12. Carlos Correa, shortstop, Minnesota Twins
Correa’s signing odyssey this past winter was truly epic. Opting out of the deal he had signed the previous winter with the Twins, he signed with the Giants, only to have that deal voided when his new team grew antsy about a long-ago injury they feared might recur during the length of the long-term deal Correa wanted.
Then he agreed to terms with the Mets only to have that deal fall apart as well for the same reason. Twice rejected, Correa returned to Minnesota on a six-year, $200 million contract.
The Twins are in first place in the AL Central and Correa is a noted clubhouse leader, so from a team chemistry standpoint this contract may work out in the short-term. Clubhouse presence and marketing potential both figure in the true value of a player’s contract.
But strictly from the on-field part of things, the contract has been a clunker for the Twins. Correa is batting just .228 in 92 games with a tepid .705 OPS that would be the worst of his career. With two months remaining to the season, he is also on pace for the worst power year of his career.
There are 32 shortstops who qualify by salary or playing time as Correa’s peers in 2023. They earn an average of $9.56 million and generate an average of 1.459 WAR.
But despite being the second highest paid of those shortstops, Correa has to date produced just 1.2 WAR, ranking a tepid 20th on the list. Those numbers place Correa’s actual value for the first four months of 2023 at just $7.175 million. Against the positional averages and the $33.333 million he receives, it means Correa is overpaid by $25.47 million.