Sources: Twins set to trade Carlos Correa to Astros

The Houston Astros are reacquiring Carlos Correa in a shocking, blockbuster deal with the Minnesota Twins, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Thursday, a little less than two hours before the MLB trade deadline.

Correa, a Rookie of the Year and a two-time All-Star in his prior stint with the Astros, waived his no-trade clause in order to make the deal happen. He has also agreed to play third base, sharing the left side of the infield with Jeremy Pena.

“I had some conversations with the front office in Minnesota, and we were not moving [the direction] I thought we were after making the playoffs [in 2023],” Correa told MLB.com on Thursday, before news of the deal was officially announced by the teams, “and they agreed with me that it was time to move me.

“I let them know there was only one team I would allow that to happen.”

The Astros went into the trade deadline prioritizing a left-handed hitter and a starter, but third baseman Isaac Paredes could miss the rest of the season with a serious hamstring injury, prompting them to get aggressive in a trade for Correa. Moments later, their need for a left-handed hitter was also filled — in a deal to acquire outfielder Jesus Sanchez from the Miami Marlins.

It wasn’t immediately known who Minnesota was getting in return for the Correa trade.

Miami’s return for Sanchez, a source told ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez, is right-hander Ryan Gusto, shortstop Chase Jaworsky — a top-10 prospect in Houston’s system — and outfielder Esmil Valencia.

Correa, 30, is owed a combined $91.5 million from 2026 to 2028, with club options from 2029 to 2032. Those options are guaranteed if Correa reaches certain thresholds for playing time. The expectation is that the Twins, motivated to shed salary while in an ownership transition, will take on some of the remaining money on Correa’s contract in order to make the deal happen.

A former No. 1 overall pick out of high school in Puerto Rico in 2012, Correa was one of the faces of an Astros team that won the World Series in 2017 and became the most successful American League franchise in recent years.

This year, though, Correa’s numbers are down. He was slashing .267/.319/.386 with seven home runs in 93 games.

Sanchez, 27, has slashed .246/.312/.432 with 69 homers and 29 steals in 522 games with the Marlins from 2021 to 2025, during which he played mostly right field. He is controllable through 2027.