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2023 – It wasn’t the first deal to which Carlos Correa agreed this off-season — but it was the last one, and the one that stuck. And as far as the Twins are concerned, that’s all that matters. Call it luck, call it fate, call it the most absurd free-agent saga in the sport — but at the end, Correa will be a member of the Twins for the long term, signed (with a completed physical) to a six-year, $200 million deal, with the potential to stretch to 10 years and $270 million with vesting years and contract options. Here is how it played out. Biggest contract ever for a Twins player todate.
2022
March 18: The Twins get a call from agent Scott Boras, asking about their interest in signing Carlos Correa as a free agent on a short-term deal. The Twins are very interested. In the early morning hours of March 19, a three-year, $105.3 million deal — $35.1 million each season — is agreed upon, with an opt-out after each season.
Sept. 30: When asked about the possibility he would remain with the Twins, Correa says, “When I go to the mall, and I go to the Dior store, when I want something, I get it. I ask how much it costs, and I buy it. If you really want something, you just go get it. I’m the product here. If they want my product, they’ve just got to come get it.”
Nov. 7: After playing in 136 games, hitting .291 with 22 home runs, Correa opts out of his contract.
Dec. 13: Correa agrees on a 13-year, $350 million contract with the San Francisco Giants. The Twins were said to have bid as much as $285 million for 10 seasons.
Dec. 20: The Giants, concerned about the results of Correa’s physical exam, cancel a news conference planned to introduce him. Boras immediately works a deal with the New York Mets for 12 years and $315 million.
Dec. 22: Correa’s physical with the Mets gives them pause after viewing an MRI of a lower right leg repaired by surgery in 2014. There is no signing.
2023
Jan. 9: The Mets are interested in restructuring Correa’s deal. Boras moves on, and negotiations with the Twins resume.
Jan. 10: A deal — pending a physical — that will guarantee Correa $200 million over six seasons is reached with the Twins. The contract could extend for another four years at $80 million.
Here is what MLBTraderumors.com had to say. Carlos Correa’s unprecedented free-agent saga looks to finally be drawing to a close, and it turns out he won’t even have to look for a new place to live. The former Rookie of the Year and Platinum Glove winner has reportedly agreed to a new six-year, $200MM contract with the Twins, which comes with four additional vesting options that can take the value of the contract to $270MM over a decade-long term. The Boras Corporation client does not have any opt-outs in the contract, though he will receive a full no-trade clause. Correa will receive an $8MM signing bonus (paid out between 2023 and 2024) and annual salaries of $32MM in 2023-24, $36MM in 2025, $31.5MM in 2026, $30.5MM in 2027 and $30MM in 2028. The vesting options are valued at $25MM (2029), $20MM (2030), $15MM (2031) and $10MM (2032). Correa would vest his 2029 option by reaching 575 plate appearances the previous season; that number drops to 550 in 2029 (in order to vest his 2030 option), 525 in 2030 (to vest his 2031 option) and 502 in 2031 (to vest his 2032 option). The options would also vest if Correa finishes top five in MVP balloting, wins a Silver Slugger or claims an LCS or World Series MVP in the prior season. The Twins can still choose to pick up any of the options if Correa doesn’t meet the prior year’s vesting threshold.
1973 – After a seven-hour meeting in the Lancaster Room of the Sheraton-O’Hare Motor Hotel in Rosemont, Illinois, American League owners voted 8-4 for something they called the “designated pinch hitter for the pitcher,” or DPH, an abbreviation quickly modified to DH. I asked Clark Griffith how the Twins voted and here is what he had to say.
“The Twins voted for it and I think that was a mistake. The vote was based on having Killebrew and Oliva for DH. I was involved in the drafting of the rule and after the vote it occurred to me that we used the wrong statistic to support it. The stat used was pitcher BA v. hitters BA and it should have been pitchers and those who hit for pitchers v. other batters. In essence, that means measuring the ninth hitter with all others. The effect of not removing a pitcher for a PH was not considered either. The DH is a horrible rule that should be allowed to go away. I love reading NL box scores for their complexity.”
From what I can determine, Charlie Finley, former Oakland Athletics owner, is generally credited with leading the push for the DH in 1973. He was strongly supported by American League President Joe Cronin and owners Nick Mileti (Cleveland), Jerry Hoffberger (Baltimore), John Allyn (Chicago) and Bob Short (Texas). John Fetzer (Detroit), Bud Selig (Milwaukee) and Calvin Griffith (Minnesota) would make 8 votes in favor with Boston, New York, Kansas City and California voting against the DH.