Did Twins boss Derek Falvey try to quiet the Carlos Correa trade buzz?

The Twins appear more likely to make additions to the roster through trades rather than free agency.

Sep 27, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa (4) watches a sharply hit ball go just foul in the at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images / Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

The steam around a potential Carlos Correa trade has been slowly ratcheting up, with the Red Sox being the latest team linked to the All-Star shortstop.

However, Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey, while not entirely ruling out a trade, appeared to try to put those rumors to rest on Tuesday at the winter meetings in Dallas.

"I would expect to get calls on a Carlos Correa. I would expect to get them on Byron Buxton and Royce Lewis and guys like that. We get 'em all the time," Falvey told SiriusXM's MLB Network Radio.

"Doesn't mean we're actively shopping in that market, but we're always open-minded to thinking about what that leads to. Sometimes it leads to a separate conversation about another player and something that might work differently. So the way I look at it now is that's not our focus. That's not what we're doing. He's a core member of our team. But we have to field calls and think about what that looks like from time to time because it's part of the business."

With the Twins not increasing payroll, the idea of trading Correa would allow Minnesota to free up funds to field a more balanced lineup. The 30-year-old still has four years and $128 million left on his contract.

"He is a key part of our team. He is a key leader," added Falvey.

Falvey told MLB Network that the Twins "get a lot of calls on our premium guys."

"You know, there are teams that are trying to find out where we are and what our focus is," Falvey said. "We believe in the core of this team. We believe this is a competitive team that's going to continue to get better. The young players, as we just talked about, both in our minor-league system and on the big-league roster, will take steps forward. So our focus is on how we win here in 2025. How we can continue to be creative and resourceful around the roster that we have and add to it in ways that will hopefully help us down the stretch."

Because of the lack of payroll flexibility, Falvey acknowledged that most of his time this offseason has spent "with other teams," meaning trades are more likely than free-agent signings.

"Most of our time has been spent talking to other teams."

Derek Falvey on the #MNTwins entering the trade market:@Twins | #WinterMeetings
🔗 https://t.co/V5LiMNEoWf pic.twitter.com/WyocaoojAI

— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) December 10, 2024

"First base is an area that could fit us," said Falvey. "We lost Kyle Farmer and Manny Margot, both right-handed hitters that hit left-hand pitching well. It's probably another area of focus for us so we can find another right-handed bat to compliment the roster."

Falvey also flat out said "we lost" Carlos Santana to free agency, even though Santana has yet to sign elsewhere.

When asked about specific players they could target in free agency, Falvey noted the front office is having "some conversations" about potential players but they are "focused on what the trade market looks like before we enter into some of those free-agent conversations."