Draft and minor leagues Despite being the youngest high-profile player to enter the
2012 Major League Baseball draft, in the months leading up to the event the 17-year-old Correa was already projected as a top-ten pick by several major sources, including
Sports Illustrated and
ESPN. His stock rose during the month before the draft, with outstanding performances in team workouts, including one that reportedly left the
Houston Astros' scouts "blown away". On June 4, 2012, the Astros selected him as the first overall pick, ahead of the projected top pick, pitcher
Mark Appel. Correa was incredulous, only saying that he must have been dreaming, after entering the stage while hoisting the
flag of Puerto Rico. With his selection, Correa became the highest-selected player to be drafted directly from a Puerto Rican high school, besting
Ramón Castro's 17th pick in 1994, while joining several other top-10 Puerto Rican picks such as
Francisco Lindor and
Javier Báez, all of whom had moved to the mainland United States to complete their high school or college education after developing in the local youth leagues. Correa became the third
Latino to be the first overall selection in the MLB Draft, after
Alex Rodriguez and
Adrián González, as well as the first Puerto Rican and
Latin American-born player to do so. Upon returning to Puerto Rico the following day, Correa was greeted by a victory parade in his native Santa Isabel, which was attended by hundreds of people. Correa signed with the Astros on June 7, 2012, agreeing to a $4.8 million
signing bonus. He chose to wear the number 12 in his introduction to the media, donning it in homage to Hall of Famer
Roberto Alomar, but abandoned it afterwards. The organization assigned him to their extended
spring training team in
Kissimmee, Florida. He began his professional career with the
Gulf Coast Astros of the
Rookie-level Gulf Coast League, and was promoted to
Greeneville Astros of the Rookie-level
Appalachian League, and batted a combined .258/.305/.400 in 190 at bats. He opened the 2013 season with the
Quad City River Bandits of the
Class A Midwest League. Correa was ranked the top prospect in the Astros' farm system prior to the 2013 season and opened the year on a ten-game hitting streak that was halted by injury. He was selected the team's Player of the Month during this run and became the youngest player selected to play in the 2013 Midwest League All-Star Game, where he represented the Western Division All-Stars. Correa became the first player in the history of the
All-Star Futures Game to be selected by popular vote to complete the World Team. He also became the first position player in the River Bandits' history to be selected in his first year with the team. The youngest player in the event, Correa entered the game as a defensive backup in the eighth inning. Despite not having an official at-bat, his pre-game batting practice was scouted as impressive, including some home runs that reached the second deck of
Citi Field. When
Mark Appel joined the River Bandits in July, this marked the first time that two consecutive first overall draft picks played for the same minor league team. For the 2013 season, Correa batted .320/.405/.467 in 450 at bats. On January 14, 2014, the Astros invited Correa to
spring training as a non-roster player. They assigned him to the
Lancaster JetHawks of the
Class A-Advanced California League to start the 2014 season. On June 21, Correa fractured his right
fibula, requiring surgery on the fibula and a ligament that ended his season. He batted .325/.416/.510 in 249 at bats over 62 games for Lancaster. After Correa hit .385/.459/.727 in 117 at bats over 29 games for Corpus Christi, the Astros promoted him to the
Fresno Grizzlies of the
Class AAA Pacific Coast League on May 11. In 24 games with the Grizzlies, he hit .276/.345/.449 in 98 at bats with three home runs and 12 RBIs.
Houston Astros (2015–2021) 2015: AL Rookie of the Year On June 8,
2015, the Astros promoted Correa to the major leagues. He debuted in a 3–1 loss to the
Chicago White Sox, going 1-for-4 with a RBI single off of
Chris Sale. On June 9, Correa stole his first career base and hit his first MLB home run off of
Zach Duke. By stealing three bases in his ninth game, he became the second-youngest player to do so in a century, only trailing
Rickey Henderson by 21 days. Correa established a new franchise record for most hits during his first ten games by batting 14. He went on to also break the franchise record for most hits through 15 career games with 20. Correa set a franchise record for most doubles during his first 20 games, batting 9. Five home runs were also hit during this timeframe for a total of 14
extra-base hits, tied for the second-most since the
1993 MLB expansion. Correa also tied two other players by reaching base safely in 18 of these games. On July 5, 2015, Correa became the first player since 1914 to record five games with a minimum of three hits and a
home run in 25 plate appearances since his debut. By his 42nd game he was leading the American League in home runs by shortstops. This game was also Correa's seventh with at least three hits, a record for rookies in this league. By his 50th game he had batted more home runs in that number of games than any other shortstop in history, recording four more than the previous record-holder. On August 19, Correa delivered his first walk-off hit with a single off
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher
Matt Andriese. On October 12, 2015, Correa became the youngest shortstop to hit a home run in playoff competition, as well as the second youngest player to record a postseason multi-homer game. For the 2015 season with Houston, he batted .279/.345/.512 in 387 at bats. Playing 99 games at shortstop, he had a fielding percentage of .967. At the 2015 Players Choice Awards he received the AL Outstanding Rookie Award. On November 16, 2015, MLB and the
Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) recognized Correa as the AL Rookie of the Year. He became the first Astro to win a Rookie of the Year award since
Jeff Bagwell did in
1991.
