Carlos Correa is 'ready to go' and confident it'll be a 'great year' for Twins

Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa spent the entire offseason getting his feet right.

Correa, who missed two months last season due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot, an issue that plagued him in the other foot during the previous season, now feels fully healthy and says he's ready to go for spring training in less than a month.

"I've been working with this doctor ... and been focusing a lot on my treatment," Correa said Saturday from the TwinsFest stage at Target Field. "But not only that, also strengthening those areas up on my body. ... I never had problems with my feet before, but every injury teaches you something about your body, and then you start learning and then you start improving. This year, I feel strong, I feel ready to go and I feel like it's going to be a great year to be a Minnesota Twin."

Correa was having a fantastic season until the plantar fasciitis relegated him to the dugout for months. In 86 games last year, Correa slashed .310/.517/.905 with 14 homers and 54 RBIs. He returned down the stretch of last season, but it came too late for the free-falling Twins, who missed out on the playoffs despite being firmly in the mix for most of the season.

Correa is doing everything he can to make sure he stays on the field this season. "I want to be on the field playing every day. It sucks not being on the field. I want to be on the field for you guys," he said at TwinsFest. In addition to spending hours rehabbing and strengthening his feet, he limits sugar in his diet to avoid the inflammation that can come from it.

"I'll eat donuts when I retire," he said.

With Correa back to full health, it should be better on the injury front this season. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli noted at TwinsFest how this is the first offseason Byron Buxton has gone into in ages when he didn't have to focus on rehab. If all three of Correa, Buxton and Royce Lewis can stay in the lineup all year, the Twins still could be a very dangerous team.

"Having me, (Buxton) and (Lewis) in the lineup at the same time the majority of the season is going to be key for us this year and ... the young guys stepping up and showing the different level that we're talking about, that's going to be important for our team," Correa said. "And for you guys, you guys are going to watch a lot of fun baseball for once."