Mets Now Have Concerns About Carlos Correa’s Physical

“Correa-mas” may be on hold. 

Carlos Correa’s deal with the Giants fell apart earlier this week because of a discrepancy in his medical evaluation. Now, his physical with the Mets has raised concerns as well, The Post’s Jon Heyman confirmed on Saturday. The Athletic first reported the news. 

The Mets and Correa’s camp are trying to work through the issue with his agreed-upon 12-year, $315 million deal hanging in the balance. It’s possible the two sides could rework the deal by altering the contract language to protect the Mets if a specific injury related to Correa’s lower right leg — which is apparently the area of concern — impacts his ability to perform at some point. 

Correa had surgery on his right leg in 2014 to repair a fractured fibula and ligament damage. The 28-year-old has not had any stints on the injured list for a leg issue during his major league career, and has only missed 42 games over the last three seasons combined (with his only IL stints for COVID-19 and a middle finger contusion). He has not had any treatment on his right leg since coming back from the initial injury. 

But the Giants were reportedly concerned about the stability of Correa’s leg and how it might impact his mobility, which is why his initial 13-year, $350 million deal with San Francisco hit a snag. 

Correa was in New York on Thursday and Friday to undergo his physical for the Mets after the contract was agreed to early Wednesday morning. Correa’s agent, Scott Boras, recently voiced confidence that the deal would become official by Christmas. 

“There is no current issue with Carlos’ health whatsoever,” Boras said Thursday. “There’s been a lot of discussion about backs and ankles. There’s nothing about him that is currently any form of a medical issue. 

“All the conjecture and evaluation of him has been about physicians using their crystal ball for years to come.” 

Boras and Mets owner Steve Cohen had hammered out the deal after the Giants had a “difference of opinion” on Correa’s physical. But now San Francisco may have some company. 

Cohen had been enthused about landing Correa, telling The Post in the immediate aftermath of the contract agreement that “we needed one more thing and this is it.” His comments could make it difficult for the Mets to back out of the deal. 

Should Correa’s deal with the Mets be rescinded, as it was with the Giants, his list of suitors could be minimized by two teams taking issue with his physical. There also are a dwindling number of teams that would still be willing to hand out a huge contract this late in the offseason. 

The leg issue did come into focus briefly late last season, according to The Athletic, when Correa had a hard slide into second base and stayed down before limping off, though he did not miss any time. 

“He just hit my plate,” Correa told reporters, referring to the hardware inserted into his leg from the surgery. “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.” 

Boras said Thursday that Correa had been examined by Christopher Camp, the Twins’ team doctor and an orthopedic surgeon from the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, after the 2022 season and received a “recommendation for over a 10-year contract.” But The Athletic has since reported that the Twins, who offered Correa a 10-year, $285 million deal before he initially picked the Giants, had not “thoroughly examined” Correa since his original physical last March. 

Correa’s physical with the Mets was set to be the last step before his deal became official, just as it was to have been for the Giants. As the two sides worked through the issue on Saturday, they hoped to have a different end result. 

— Additional reporting by Jon Heyman 

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