The Houston Astros at the 2025 MLB trade deadline swung a deal with the Minnesota Twins to reunite with franchise icon Carlos Correa. Both sides were happy to reunite, but his position of shortstop was occupied by breakout All-Star Jeremy Pena.
Pena, combined with the injury to Isaac Paredes, the Astros envisioned Correa taking over at third base this season, and for the remainder of Correa’s contract.
To help his transition to being the starting third baseman, Correa revealed, in a piece from Chandler Rome of The Athletic, what he’s doing to learn to play third base.
“For two years,” Rome writes, “Correa sought a switch to third base. On the day he secured it, Correa opened YouTube and started studying. He searched for highlights of three players who pass a Platinum Glover’s eye test, those who will assist a lifelong shortstop in this long-awaited transition.”
The three players that Correa is scouting are St. Louis Cardinals 10-time Gold Glover Nolan Arenado, San Francisco Giants Gold Glover Matt Chapman, and San Diego Padres Gold Glover Manny Machado.
Each is among the best fielders during their time in the big leagues, with Arenado being one of the best fielders in recent baseball history. All three third basemen “look like they are the best at the position,” according to Correa.
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Their 17 Gold Gloves and eight Platinum Gloves are hard to ignore. Few trios at a single position can be compared to what these three third basemen have done in their career defensively.
Correa is learning to play third base after over a decade of experience at shortstop. He’s turning 31 in September and will be around in Houston for a while. Successfully transitioning to a full-time third baseman would be huge for Correa and the Astros.
While Paredes will need to find a new position, either at second base or first base, the Astros would be more than willing to make that transition if Correa can secure third base for the next few seasons.
As he makes this transition to third base, Correa is learning from some of the best by watching their highlights and plays during their Gold Glove seasons. These three are great resources to study, and Correa is making a successful transition to third base so far.
Correa’s growth as a third baseman is also big for the team, and he’s looking to the game’s best third baseman for inspiration and examples to play by.
He’s still working on the kinks at the position, but Correa’s move to third base has gone well, thanks in part to Arenado’s, Chapman’s, and Machado’s highlights on YouTube.
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