he certainly wasn't "being a little lazy." He was covering 2B which was his responsibility on that play. They were shifted as far right as they could be for the lefty hitter. He started the play behind 2B, took 2 immediate steps to his right then started going towards 2B to field any possible throw there. His responsibility was absolutely not to backup Jorge on that play. 

Other players would certainly have made that play. Not a large number, but there are other guys. But don't bash him for not backing up the play when that wasn't his responsibility. His responsibility was to cover 2B since Julien was deep in the hole at 2B.

This is absolutely, 100%, spot on correct. CC was covering 2nd, which is what he was supposed to be doing. To call him lazy, is complete B.S. Once he saw that Polo missed the play, CC took off like a bat outta hell to get the ball. All the way from damn near 2nd base. Once he got the ball, he threw a rocket to Jeffers. Perfect throw, on the run. Watch the sequence again and see how far CC ran to make that play. Could another SS make that play? Probably, but you could count them on one hand...and maybe in that exact moment, no other SS makes that play. Everything had to be perfect, and it was. That was one of the best plays I've ever seen a SS make in my 60 years of watching baseball. The guy is worth every damn penny of what the Twins pay him, and it goes  way beyond what he does on the field. 

14 minutes ago, Linus said:

I get your point but as far as other players making that play you can cross off anyone that doesn’t have an elite arm. Correa threw an absolute bullet to the plate and got him by a whisker. Anyone with less than an elite arm is not making that play 

Watch the replay again. At the moment Jeffers caught the ball Bichette was at least 8 feet away from home plate. He was at the edge of the dirt circle around the batters boxes.

2 minutes ago, CRF said:

That was one of the best plays I've ever seen a SS make in my 60 years of watching baseball. The guy is worth every damn penny of what the Twins pay him, and it goes way beyond what he does on the field. 

I can believe this coming from a Twins fan because in all the years I've watched the Twins only Greg Gagne is on par with Carlos Correa defensively. The Twins have not been a hotbed of talent at SS over their history.

5 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

I can believe this coming from a Twins fan because in all the years I've watched the Twins only Greg Gagne is on par with Carlos Correa defensively. The Twins have not been a hotbed of talent at SS over their history.

I'm a Twins fan, but I'm not from Mn. I didn't mean 60 years of Twins baseball. I've seen plenty of shortstops play, for many teams, over the years. A lot of great ones. That play by CC was as good as they come. 

I have seen people write "nobody practices that play" which is utter garbage. I know Correa has practiced that play because his throwing fundamentals were right out of the clock drill. You don't accidentally get perfect baseball fundamentals.

Correa's one of the clutchest players in recent memory. Akin to Derek Jeter.