Carlos Correa signs with the Twins, and other sports news
Minnesota Twins' Carlos Correa, left, puts on a team jersey alongside Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey at Target Field Wednesday in Minneapolis. The team and Correa agreed to a six-year, $200 million contract.
Abbie Parr | AP
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: The Vikings are in the playoffs. But this week's big news was baseball. We're going to talk about that and all the sports news with our sports guys, Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson. Wally is the founder of Minnesota Score Magazine and the co-host of 10,000 Takes sports talk show on radio and TV. Eric is the other host of 10,000 Takes. He's also the Minnesota Vikings reporter for CBS Sports Radio's Eye on Football. So Carlos Correa is back after flirting with what, a couple of other teams? That was a wild ride on the free agent roller coaster, Wally Langfellow.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: To say the least. I mean, he was going to get 350 million over 13 years from San Francisco. That fell through. The Mets jumped in. He was going to get 315 million from them over, I believe it was 10 years or 12 years. That fell through. And lo and behold, the Twins got back into the mix. And they signed Correa. And that's done.
Now, the reason that the other two fell through was because they had their questions about his ankle, which he injured as a rookie back in 2014. And I talked to-- I was at the press conference yesterday where they reintroduced him, I should say, Carlos Correa. And I talked to his agent afterwards, Scott Boras, who is probably the most well-known agent in all of sports. We had a good conversation.
And he told me that the belief by the Giants and by the Mets was based on an MRI that they did. Whereas, the belief by the Twins physicians was based on them seeing him every day, pre-season examination, mid-season examination, post-season examination. And then they looked at him again earlier this week. And they came up with the same results. And he has not sat because of those injuries. And so the Twins are back in it.
They get a bargain on the deal, so to speak, $200 million, six years. He could be here an additional four beyond that. There are little contract pieces that would keep him here for 10 years. But the six years is guaranteed. And the Twins arguably have one of the best shortstops in all of baseball. And it was weird. It was funky. It was frustrating. But they've got him. And it's a good selling point for the Twins as far as trying to sell tickets this year. That's for sure.
CATHY WURZER: OK, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, I think we can now call Carlos the ultimate baseball boomerang. I mean, this really was a bizarre odyssey. And what a winding road back to Minneapolis. San Francisco thought they had him locked in. The Giants made a huge push for Aaron Judge, who was from NorCal. But they couldn't land Judge. He stays in New York City with the Yankees. So they're turning their attention to Correa. That blows up.
The New York Mets swoop in. That blows up. And now the Twins have him. And if he can stay on the field, play 145 games or more, if they can finally keep Byron Buxton on the field, get 130 or more out of Byron, they have two of the top impact players offensively and defensively in Major League Baseball. And the other thing about Correa, he's a great clubhouse guy. He's a leader. He's got universal respect with the other players and the coaches.
So we'll see. The other interesting thing in my opinion, Cathy, about this story is we are entering the first week of the NFL playoffs. And Major League Baseball was able to steal some thunder from the almighty NFL. It usually works the other way, where the NFL big-foots every sport in its path and just steamrolls them and gets all the attention. This week, baseball was in the news with the football playoffs looming on the horizon.
CATHY WURZER: Oh, say, so speaking of the football playoffs, we have the Giants at Minnesota Sunday, Wally.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Correct, so this is a rematch, so to speak. The Vikings were winners back on Christmas Eve. Greg Joseph kicked a 61-yard field goal to win it. That, oh, by the way, was a team record when he kicked it. And if you watch the highlights from that, I mean, they went berserk on the sidelines after he kicked that field goal because it's kind of unexpected to kick that length of a field goal.
And Greg Joseph has been, shall we say, inconsistent when it comes to extra points. But when he kicks field goals, he's been good. The Vikings are a three point favorite on Sunday. That probably lends to home field advantage. So basically, what the bookies out in Las Vegas are saying, it's a pretty evenly-matched game. Both teams, of course, with rookie head coaches, Kevin O'Connell, Brian Daboll, both of them probably up for Coach of the Year. And the Giants haven't been in the playoffs for a while.
They last made it in 2016. Of course, the Vikings last made it in 201-- but an opportunity for Minnesota to win. And if they win, they move on and probably will play San Francisco. If San Francisco happens to lose to Seattle, then the Vikings would get another home game. So I expect a very tight game on Sunday. I don't think that there's any question. But that's good for the Vikings because they are 11-0 in games decided by one score or less.
CATHY WURZER: Wow, OK, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, and as you might expect with two playoff teams, Cathy, you have star power that you're going to see on the field Sunday at US Bank Stadium. I think Minnesota defensively is going to be very focused on trying to contain Giants running back, Saquon Barkley. He gained 1,312 yards on the ground this season, fourth most in the NFL. He's an impact back who can come up with what they call in football jargon, chunk plays.
