In what had to be one of the wildest offseasons ever, Carlos Correa formally agreed to sign with three different teams, each at amounts reaching nine figures over the winter. Ultimately the Platinum Glove shortstop returned to the Minnesota Twins on a six-year, $200 million contract worth an average annual value of $33.3 million.
As great as Correa has been over the years with his glove, he’s also been a consistent hitter, reaching a career batting average of .276 while averaging 28 home runs per season. We saw Correa get off to a bit of a slow start in his first year in the Twin Cities in 2022, but he’d end up finishing the season strong, still hitting .291 with 22 home runs while providing excellent defense in the field.
After some offseason medical concerns popped up, the expectation was that Correa would be 100% healthy by the start of the season. Being that he’s played in 32 of the team’s 36 games, Correa seems just fine.
Yet, when looking at his production at the plate, things are not fine with Correa.
He’s hitting just .185 across 138 plate appearances but has managed to sock five home runs. The rest of his splits aren’t pretty either, at .261/.363/.624, with an OPS+ of just 72. In other words, Correa has been extremely sub-par at the plate. His struggles have been so bad that according to MLB FanGraphs, Correa’s play has only been worth roughly $600K, or that of a replacement-level minor-leaguer.
But this isn’t Correa’s first rodeo. He’s been in MLB for nine seasons. This isn’t the first time he’s hit some bumps in the road. Yet, the reason why his performance has become a big talking point again is that now even the home fans at Target Field are beginning to let the boo birds fly.
Yet, Correa very much understands the fan frustration and even admits he’d boo himself too if he was in the stands.
“I’d boo myself too with the amount of money I’m making if I’m playing like that. Obviously, it’s acceptable. It’s part of the game, part of sports. Fans want production and fans want a team that’s going to compete out there and win games. It’s to be expected when you play poorly. But at the same time, the work doesn’t stop. I’m going to keep working and keep focusing on the things I can’t control and the results will come.”
Carlos Correa responds to poor performance with Minnesota Twins
As hard as it is to continue seeing Correa struggle in the batter’s box, he has the right approach. Baseball is a long season, with 162 games. He’ll have plenty more opportunities to get his batting average above the Mendoza line as the year progresses. Yet, if Correa doesn’t have a sharp turnaround soon, the number of boos won’t decrease.
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