The Yankees should go all-in on controversial trade for Twins' star shortstop

12/10/2024 11:59 AM

According to Dan Hayes of The Athletic, the Minnesota Twins are listening in on offers for shortstop Carlos Correa. While the Yankees have a shortstop in Anthony Volpe, they have a significant hole in their infield. Gleyber Torres is a free agent and the feel around the industry is that 2024 was his last season with the Bronx Bombers, creating an opening for a player like Correa to be a possible fit. It’s unclear if the Twins and Yankees have had any trade dialogue this winter, but after losing out on Juan Soto, landing Carlos Correa could give the team a much-needed star addition.

Correa is a premium player whose value extends beyond his on-field contributions as a natural-born leader and enforcer, and if he’s even somewhat available, the Yankees should make a full-court press for his services. The Twins don’t seem willing to just dump off his salary, but Brian Cashman has some chips that could coax Derek Falvey into making a blockbuster trade.

Carlos Correa Would Be the Perfect Addition For the Yankees This Winter

Carlos Correa rebounded from an abnormal 2023 season where he posted a 95 wRC+ by putting up a 155 wRC+ and 4.3 fWAR in 86 games, playing elite defense at shortstop while scorching the baseball and making tons of contact. He ran the lowest strikeout rate of his career (16.6%) while also having the third-best SLG% of his career (.517), meshing together his elite contact abilities with unbelievable power that could boost any lineup.

While there are credible injury concerns, as the Mets and Giants backed out of their long-term deals with the star infielder due to medical issues, he’s recorded at least 130 games played in the last three seasons before 2024. It’s impossible to replace Juan Soto’s production, but if there was any way to try and come close, acquiring someone who could go into the Hall of Fame depending on how he ages would help.

His offensive skillset is unique because of how well he grades out at in various categories, displaying competency across the board that can give pitchers an impossible matchup.

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A hitter who makes tons of contact hammers the baseball, and makes great swing decisions is the kind of hitter who is going to have an incredibly high ceiling, and Correa has an argument to be a top-10 player when he’s healthy. He produced 4.3 fWAR in under 90 games, pacing for a 7.5 WAR season had he played 150 games, a mark that would come up just 0.6 WAR short of Juan Soto last season.

Is he better than Soto? Absolutely not. There’s no way the Yankees can replace his 8.1 fWAR and 180 wRC+, but Correa would certainly bite into a huge chunk of that WAR drop-off with his own production. The reason he’s so valuable is because outside of his excellent bat, he’s one of the best defensive shortstops in the game, racking up +4 Fielding Run Value and +5 Outs Above Average.

While the Yankees would likely keep Anthony Volpe at shortstop in this arrangement, Carlos Correa would profile beautifully for third base where speed and range are less important. A less taxing position on the lower body, it would allow for Correa to settle into a role where he can rely more on his elite arm, ranking in the 78th Percentile in Arm Strength as he averaged 88.5 MPH on his throws.

Jazz Chisholm would be able to move back to second base in this situation, where he has been an elite-level defender in his career.

The Yankees wouldn’t just be getting someone who quantifiably makes them better, but someone who could provide intangible value as a leader. Aaron Judge is an excellent leader and a great captain, someone who garnered the respect of his teammates and has a well-documented history of absorbing questionable characters into the clubhouse and keeping the peace, but he hasn’t had the kind of enforcer alongside him.

Carlos Correa is wired with the Houston Astros’ mentality that winning comes as a byproduct of efficiency, and the manner in which the star shortstop can articulate advanced analytical concepts is quite astonishing. You can hear him wax poetic about the nuances of WAR or wRC+ on MLB Network in various clips that have surfaced across his career, but he’s also someone who has a strong and unwavering voice that echoes in a clubhouse.

It was Correa who gave a fiery speech to Framber Valdez on the mound during the 2020 ALCS despite him being the youngest player in that infield. It’s Correa who took it upon himself in 2021 to get the Astros to the World Series with a dominant postseason run, especially in the ALCS that season. He has risen to the moment time and time again, with a 133 wRC+ in the postseason and he has the second-best WPA in postseason history behind only David Ortiz.

While the Twins reportedly are more likely to keep him versus trade him, the Yankees could potentially entice Minnesota with a young arm like Luis Gil or Clarke Schmidt who could provide them a cheap boost to the rotation. If the Yankees take on the remaining $130 million on his deal over the next four seasons, they would be helping the Twins open up payroll to acquire more pitching talent and build a more well-rounded roster.

It’s unclear whether this is all just the Twins not viewing Carlos Correa as untouchable or if they’re inviting suitors to make bids so they can see what his value is, but the Yankees should do their best to try and acquire him this winter.