He had a 41-yard touchdown run late in that game against the Vikings that helped the Giants tie it up before Greg Joseph hit that monster field goal. On the flip side, the Giants are going to be laser-focused on Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson, who led the NFL with 1,809 receiving yards. He had eight touchdown catches. And they may be trying to take the blueprint Green Bay used a couple of weeks ago in Wisconsin, where they bottled up Jefferson all game. He was a non-factor.
I'm sure the Giants have looked at the videotape of the way the Packers defensed Jefferson. One other thing about the New York Giants, Cathy, they play in the New Jersey/New York City metro area. But they don't get the love historically that, say, Green Bay does, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, or New England. But this is a pedigree franchise. They've won four Super Bowls in their history. And I'm--
CATHY WURZER: Right, and we've lost four.
ERIC NELSON: --always amazed that-- what's-- yeah, the Vikings are over four. And the Giants have four w's. So this is a franchise. It's a blue blood organization. And as Wally said, I expect a game that probably comes down to the final seconds.
CATHY WURZER: Say, what are the tickets going for?
ERIC NELSON: 114 is the cheapest right now on the secondary market, so.
CATHY WURZER: What? OK, $114, I bet that's in the nosebleed seats, too. I have got about a minute--
ERIC NELSON: Oh, yeah, you'd be lucky.
CATHY WURZER: OK, I can only imagine, yeah, exactly. Say, I got a minute and a half here. About the T Wolves, what's happening? I thought that they were doing really well and then something happened.
ERIC NELSON: Well, another embarrassing loss to Detroit last night. That's two in a row to the Pistons, one of the worst teams in the NBA. Detroit head coach Dwane Casey continues to get revenge against Minnesota. Remember, way back in 2007, he was gassed by the Timberwolves despite having a 20-20 record, which by Minnesota standards is very good. He got a raw deal. And I think Casey gets his team fired up every time he faces his old team, the T Wolves.
CATHY WURZER: And with a minute left, Mr. Langfellow, Minnesota Gopher basketball.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, they play tonight. They are so far 0-4 in Big Ten play-- 6-8 on the season overall. They're at Ohio State tonight. Gophers, still searching for their first Big Ten win. They had close losses to both Wisconsin and Nebraska in their last couple of games. Ben Johnson has got an uphill climb. How many Big Ten games they win this year, you can probably count them on one hand if they're lucky,.
It's going to be a rough year for the Gophers. But the fact that they played these last two close, I think that that's a positive sign. Hopefully, they'll get one against Ohio State. More likely, when they come home, they've got Illinois on Monday. That's probably a more likely scenario. But you never know. It's Big Ten basketball. Anything could happen.
CATHY WURZER: That's true. Wally, Eric, thanks so much. Have a good weekend.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: You too, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson. Wally is the founder of Minnesota Score Magazine and the co-host of 10,000 Takes sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and is also the Vikings reporter for CBS Sports Radio's Eye on Football.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: To say the least. I mean, he was going to get 350 million over 13 years from San Francisco. That fell through. The Mets jumped in. He was going to get 315 million from them over, I believe it was 10 years or 12 years. That fell through. And lo and behold, the Twins got back into the mix. And they signed Correa. And that's done.
Now, the reason that the other two fell through was because they had their questions about his ankle, which he injured as a rookie back in 2014. And I talked to-- I was at the press conference yesterday where they reintroduced him, I should say, Carlos Correa. And I talked to his agent afterwards, Scott Boras, who is probably the most well-known agent in all of sports. We had a good conversation.
And he told me that the belief by the Giants and by the Mets was based on an MRI that they did. Whereas, the belief by the Twins physicians was based on them seeing him every day, pre-season examination, mid-season examination, post-season examination. And then they looked at him again earlier this week. And they came up with the same results. And he has not sat because of those injuries. And so the Twins are back in it.
They get a bargain on the deal, so to speak, $200 million, six years. He could be here an additional four beyond that. There are little contract pieces that would keep him here for 10 years. But the six years is guaranteed. And the Twins arguably have one of the best shortstops in all of baseball. And it was weird. It was funky. It was frustrating. But they've got him. And it's a good selling point for the Twins as far as trying to sell tickets this year. That's for sure.
CATHY WURZER: OK, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, I think we can now call Carlos the ultimate baseball boomerang. I mean, this really was a bizarre odyssey. And what a winding road back to Minneapolis. San Francisco thought they had him locked in. The Giants made a huge push for Aaron Judge, who was from NorCal. But they couldn't land Judge. He stays in New York City with the Yankees. So they're turning their attention to Correa. That blows up.
The New York Mets swoop in. That blows up. And now the Twins have him. And if he can stay on the field, play 145 games or more, if they can finally keep Byron Buxton on the field, get 130 or more out of Byron, they have two of the top impact players offensively and defensively in Major League Baseball. And the other thing about Correa, he's a great clubhouse guy. He's a leader. He's got universal respect with the other players and the coaches.
