TAMPA — Carlos Correa went into the offseason expecting to get a monster deal that never came before or after the lockout. His goal was to match or surpass the $325 million over 10 years that fellow free agent shortstop Corey Seager landed from the Texas Rangers last November.
A week into spring training, Correa was forced to settle for far, far less when he finally made a final decision early Sunday morning.
In a shocker, Correa is headed to the Minnesota Twins on a three-year, $105.3-million contract that was first reported by Mark Berman of Fox 29 in Houston.
The Twins prevailed after offering Correa a $35.1 million average annual salary that is the highest in the majors for an infielder. Correa also can opt out after the 2022 or 2023 season to test the free agent market again.
Correa, 27. picked the Twins after restarting negotiations late last week with the Houston Astros, his only club until now.
Houston’s best offer reportedly was five years for $160 million last November, a $32 million average salary.
With Minnesota, Correa will be teammates to two former Yankees who were traded to the Twins last Sunday, catcher Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela.
Correa’s signing was the second big free agent signing in a span of two hours. Around midnight, the Philadelphia Phillies signed outfielder Nick Castellanos to a five-year, $100-million pact.
All but one of the top free agents now are signed, everyone except for shortstop Trevor Story.
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Randy Miller may be reached at rmiller@njadvancemedia.com.