Why moving on from Carlos Correa is not a bad thing

The New York Mets and Carlos Correa have officially "broken up", as he has now reportedly agreed to a deal with the Minnesota Twins. After weeks of the Mets and Correa trying to re-work a deal after the Mets not liking what they saw from his physical, the marathon has finally come to an end.

The Mets definitely still need to a piece to their everyday lineup with Correa now not joining the orange and blue, but they are still in a good spot. They won 101 games last season with pretty much the same lineup so they are by no means in bad shape.

The Mets moving on from Carlos Correa is a good thing for a couple of reasons.

My initial reaction when the Mets reportedly agreed to terms with Correa was excitement, but not as excited as I would have originally thought. He had just walked away from the Giants so there was some concern there, but the thought of an infield with him, Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, and Pete Alonso was exciting. Correa would have undoubtedly made the team better as Steve Cohen said himself referring o Correa as "the missing piece", but it is a good thing the Mets moved on.

The fact that two different teams were uncomfortable handing out a long-term contract to Correa due to his lower leg/ankle injury from years ago tells me all I need to know. Two different teams backed out of long-term deals and the Twins only guaranteed Correa 6 years, with 4 additional vesting years. It is clear that Correa's lower leg/ankle is a concern in the long run and I personally would not have wanted that on the Mets.

In addition to some real concern about Correa's lower leg/ankle, it is not like the Mets do not have any other good options. They still have Eduardo Escobar under contract for another season and a team option for 2024, and although his 2022 was not the greatest, you know what you are getting out of him. Brett Baty is expected to compete for the starting third baseman job come spring training after a cup of coffee in 2022 and Ronny Mauricio hit the cover off the ball in the Dominican Winter League winning the MVP award and even got some reps at third base. None of these guys are as attractive as Correa, but they all have different kinds of excitement to bring to the table.

Although the Mets still need another big bat in the lineup, they do leave themselves with a couple of different nice options at third base, and the option to make a splash in the trade market. Even though it is not an immediate help in 2023, Manny Machado will be available after this upcoming season if the Mets decide they still want to go outside the organization.

Although the Mets are a worse team in the immediate future without Correa, they are better off moving on from him as a whole. They have plenty of options to turn to and will be perfectly without him, especially not having to worry about his health concerns.