Rumors: Carlos Correa turned down huge offer from Detroit Tigers

According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, free agent shortstop Carlos Correa was offered a 10-year, $275 million contract by the Detroit Tigers prior to the lockout.

The news about Correa being offered a hefty contract and rejecting it was dropped in this article (subscription required) on Thursday. While the Detroit Tigers may have missed out on Correa, they did eventually sign shortstop Javier Baez to a six-year, $140 million deal.

What does Carlos Correa turning down a 10-year, $275 million contract from the Detroit Tigers tell us about his perceived market?

For Correa to reject the offer from the Tigers, he likely believes his market value is more than that number from Detroit. Olney does not say when Correa spurned Detroit, but knowing fellow shortstop Corey Seager received a 10-year, $325 million deal with the Texas Rangers this offseason after the New York Mets inked shortstop Francisco Lindor for 10 years and $341 million prior to the 2021 campaign likely gives insight into what Correa believes his price tag to be.

MLBTradeRumors has predicted that Correa would earn a 10-year, $320 million deal. There are likely very few clubs that meet that price tag after a flurry of spending before the Major League Baseball lockout began. The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers are certainly high on the very short list that could land Correa at that price.

Notice that the Houston Astros, the franchise that selected Correa first overall in the 2012 draft and the team that the 27-year-old has suited up for for the last seven seasons, is not among those teams listed. Olney mentions in the same article that Correa has turned down two offers from the Astros in the last year and that owner and chairman Jim Crane “is not interested in extending an offer beyond six years.”

However, Olney does mention that it could be possible that the Astros could still offer Correa a shorter deal with a higher average annual salary. Olney mentions perhaps a deal from Houston could be offered for $35 million a year with an opt-out after two years.

But will Correa bend on his quest to land a contract on the same level as Seager and Lindor? Detroit found out the answer is likely no.