So we'll see. The other interesting thing in my opinion, Cathy, about this story is we are entering the first week of the NFL playoffs. And Major League Baseball was able to steal some thunder from the almighty NFL. It usually works the other way, where the NFL big-foots every sport in its path and just steamrolls them and gets all the attention. This week, baseball was in the news with the football playoffs looming on the horizon.
CATHY WURZER: Oh, say, so speaking of the football playoffs, we have the Giants at Minnesota Sunday, Wally.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Correct, so this is a rematch, so to speak. The Vikings were winners back on Christmas Eve. Greg Joseph kicked a 61-yard field goal to win it. That, oh, by the way, was a team record when he kicked it. And if you watch the highlights from that, I mean, they went berserk on the sidelines after he kicked that field goal because it's kind of unexpected to kick that length of a field goal.
And Greg Joseph has been, shall we say, inconsistent when it comes to extra points. But when he kicks field goals, he's been good. The Vikings are a three point favorite on Sunday. That probably lends to home field advantage. So basically, what the bookies out in Las Vegas are saying, it's a pretty evenly-matched game. Both teams, of course, with rookie head coaches, Kevin O'Connell, Brian Daboll, both of them probably up for Coach of the Year. And the Giants haven't been in the playoffs for a while.
They last made it in 2016. Of course, the Vikings last made it in 201-- but an opportunity for Minnesota to win. And if they win, they move on and probably will play San Francisco. If San Francisco happens to lose to Seattle, then the Vikings would get another home game. So I expect a very tight game on Sunday. I don't think that there's any question. But that's good for the Vikings because they are 11-0 in games decided by one score or less.
CATHY WURZER: Wow, OK, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, and as you might expect with two playoff teams, Cathy, you have star power that you're going to see on the field Sunday at US Bank Stadium. I think Minnesota defensively is going to be very focused on trying to contain Giants running back, Saquon Barkley. He gained 1,312 yards on the ground this season, fourth most in the NFL. He's an impact back who can come up with what they call in football jargon, chunk plays.
He had a 41-yard touchdown run late in that game against the Vikings that helped the Giants tie it up before Greg Joseph hit that monster field goal. On the flip side, the Giants are going to be laser-focused on Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson, who led the NFL with 1,809 receiving yards. He had eight touchdown catches. And they may be trying to take the blueprint Green Bay used a couple of weeks ago in Wisconsin, where they bottled up Jefferson all game. He was a non-factor.
I'm sure the Giants have looked at the videotape of the way the Packers defensed Jefferson. One other thing about the New York Giants, Cathy, they play in the New Jersey/New York City metro area. But they don't get the love historically that, say, Green Bay does, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, or New England. But this is a pedigree franchise. They've won four Super Bowls in their history. And I'm--
CATHY WURZER: Right, and we've lost four.
ERIC NELSON: --always amazed that-- what's-- yeah, the Vikings are over four. And the Giants have four w's. So this is a franchise. It's a blue blood organization. And as Wally said, I expect a game that probably comes down to the final seconds.
CATHY WURZER: Say, what are the tickets going for?
ERIC NELSON: 114 is the cheapest right now on the secondary market, so.
CATHY WURZER: What? OK, $114, I bet that's in the nosebleed seats, too. I have got about a minute--
ERIC NELSON: Oh, yeah, you'd be lucky.
CATHY WURZER: OK, I can only imagine, yeah, exactly. Say, I got a minute and a half here. About the T Wolves, what's happening? I thought that they were doing really well and then something happened.
ERIC NELSON: Well, another embarrassing loss to Detroit last night. That's two in a row to the Pistons, one of the worst teams in the NBA. Detroit head coach Dwane Casey continues to get revenge against Minnesota. Remember, way back in 2007, he was gassed by the Timberwolves despite having a 20-20 record, which by Minnesota standards is very good. He got a raw deal. And I think Casey gets his team fired up every time he faces his old team, the T Wolves.
CATHY WURZER: And with a minute left, Mr. Langfellow, Minnesota Gopher basketball.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, they play tonight. They are so far 0-4 in Big Ten play-- 6-8 on the season overall. They're at Ohio State tonight. Gophers, still searching for their first Big Ten win. They had close losses to both Wisconsin and Nebraska in their last couple of games. Ben Johnson has got an uphill climb. How many Big Ten games they win this year, you can probably count them on one hand if they're lucky,.
It's going to be a rough year for the Gophers. But the fact that they played these last two close, I think that that's a positive sign. Hopefully, they'll get one against Ohio State. More likely, when they come home, they've got Illinois on Monday. That's probably a more likely scenario. But you never know. It's Big Ten basketball. Anything could happen.
CATHY WURZER: That's true. Wally, Eric, thanks so much. Have a good weekend.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: You too, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson. Wally is the founder of Minnesota Score Magazine and the co-host of 10,000 Takes sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and is also the Vikings reporter for CBS Sports Radio's Eye on Football.
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