2016 Correa began the 2016 season by becoming the youngest player in the Astros' history to hit a home run on
Opening Day. He missed playing time in September due to a shoulder injury. Correa ended the season with a .274 batting average, a .361
on-base percentage, a .451
slugging percentage, 36 doubles (10th in the AL), 20 home runs, and 96 RBIs in 577 at bats. He hit one ball with an
exit velocity of 118.2 mph; the only major leaguer to hit a ball harder in 2016 was
Giancarlo Stanton.
Baseball-Reference.com calculated that Correa's 2016 season was worth 5.9
wins above replacement. He had four walk-off hits during the season, the most in MLB.
2017: World Series championship and first All-Star selection For May
2017, Correa was named the
AL Player of the Month. He delivered a career-best five consecutive multiple-hit games from May 25–29, and totaled 14 such games on the month. In 26 games, he batted .386, eight doubles, seven home runs, 26 RBI and a 1.130 OPS. His batting average and RBI total led the AL, on-base percentage ranked third, hits and OPS fifth, and slugging tied for sixth. He was selected to play in his first
MLB All-Star Game, held at
Marlins Park in
Miami. On July 18, it was revealed that he had suffered a torn ligament in his left thumb. He was ruled out for six to eight weeks. For the 2017 regular season, Correa batted .315/.391/.550 in 422 at bats with 24 home runs and 84 RBIs. In Game 2, Correa, along with two Astros teammates–
Jose Altuve and
George Springer—and two Dodgers players–
Charlie Culberson and
Yasiel Puig—all homered in extra innings as the Astros prevailed, 7–6. The five home runs accounted for the most hit in extra innings of any single game in major league history. Correa went 3-for-5 in Game 5 including an RBI double and one of the five home runs by the Astros helping them beat the Dodgers 13–12. His effort helped setting the new record of most total home runs in a World Series. The game lasted over five hours, becoming the second-longest World Series game in history. The Astros won the World Series in Game 7 giving them their first title in franchise history. Three years later, it was revealed in the
Houston Astros sign stealing scandal that the Astros had broken MLB rules during their championship season. The team was punished with a $5 million fine and the loss of top draft picks in 2020 and 2021. Correa admitted that his team illegally stole signs to gain an advantage and apologized, saying "We were wrong for everything we did in 2017. It's not what we stand for. It's not what we want to portray as an organization, and we were definitely wrong about all that and we feel really sorry. We affected careers, we affected the game in some way, and looking back at it, it was just bad."
2018 On June 28, Correa was placed on the 10-day disabled list due to back ailment. He was activated from the 10-day disabled list on August 10. On November 10, he underwent surgery to fix a
deviated septum, which caused breathing problems while running the bases. In 2018 he batted .239/.323/.405 in 408 at bats with 15 home runs, 65 RBIs, and 11 sacrifice flies (leading the AL), and was 10th in the league in double plays grounded into (17). On April 3, in a game against the
Texas Rangers, he got the 500th hit of his career. Correa was placed on the injured list on May 29 after suffering a rib fracture during a massage at home. On July 12, he was transferred to the 60-day injured list; he was later activated on July 26. On August 15, Correa hit his 100th career home runs in 7–6 loss to the
Athletics at
Oakland Coliseum. He joined
Cal Ripken Jr. and
Alex Rodriguez as the only major league shortstops to hit 100 career home runs before their 25th birthday. He was also the youngest Astro to hit the milestone home run. For the regular season, Correa
slashed .279/.358/.568 with 21 home runs and 59 RBIs in 280 at bats. He led AL shortstops with a fielding percentage of .995. He became only the third player, after
David Ortiz and
Bernie Williams, to have hit multiple postseason walk-off home runs.
