Inside the tumultuous final hours of the Carlos Correa era — and the start of a rebuild for the Twins

New York Times

6 days ago

MINNEAPOLIS — The meeting took place on Wednesday, a day before baseball's trade deadline, in a private room adjacent to the home clubhouse at Target Field. For an era of Minnesota Twins baseball that held so much promise, it was the beginning of the end.
Carlos Correa, the Twins' $200 million shortstop, had questions for Derek Falvey, the team's president of baseball operations. Would the Twins be sellers at the trade deadline? What direction would the team take in the future?
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Correa, 30, and Falvey, 42, built a mutual trust when Correa first signed with the Twins as a free agent in March 2022, then opted out less than a year later and re-signed for a deal nearly twice as large. They shared a goal of bringing Minnesota its first World Series title in more than three decades. But as they spoke in that private room — the start of nearly two days of tumult that would unravel years of hard work — it was clear that their vision was coming apart.
The Twins, a team full of dynamic, even electric players, began the season with the highest playoff odds of any team in the AL Central. But the Pohlad family's ongoing negotiations to sell the franchise have created an uncomfortable air of uncertainty. Even after the team exercised his option for 2026, manager Rocco Baldelli faces questions about his job security. The Twins approached the deadline in fourth place, six games under .500, 12 games out in the division, a fragile mess.
After Correa's meeting with Falvey, the Twins played a game in which they seemed to burst from the tension surrounding them. In their 13-1 loss to the Red Sox, they confused utilityman Willi Castro with a botched attempt at a late-game send-off and angered setup man Griffin Jax so much that he was caught on camera ranting in the dugout. They then traded their closer, Jhoan Duran, to the Phillies.
It was merely a prelude to an even more consequential day on Thursday, which Falvey began intending to fulfill ownership's request of making the best possible trades for the organization's long-term benefit. Once he started, to the shock of fans, his players, and his industry colleagues, he did not stop.
By the time the deadline passed at 6 p.m. ET, the Twins had moved 10 of their 26 players, nearly 40 percent of their major-league roster. All but two of their trades came on deadline day. And while Falvey kept part of the team's core intact and added a number of talented young players with major-league experience, he was true to the plans he shared with Correa, describing the path forward in blunt terms.
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'The direction we are going,' Correa recalled Falvey telling him the previous day, 'is not the one you signed up for.'
By then, news had already surfaced of the Houston Astros' interest in bringing back Correa, the player they drafted first overall in 2012. Correa at the time was 'chilling' at his home in St. Paul, playing baseball outside with his sons, Kylo, 3, and Kenzo, 2. His wife, Daniella, was the first to inform him of the reports.
Once Correa got to Target Field, he sought out Falvey, who confirmed that the Astros had indeed called about a potential trade. The initial discussions, according to a source briefed on the conversations, were not serious. The Astros wanted other major leaguers attached to Correa and for the Twins to pay a sizable amount of his remaining $103 million.
Falvey told Correa he would update him if the deal became more feasible from the Twins' perspective. Correa told Falvey the Astros were the only team for which he would waive his no-trade clause. His family lives in Houston. Both his parents and Daniella's parents live in Houston. He would be going home.
'Carlos was never sitting there saying anything about demanding a trade or wanting to do something else,' Falvey said. 'If it was right for the Twins and it was right for him, he was open to the conversation.'
Especially open once Falvey explained what lay ahead.
'When he told [me] that we were going to go into rebuild mode, I said then I deserve to go somewhere where I have a chance to win and my kids can watch me go out there in the playoffs and perform,' Correa said. 'He agreed with me and he said out of respect for me he would get to work.'
Falvey got to work, all right. And when deadline day was complete, Correa's agent, Scott Boras, referenced the nickname of Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh to describe the Twins' maneuvers to slash payroll.
'Apparently the Big Dumper has a Twin.'
Nine days before the deadline, the Twins knew they would move their players on expiring contracts, as most teams do when they are out of contention. Club officials were less certain about how they would proceed with players under additional club control. The list included Jax, Duran and right-handed ace Joe Ryan, each of whom the team could retain through 2027.
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One line of thought was to keep the team relatively intact until after the Pohlad family sold the team. New owners typically demonstrate their enthusiasm by boosting payroll. By adding to their existing group, the Twins could have landed in a stronger competitive position.
That is not the direction the Pohlads chose, another reason why for many fans, the sale of the team cannot come soon enough.
After the Twins won the AL Central in 2023, the Pohlad family cut the Opening Day payroll in 2024 by nearly 20 percent. By season's end, word emerged that the family was exploring a sale. The news ushered in a period of uncertainty. The effect on the team's employees, down to the players, has been palpable.
'The sale process,' Falvey said, 'continues to be an ongoing reality for our organization.'
In February, billionaire Justin Ishbia spurned the Twins to increase his minority stake in the Chicago White Sox. A month later, The Athletic reported the Pohlad family was seeking $1.7 billion for the franchise and carrying $425 million of debt, one of the highest figures among the league's 30 teams. Though payroll increased ahead of the 2025 season, it still has not come up to its previous heights. The Twins' only offseason additions were free-agent left-handed reliever Danny Coulombe, outfielder Harrison Bader and first baseman Ty France. By the deadline, they'd all be traded.
The first signs of massive change began on Monday afternoon. Popular pitcher Chris Paddack was traded to the Tigers, foreshadowing the teardown of the roster. It left the clubhouse on edge, particularly players who found themselves the subject of trade rumors, like Jax. He would later admit to feeling the weight of stress.
