Outside The Confines: Twist of fate! Carlos Correa to the Mets

This shocking news that Carlos Correa has just signed with the Mets broke after midnight on the West Coast last night. I assume this is for real, although Heyman was the man who reported that Aaron Judge signed with the Giants. This does seem like he has the story right this time.

The rest of OTC is presented the way I wrote it up before this news broke.

• The press conference scheduled to announce the free agent signing of Carlos Correa by the Giants has been postponed for a “medical issue,” according to multiple reports.
• Correa tosses those old magazines out as soon as he reads them.

• Also

I’m sure things will be fine, Giants fans. Probably?

• On to other free agents, third baseman Justin Turner signed a two-year, $22 million deal with the Red Sox.
• Justin Choi thinks that Turner was a great signing for Boston and signals that the Red Sox haven’t completely retreated from the big-boys market.
• Bill Plaschke writes that while Turner was never the best player on the Dodgers, he was the beating heart of the Dodgers and a local hero in Los Angeles.
• Speaking of the Dodgers, Zach Crizer writes that the Dodgers quiet winter indicates that they’re going after Shohei Ohtani next year.
• Ken Rosenthal explains why J.D. Martinez took less money to sign with the Dodgers, and other assorted tidbits from the Hot Stove. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• With the Red Sox, John Tomase thinks Boston should work out a trade with the Blue Jays for a catcher.
• Infielder Brandon Drury has agreed to a two-year, $17 million deal with the Angels.
• The Angels are also expected to name Wayne Randazzo as their new lead play-by-play television broadcaster. (The Athletic sub. req.) They’ve had a revolving door of broadcasters since Victor Rojas left after the 2020 season.
• The Braves have signed outfielder Jordan Luplow to a one-year, $1.4 million deal.
• Alex Eisert looks at what the Athletics are getting with their new free agent signing Trevor May. Also, what the team that trades with Oakland for Trevor May at the deadline can expect from him.
• The Padres have signed right-hander Seth Lugo to a two-year, $15 million deal.
• And the Padres alsos signed utility player Matt Carpenter to a one-year deal with a one-year player option.
• The Mets have signed reliever Adam Ottavino to a two-year, $14.5 million deal. Because why not sign all the players?
• David Laurila believes that outfielder Andrew Benintendi’s skill set will fit in well with the White Sox.
• Now a break for some sad news. Former Reds left-handed pitcher Tom Browning died on Monday at 62. Browning threw the only perfect game in Reds history in 1988.
• Browning was always a fan favorite for the ways he connected with the fans and his down-to-earth demeanor. That was never better represented by the time he went across the street to watch an inning of a game from the Wrigley rooftops while still in uniform.

• Jason Williams writes that Browning was an imperfect man, which is what made him Mr. Perfect for Reds fans.
• Aaron Judge has been named The Athletic’s MLB Person of the Year. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Gabe Lacques has a preview for the rest of the off-season.
• Mike Axisa has ten candidates to be traded this winter.
• David Schoenfield looks at the winners and losers of the past two seasons in the “shortstop carousel.” (ESPN+ sub. req.)
• Michael Clair looks at KBO star outfielder Jung-hoo Lee, who asked to be posted after the 2023 season.
• R.J. Anderson looks at four ways the new competitive balance tax has impacted the market this winter.
• If you want to get into more baseball and finance, Ben Clemens writes about how interest rates could affect the value of contracts signed this winter and how MLB teams could mitigate that.
• White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal talks about his “nightmare” 2022 season.
• Some fans have raised the money to put up “Sell the team, Jerry” billboards outside of Guaranteed Rate Field.
• Will Leitch has the longest-tenured player on each team.
• Clayton Kershaw announced that he will pitch for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
• In honor of the WBC, Brian Murphy looks at the best players from each of the 57 countries where MLB players have been born.
• Anthony Castrovince speaks with MLB pitchers who work fast about adapting to the new pitch clock this year.
• The Rays announced that they will split their Spring Training between Tropicana Field and ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista. The Rays’ Spring Training complex in Port Charlotte was badly damaged by Hurricane Ian.

• Mike Petriello ranks every MLB uniform number by total WAR produced by players wearing that number throughout history.
• And finally, Elli Wohlgelernter has the wild story of Alon Leichman, a pitcher who was born on a kibbutz in Israel and has now been named the new assistant pitching coach for the Cincinnati Reds.

And happy holidays from me, no matter what you chose to celebrate this blessed season.