2021: Platinum Glove Award and second All-Star selection On July 4,
2021, Correa was named a reserve to the
MLB All-Star Game, his second career selection. He ranked fifth in the AL in OPS (.926) at the time. On September 21, Correa scored his 100th run on the season. He became the first Astro shortstop to ever score 100 runs in a season. Opposing teams continued to deploy shifts when Correa was batting, but he neutralized the strategy, significantly improving his results. and AL
Platinum Glove Awards in a season in which the Astros were also named the AL Gold Glove Team. The Houston chapter of the
Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) named Correa the Astros' team
Most Valuable Player, his first such award. He also won his first
Fielding Bible Award and was named a
Sporting News AL All-Star at shortstop. On October 12, Correa moved into sixth all-time in postseason
runs batted in (RBI) with 54 (tied with
Albert Pujols) with his two-run single in Game 4 of the
ALDS versus the
Chicago White Sox. In Game 6 of the
World Series, Correa made his 73rd postseason start as part of the infield unit of
Jose Altuve,
Alex Bregman, and
Yuli Gurriel, which was more postseason starts by any quartet of teammates in major league history, surpassing the Yankees'
Derek Jeter,
Tino Martinez,
Paul O’Neill, and
Bernie Williams, with 68 postseason contests started together. On November 3, 2021, Correa was declared a
free agent for the first time in his career. The Astros extended Correa a qualifying offer, valued at $18.4 million for one year, which he rejected.
Minnesota Twins (2022–2025) 2022 season On March 22, 2022, Correa signed a three-year contract worth $105.3 million with the
Minnesota Twins. The contract included opt-out provisions after the first and second seasons. The $35.1 million average annual salary became the highest for an infielder, topping
Anthony Rendon's $35 million annual salary, and was the fourth-highest salary in the AL. He joined center fielder
Byron Buxton on the Twins, making them the third pair of players picked first and second in the same draft to then play for one club. The trio of
Luis Arráez, Buxton, and Correa each hit consecutive home runs off former Astros teammate
Gerrit Cole to open the bottom of the first inning in a contest versus the
New York Yankees on June 9, 2022. Correa completed a 3–6
triple play in the fourth inning on August 22, when
Texas Rangers batter
Nathaniel Lowe lined out to first baseman
José Miranda. Miranda then doubled
Corey Seager on the first base bag and threw to Correa to put out
Marcus Semien at second base. On August 23, Correa returned to
Minute Maid Park for his first game as a visitor to play against the
Astros and received a standing ovation and video tribute. He singled in the seventh inning off reliever
Ryne Stanek to end an Astros' no-hitter started by
Justin Verlander. In the 2022 season, he batted .291/.366/.467 in 522 at bats with 70 runs, 22 home runs, and 64 RBIs. On December 15, Correa and the
San Francisco Giants agreed to a 13-year contract worth $350 million. A press conference scheduled for December 20 to introduce Correa as a Giant at
Oracle Park was cancelled three hours before it was to begin as the Giants found an issue with Correa's physical exam. The Giants were reportedly concerned with the long term health of Correa's right ankle, which he had surgically repaired after an injury back in 2014. However, the Mets also had concerns with Correa's ankle from their physical exam. As the Mets attempted to renegotiate with Correa, Boras re-engaged with the Twins. On January 11, 2023, Correa re-signed with the Twins for six years and $200 million plus vesting options that could increase the value of the deal to $270 million.
2023 season In 2023, Correa batted .230/.312/.399 (all career lows), and grounded into double plays a league-leading and career high 30 times. The Twins won the
American League Central division title. During the
2023 postseason, Correa drove in the go-ahead run during Game 2 of the
Wild Card Series against the
Toronto Blue Jays and in the same game tagged out
Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. in a pickoff attempt by
Sonny Gray. This allowed the Twins to win their first playoff game since 2004 and their first playoff series since 2002. They would go on to lose against Correa's former team, the
Houston Astros in the
2023 ALDS 3–1.
2024 season The first half of the 2024 season saw a return to form for Correa, as he hit to a .305 batting average with an .884 OPS through June, and was selected for his third
All-Star Game, and first since joining the Twins. On July 12, Correa was moved to the injury list after suffering from
right plantar fasciitis. The recovery took two months, and he did not return to the Twins until mid-September. Across 86 games, Correa batted .310/.388/.517 with 55 runs, 14 home runs, and 54 RBI in 2024.
2025 season In 93 appearances for the Twins, Correa batted .267/.319/.386 with 40 runs, seven home runs, and 31 RBI in 2025. Correa started at
third base for the first time in the major leagues on August 1 at
Fenway Park, as his successor as Houston's starting shortstop,
Jeremy Peña, was the incumbent. On September 10, Correa hits his 200th career home run off Blue Jays pitcher
José Berríos in a 3-2 victory over the
Toronto Blue Jays. == Fielding ==