Minnesota’s 3 Options with Carlos Correa

I would have selected option 3 if Royce had stayed healthy and continued to play well.  Now, I think we gotta keep him and go for it this year (as long as we invest in our BP).  I know unlikely he returns, but until he opts out, I can always hope!

I think stand pat. I don't want to trade any of our MLB ready players in a season where we have maybe a        1-5% chance of getting to the World Series. Keep Correa so we can hopefully enjoy a successful season. Make trades in off-season to supplement roster. Keep trying to build a system where we can become competitive year after year, and if you are 1 or 2 players away from a championship, then trade away from surplus you may have to go after a ring. 

With the injury to Lewis the Twins hands are tied to Correa for the rest of this season. It would be nice to get something in return for him in a trade but not only does that send a bad message to other Free Agents that would consider coming to the Twins organization, I doubt they would get much in return anyway since he can just opt out of his contract regardless of who he is playing for. Not many teams are going to trade much for a half a season player even if it is a Correa. 

I also don't see the club trading for much help by the deadline, maybe 1 or 2 bullpen arms and that will be it. They've got 7 starters in Ryan, Gray, Bundy, Smeltzer, Archer, Winder, Ober for the 2nd half and possibly Maeda to finish the season with 2 or 3 of them going to the bullpen depending on what they do by the deadline. 

No trade.  You got him to compete this year.  You're in position to do so.  Maybe you lose him in the off-season, maybe you don't.  He didn't cost you anything in terms of player capital.  If you have a good run maybe you figure out a way to keep him.  Trading him for prospects sets you back years.  A year ago we traded our best pitcher for AA prospects who to this day remain AA prospects. You brought Correa in to take a shot.  Take a shot.

Lots of different opinions already. Love it.

The decision likely rests on a number of factors. Consider the following:

1, What is the probability that Correa is back next year by signing a long term deal? If so, what is the impact on our FA budget?

2. What moves do the Twins make to shore up our pitching, particularly in the bullpen, prior to the deadline?  How do those moves, or lack there of, impact our chances to make/advance in the playoffs.

3, What type of return would we get for Correa? Are we talking multiple solid prospects or is it just salary relief?

So it’s a bit like trying to solve a multi linear equation.

If the answers to #1, 2, and 3, are slim to none and slim just left town, none, and decent to strong - you trade him.

If the answers are high, a few solid additions, and not much, you keep him.

It’s the other scenarios where it gets trickier. 

1 hour ago, terrydactyls said:

If the front office cannot get a firm commitment from Correa to play in 2023, the my opinion is that they should trade him for as much as possible.  I do not think the current team is built to anywhere in the playoffs even if they add a couple relievers.  I think Palacios can handle SS next year until either Lewis is ready or a better option arises.

 

 

Unless they can trade for a top tier starter and a solid closer just know that they will get knocked out by a wild card team right away. So trade him and just figure they paid 17M for a couple of prospects.

Unless they're getting a shortstop in return then there's no trade happening.  Like Seattle says we're going for it and includes JP Crawford with some pitching 

Jermaine Palacios can play shortstop just fine, but I'm keeping Correa for the remainder of the year. The Twins need to have some record of holding free agents through their contracts. I expect Correa is gone next year but the odds are not zero that he could return for another year. The return for Correa would be negligible and the silence from the clubhouse would speak for itself. The Twins can and should add a few pitchers asap and I would think that we might expect more timely hitting for the remainder of the year from any number of our batters. Play out the schedule with C4 at shortstop.

Using our heads, we should trade him (there is  O.O% chance of extension for you Animal House fans out there and a <5% chance of WS).

Using our hearts (and our inner 5-year-old need for short term results), we should keep him. 

Ultimately though, he will be kept because there simply won't be a huge market for him which drives a reasonable return (for the same reason he fell in our laps in the first place!).... which is totally OK!

I also like Option #1. Keep him and get 3 more relief pitchers.

I don't think we need any starting pitching [ok...maybe to get to the playoffs] to maneuver you're way through the playoffs. Our starters are very good at going 4 or 5 innings using 80-100 pitches...and here is the key.....while allowing very few runs. We do not have a bullpen to win the next 4 or 5 innings. Think about it.....that's playoff baseball.

