Red Sox Blockbuster Trade Idea Lands $135 Million Three-Time All-Star From Twins

How's this for an offseason shakeup?

Jun 25, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of the jersey of Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa (4) against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The search continues for the Boston Red Sox and their elusive right-handed bat.

It's obvious that the Red Sox need to find at least one powerful righty to replace Tyler O'Neill, but so far, they've yet to find one in free agency. Teoscar Hernández came off the board last week, and there's been no indication that Boston is close to a deal with Alex Bregman or Pete Alonso.

Fortunately, the Red Sox are blessed with a deep farm system, though they had to deplete it to trade for star pitcher Garrett Crochet. If they want to go the trade route to land their big bat as well, it's doubtful fans would complain too heavily about depleting the prospect pool.

Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa has been a name exploding in trade rumors over the last few days. He was limited to just 85 games this season due to plantar fasciitis, but had a fantastic output in those games, compiling a .905 OPS and 3.7 bWAR.

On Thursday, Tyler Milliken of 98.5 The Sports Hub named Correa as a possible trade target for the Red Sox this winter, though it would require some moving pieces to be juggled in Boston.

"Carlos Correa might be the perfect match," Milliken wrote. "It was rumored the Twins were listening in on him during the Winter Meetings, but he has a complicated contract with (vesting) options from 2029-2032 that might appeal to the Red Sox."

"If his medicals aren’t a disaster, adding a 152 OPS+ bat that Cora absolutely loves would make a ton of sense, especially since it’d be another opportunity to add some money to the books."

In theory, the Red Sox would owe Correa $135 million over the next four seasons if they traded for him this winter. But he can make an additional $70 million over the following four years if he stays healthy for virtually the entire tenure, which might benefit both sides.

Correa also has a full no-trade clause, so he would have to give his input on the situation and approve a trade to Boston.

There's no doubt that a healthy version of Correa would make the Red Sox a better team. But after dealing with Story's inability to stay on the field for the last three years, would Boston immediately sign up for another high-risk shortstop, even one with a higher ceiling?

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