The pain in his right foot, unbearable at times, that kept Carlos Correa off the field for most of the second half of the season finally, completely, went away a couple of months into the offseason.
This time around — he had plantar fasciitis in his left foot a season earlier — the healing process was more natural. It’s been more treatment and a lot of exercise for the star shortstop to get his foot back to how he needs it to feel.
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“I can say I’m in a great spot,” Correa said. “I’m in a spot where I don’t feel anything.”
Now, it’s a matter of keeping it that way after two consecutive years of dealing with the injury in each foot. Correa has spent the offseason focusing on what he can control, namely his health.
Correa has shifted to shoes with better support on the arch, so he is putting less pressure on his heels. He’s more careful with the types of surfaces he sprints on, running more and more on grass and dirt like he would while playing baseball and less on concrete. Inside the house, he’s been walking around barefoot, which he said has been a help, as well.
“I feel great. I’m ready to go, full go for spring training. I’ve been sprinting. I’ve been running around,” Correa said. “I’ve been doing about everything. I’ve been focused on not only just treatment but also strengthening.”
Strengthening his feet has become part of his regular maintenance routine as he tries to avoid dealing with the same issue for the third straight season.
In between working out, hitting, healing and playing with his kids — they recently received a rare snowfall in Houston and his young sons, Kylo and Kenzo, had fun throwing snowballs at him — Correa has started developing a relationship with new hitting coach Matt Borgschulte. Borgschulte traveled to Houston for a couple of days this offseason to start building a relationship with Correa.
“I got to spend a lot of quality time with him. We went to work out together. We hit. He went to my kids’ jiujitsu class with us, so he got to see the full family experience and everything,” Correa said. “We text pretty much every day, so the relationship is already there.”
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The report that Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey got from the ground was that Correa is “in midseason form right now physically,” already.
That’s certainly good news for the Twins, whose infield construction around Correa is not yet set. While Correa’s name was floated by a New York Post columnist earlier this offseason who suggested that the Yankees or Mets should try to acquire Correa, the shortstop brushed that off.
“I don’t worry about that,” he said. “Because one, I’m not on social media too much. I’m with my kids all day. And two, I’ve got a full no-trade clause. Let me tell you something: I love Minnesota and I love the fishing here.”
And though things have changed since the Twins signed him two years ago to a six-year, $200 million dollar deal — ownership slashed payroll last offseason and now the team is up for sale — he’s doing his best to not focus on any of that, either.
“I focus on the things that I can control and I’ve been having conversations with them and we’re in a spot now where we cannot invest and it is what it is,” Correa said. “You’ve got to live with that and you’ve got to go out and play with the players that you have. I feel like the talent is in this clubhouse. We’ve just got to put it all together and the veterans, we’ve got to stay on the field and the young guys go to the next level and I think we’re going to be in a good spot.”
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