MMO Roundtable: Carlos Correa Is A New York Met!

Carlos Correa became a New York Met overnight… literally. We all know the story by now but when something this big happens, you can’t help but talk about it for days, right? Well we are here at Metsmerized. We’re still so excited by this signing and we wanted to share all of our excitement over this addition with all of you.

John Sheridan

We as Mets fans knew we were owed for all the years we put up with the Wilpons, but this has been far beyond our wildest imagination. It’s as if Steve Cohen feels Mets fans deserved better, and he knows just as well as anyone because he is one. More than that, he’s shattering to smithereens every falsehood we’ve ever been told about the economics of baseball.

Cohen did not get to where he was by wasting money frivolously and/or on vanity projects. He’s going to up these heights because he knows it is a fiscally sound and smart decision for the long haul. No, not every team could spend quite like this, but it’s far more than you know with untold revenue streams both in this game and tangentially related businesses and profits associated with owning and operating a team.

Cohen got Correa as part of this spending spree not just to win. He also did it because he and almost every Major League team can. He’s just about the only one to ignore the unnecessary impediments to do what needed to be done.

Rich Sparago

The acquisition of Correa is truly a holiday gift for Mets fans. Correa was set to be introduced as a San Francisco Giant, and in a stroke of holiday magic, hours later, in the middle of the night he was a Met. Baseball Santa had snuck down the chimney while we were sleeping and left us a great surprise. No, not a bike, but a third baseman who will lock down the position for more than a decade.

Cohen was right when he said the Mets needed another piece. They needed to add more offense to avoid a brown out like they had in the Wild Card series. Not only did they get that bat, they got an All Star who is still in his prime. The cost was high, but Cohen did not blink, making good on his promise to do what it takes to win. Yes, the Mets’ payroll went from crazy to absurd. That would matter only if Cohen let it. He is more concerned about delivering a championship than he is about staying under a tax threshold, and for us Mets fans, that may be the greatest gift of all.

Michael Garaffa

It still really hasn’t hit me yet that Carlos Correa is a New York Met. A little over a year ago I made a list of my favorite players by position that weren’t Mets, and Carlos Correa was my shortstop.

I have loved watching him play since he rose to stardom with the Astros. I love the passion he plays with and the fire he plays with. I think New York is the perfect place for such a fiery player. He yearns for the big moment, and embraces it like the winning player he is. I can’t wait to watch him play in front of 45,000 screaming fans every single game.

Andrew Steele-Davis

Carlos Correa is a statement signing in every single sense of the word. This addition, more than any other this winter, highlights that owner Steve Cohen means business and he won’t stop until the Mets are a perennial winner. Correa was the ultimate fantasy option, and he could be the piece that pushes this team over the top. The shortstop, now third baseman, will give this lineup the big bat it badly needed, he will provide stellar defense and that infield looks scary. Plus, one underrated factor of Correa signing is the lineup flexibility it gives manager Buck Showalter, not to mention the depth this team now has with the likes of Eduardo Escobar, Luis Guillorme and prospects like Francisco Álvarez, Mark Vientos and Brett Baty. The Mets are a much better team with Carlos Correa and this lineup is now potent and versatile. I’m already pumped to see Correa hit a walk off home run at Yankee Stadium in the Subway Series.

Dan Quiñones

Everything about this Correa signing has just been unbelievable. I was awake when Jon Heyman tweeted it, and I was more confused than anything since he had the full details of a deal with the Mets before we even knew Scott Boras was talking to other teams about Correa again. I had to quadruple check that it was the real Jon Heyman account. Once it finally became clear that this was really happening, I was in disbelief.

Now the Mets have made a team that already looked like a force on paper significantly better. The Mets are getting a terrific defensive shortstop to slide over to third for their other terrific defensive shortstop. His approach at the plate fits perfectly with what the Mets do so well, and he can add 20-25 homers while maintaining his high OBP and low K-rate. And the best part about Correa is he’s proven he can turn it up a notch in October.

The Astros have been the model for consistency over the past half-decade, and the Mets’ offensive approach is nearly identical to Houston’s. The Mets’ offense was very good last year with that approach, but it lacked the home run power that the Astros have. With Correa, a core piece for a lot of Houston’s success over those years, the Mets could be looking at an Astros-like run of success over the next few years.

Matt Mancuso

Carlos Correa was the dream I never thought possible. The final piece to the best infield in the major leagues. A capstone to an $800 million free-agent splurge.

This move has completely upended the perspective of every fan’s idea of a successful winter, especially Mets fans. It’s no longer what can the Mets buy; the only question that remains is what can’t they?

Chris Bello

Mets fans have long been used to missing out on big name free agents. What Steve Cohen has done the past two offseasons, especially with Carlos Correa, has been nothing short of astonishing. Correa, for me, was the final piece that put the Mets over the Phillies and the Braves. He’ll slot into the middle of the lineup and provide the Met with a secondary right-handed power bat.

Correa also brings postseason experience to the Mets. He’s been to three World Series in his career, won in 2017, and holds a career .849 OPS in the postseason. While his outstanding numbers speak for themselves, Correa has also solved an internal problem for the Mets. The team has had a revolving door of third basemen since David Wright’s early retirement and none of them have recorded an OPS+ above 111. With Correa, the Mets will have another superstar hold down the position for more than a decade.

The Correa signing, however, will come with ramifications. Multiple executives have anonymously reported that MLB owners are flabbergasted with Cohen’s spending. With a new CBA due in 2027, the future of spending in MLB may look drastically different.