2 hours ago, terrydactyls said:

If the front office cannot get a firm commitment from Correa to play in 2023, the my opinion is that they should trade him for as much as possible.

Legitimately what do you think teams are going to give up for less than half a season of Correa? Best case scenario, the Twins get a middling reliever of the type that's always available in the offseason for cheap anyway. They're not going to get anyone who's going to meaningfully help the team long term, but they would torpedo the current team. There's just no upside to it at all.

With us being in contention Correa is not getting traded.  And I don’t want him to be traded.  We will get some pitching at the trade deadline.  So this post season will be fun.  
 

I hope we do try to extend him this offseason.  If nothing else then to help him make more cash at the new place. But an 8 year extension is reasonable.  If we go longer the AAV needs to drop in years 9 and 10.  And with the way inflation is going how long out do you want your contract?

Wow.  Lots of great comments that cover just about everything.  I do not think Twins will trade him.  They are in a tough spot but they put themselves there in part.  Assuming Correa walks after the season I would imagine you same people who said no to even think about trading him will roast the Twins for not trading him and at least get something.  I think Correa has been a good but not great addition.  He certainly hasn't played up to his previous superstar status   and definitely hasn't played up to being paid the highest infielder nor the more than 40% of twins payroll.  I fault the FO for not bolstering especially the pitching staff after spending all that money in Correa.  Why have such a player if you surround him with a minor league pitching staff?  Not quite sure what the Twins are for this team.  There is no guarantee this team even makes the playoffs.  I hope they do but this team has a lot of holes in it.

The twins need to trade for Frankie from Oakland and I forget the name of the second other pitcher in Arizona and they can fill up their bullpen with all these starters that have been injured throughout the season and possibly pick up Daniel Baird from Colorado.  You could move Kenta, Ober, Smeltzer, Winder, Archer to pair with Duran, Alcala, and McGill.  I think that would be a pretty good bullpen. Then you have Ryan, Gray, Frankie and the kid from Arizona as you're starting four starters.  The Yankees are rumored to be interested in trading for Juan Soto.  If I were the Twins, I would go and pick up Aaron Judge. And then make a serious run to meet the Yankees in the ALCS.

Option #1. #2 isn't happening. And, #3 is insulting, hurts team morale, is just ridiculous 

Trade for T. Rogers. You know, the San Diego boy that came out of nowhere...straight up. Maybe throw in Paddack.

Let's say you lose next 5-6 games and are in 3rd place, trade would make sense if you can get high end quality in return and focus on '23

Depending on what the other teams are asking for their players and what we can get by trading Correa and Sano, I'd lean towards rebuilding our farm system--especially our pitching--by trading both Correa and Sano.  To do this would be a clear cut move in one direction.  Even if it's unpopular, it's better than the hodgepodge whirlwind of bold moves--the signing of Correa--and hedging--the Rogers fiasco--that put us in this bind..

11 hours ago, RJA said:

One is the only option. Boras will not entertain any extension at this point. It would be crazy to do so. Trading him would be nuts as it would totally disrupt the clubhouse. And, they need him if they are going to make the postseason. 

The clubhouse is pretty pathetic right now.  Have you been watching them play of late?  Maybe the clubhouse needs some disruption.  It might do them some good.

10 hours ago, rv78 said:

With the injury to Lewis the Twins hands are tied to Correa for the rest of this season. It would be nice to get something in return for him in a trade but not only does that send a bad message to other Free Agents that would consider coming to the Twins organization, I doubt they would get much in return anyway since he can just opt out of his contract regardless of who he is playing for. Not many teams are going to trade much for a half a season player even if it is a Correa. 

I also don't see the club trading for much help by the deadline, maybe 1 or 2 bullpen arms and that will be it. They've got 7 starters in Ryan, Gray, Bundy, Smeltzer, Archer, Winder, Ober for the 2nd half and possibly Maeda to finish the season with 2 or 3 of them going to the bullpen depending on what they do by the deadline. 

How does this send a bad message to other free agents.  Everyone knows (including other free agents) that the structure of his contract is essentially set up for either a one-year deal or an August 2nd team opt out.  It's really a simple choice between A and B.  If the team chooses B, how could any potential free agent be upset?