The phone call came as a surprise, but the answer didn't take long. When agent Scott Boras inquired last March about whether the Twins would be interested in signing platinum-glove shortstop Carlos Correa for one year, the record-setting contract was agreed to within a few hours.
Has baseball's most powerful agent made a similar call to Derek Falvey and the Twins front office this year? Perhaps asking whether the Twins would still be interested in signing Correa for 10 years?
There's no indication he has, though two media members with longtime relationships with Boras tweeted Friday that another team has entered negotiations with the top remaining free agent, whose previous agreements with the Giants and Mets have apparently fallen apart over physical exams that gave Correa's suitors doubts about his risk of injury.
"Twins are still a factor in the Carlos Correa sweepstakes, according to sources," former Reds and Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden posted on Twitter, while New York Post columnist Jon Heyman tweeted that an unnamed second team has been in contact with Correa's agent.
But if history is indeed repeating itself, Boras' 2022 call to the Twins might not be the correct comparison. A better similarity may be the rumors that spread in February 2019, when Boras' negotiations with the Phillies on Bryce Harper's behalf stalled over the length of his contract.
The Dodgers and Giants, anonymously sourced reports stated, were interested in making late offers to Harper, who signed with the Phillies three days later.
Or in 2010, when face-to-face talks with the Cardinals about Matt Holliday seemed to stall, and rumors spread that the Red Sox might revisit an earlier offer. Or in 2015, when Max Scherzer's negotiations with the Nationals dragged on and reports of a "mystery team" in talks with the pitcher caused several MLB teams to deny any interest.
Leverage in contract talks is a fluid concept, in other words, and the Twins, with a handful of other Boras clients on their roster, are remaining silent about any potential new push to retain Correa on a long-term basis.