'It's something I haven't really dealt with yet to this point,' Jax said. 'Being on this side and seeing the other sides of emotions and what it's really like from the business side, it's just different.'
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Just how different culminated in an embarrassing scene for the franchise. By the ninth inning of Wednesday's blowout loss to the Red Sox, thoughts of the deadline were inescapable. Those left in the ballpark figured they knew what was going on as Jax set up for his first pitch of the frame, only to be interrupted by the home plate umpire Lance Barrett. He had signaled for time so that Baldelli could pull Castro from the game, a gesture that would allow fans and teammates an opportunity to applaud him one last time. It was time for a hug watch.
'They just wanted to kind of give him his moment to take it all in,' said France who was on alert all game for the possibility of replacing Castro in case of a trade. 'I don't think that's exactly how it went. … There was a lot going on there.'
Indeed, there was plenty going on except for the one thing that everyone had assumed. Though Baldelli and several teammates offered hugs, and France did indeed enter the game to replace him, Castro had not yet actually been traded.
On the mound, Jax waited to throw his first pitch, though Baldelli didn't want him out there in the first place. But several relievers were unavailable, and because the Twins' deficit was seven runs rather than eight, Baldelli could not turn to a position player. So he gave the ball to Jax, the only arm in the bullpen that was fresh.
The delay lasted about 30 seconds. But it did not help. The Red Sox teed off on Jax, and it wouldn't be long until he was back in the dugout, pacing stressfully as he ran his fingers through his hair. Having unsuccessfully lobbied Baldelli to stay in the game, Jax had been pulled after just 12 pitches. He was still furious as he began waving his right arm and pointing at the field, yelling at Baldelli and his coaches.
After he calmed down an hour later, Jax apologized to his manager, before explaining himself publicly.
'It was just a moment of emotion,' Jax told reporters. 'I think I let what was going on around me build up a little bit too much. … I shouldn't act that way on the mound when he's coming to take the ball from me. It's just one of those times where I have to grit my teeth. I apologized to him. I said it's just that competitor in me, that fire. But it's no excuse. It's something I can't do.'
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Those words came after a closed-door meeting with Baldelli, and another player, one who had gone out of his way to serve as buffer during a difficult conversation. It was yet another example of how Correa's influence can extend far beyond performance. He was a leader until the end.
'I never want players to feel a (certain) way about a manager and for word to spread out in the clubhouse,' Correa said. 'It becomes kind of like a cancer. I like to take things from the root and fix them right away.'
Following the fireworks in the dugout, Correa approached Jax and asked if he wanted to clear the air with Baldelli, even offering to accompany him to see the manager. Jax took him up on it. Correa's day at the ballpark would end the same way that it had begun — with a meeting.
Baldelli explained that he had not wanted to use the pitcher, but because of the score and the circumstances, he had no other options. However, the scenario had also presented an odd conflict, one in which the manager opted for a quick hook because he didn't want Jax pushing his pitch count past 30 in an inning that was essentially meaningless.
'We had a conversation about how sometimes we've got to make moves that are best for the team and not for certain individuals,' Correa said. 'At the same time, we've got to stay professional, especially when we are out there on the field.'
Baldelli described the sit-down as productive. He applauded Correa's leadership and praised the veteran for acting as a conduit between players and management.
Not even a day later, Baldelli was roaming the hallways of the team hotel in Cleveland, looking for Jax's room. The pitcher had been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays, and the manager wanted to bid him farewell. The two spent 15 minutes together, one of a handful of emotional goodbyes that Baldelli experienced on the day that Falvey began the public and painful reshaping of the Twins' roster.
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'There are times where I can acknowledge maybe I would have done it a little differently if I had the chance,' Baldelli said of Jax. 'I wanted to get Griff out of the game, but I could have given him another 10-15 pitches to work out of the inning. I think it would have been appreciated on his end in the moment. But you live and learn.'
Now, as Baldelli weathers the rumors about his job security, that living and learning will come with a fundamentally different group.
The Twins' payroll, $147 million before the trades, is down to $134 million, according to FanGraphs' Jon Becker. The team's bigger savings, though, came from the purging of the final three guaranteed years of Correa's contract. The Twins sent the Astros $33 million, but saved about $70 million in future commitments to Correa. The price they paid for sticking the Astros with the majority of the contract was a minimal return in talent. The only player the Twins acquired in the deal was Matt Mikulski, a 26-year-old left-hander who has yet to rise above Class A.
In Falvey's view, all is not lost. By acquiring Mick Abel in the Duran trade and Taj Bradley for Jax, the Twins added to their strong nucleus of starting pitching — Ryan, Pablo Lopez and Bailey Ober, plus youngsters David Festa, Zebby Matthews and Simeon Woods-Richardson, plus others rising through the minors. But their position player group, which still includes center fielder Byron Buxton and third baseman Royce Lewis, is in obvious need of reinforcement now that Correa, Castro and others are gone.
Judged strictly by his performance, Correa's three-plus year tenure in Minnesota will go down as a disappointment. He missed 144 games, nearly a full season's worth. His average fWAR in five full seasons with the Astros, excluding the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, was 4.6. With the Twins, including his prorated estimate this season, it was 3.1.
But by the eve of the trade deadline, Correa seemed to quickly accept the reality that his time with the Twins was coming to an end. The day he was introduced in 2022, Correa talked about building a championship culture and winning World Series titles. On Wednesday, with the franchise in a decaying state, Falvey told him the honest truth.
The Twins were starting over.
(Top photo of Carlos Correa earlier this season: Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)