The New York Mets were on track to look like heroes of the offseason, swooping in front of the San Francisco Giants to sign star shortstop Carlos Correa. It is now known that the Giants put a hold on signing Correa despite a reported agreement due to some lower leg injuries. His injuries consisted of a fracture in his fibula and minor ligament damage in his right ankle. He underwent surgery to have a plate put in to stabilize his ankle. 

Back on September 20th in a game against the Kansas City Royals, Correa made a somewhat  rare attempt at a stolen base which could cost him a long-term deal. When he made the slide he made contact with Michael Massey’s shin, causing him to feel agonizing pain where he had surgery. 

“He just hit my plate,” Correa said after the game, per The Athletic. “I had surgery, and he hit it. Just kind of felt numb. Vibrating. So I was just waiting for it to calm down. It was a little scary, but when I moved I knew it was good.”

However, It was announced on December 24th that the Mets also have concerns regarding Correa’s physical. The deal was immediately put into peril. Then, it fell through altogether.

Correa ultimately ended up re-signing with the Twins on a 6-year, $200 million deal, with vesting options that can raise his contract value to $270 million. For 3 weeks after the news of the Mets’ doubt in Correa’s physical, the closest thing we got to an update was an Instagram post of Correa with his son in an “I love NY” shirt. No news seemed to be good news considering if they were working out the language in the contract, it would take a couple of weeks. But as more and more time went by, fans and the media started to question this deal.

Correa was never a need for the Mets but he would have taken them from good to great. The Mets put their focus on a 4th outfielder and signed Tommy Pham on a one-year, $6 million deal. Pham could also be used in the DH position. 

The Mets lineup will still be deep and they still have a great team with or without Correa. With upgrades to their starting rotation and bullpen could this finally be the Mets year?