Carlos Correa, whose nickname is "The Captain," is one of the best prospects in all of baseball. The Puerto Rican shortstop was drafted No. 1 overall by the Houston Astros in 2012. He’s had a hot start since being called up from the minors, nabbing hits in the first four games he played at the major league level, including smashing two home runs over the wall to put a stamp on his arrival.
Correa figures to be an all-star someday, something the Astros hoped for when they drafted him three years ago, and something they still hope to see as he’s progressed up through the ranks. FoxSports.com’s Matt Whitener recently compared Correa to a young Alex Rodriguez:
A-Rod always profiled as a greater power threat than Correa does, but the similarities are within reason otherwise.
Rodriguez’s rookie year was interrupted by the strike of ’94, but with a full season to apply his craft, Rodriguez ripped apart the American League, hitting .358 and becoming the final piece to help launch the Mariners into the postseason. What Correa’s immediate purpose stands to be could be quite similar.
But Correa is already an all-star player to one family, the Glasscocks, and especially their seven-year-old son, Corbin, who was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer last year. The Glasscocks are from Chapel Hill, a small community just outside of Tyler, an East Texas town four hours north of Houston.
“Corbin loves baseball,” said Kayla Glasscock, Corbin’s mother. “This was really special for him.”
The Glasscocks were invited to visit the Astros before their June 13 game against the Seattle Mariners. The Astros provided the family seats, field passes and a special meet-and-greet session with players before the game during batting practice.
While Corbin’s rigorous cancer-treatment schedule keeps the Glasscocks busy for weeks at a time, and Corbin’s chemotherapy keeps him off his feet for days at a time, the Glasscocks piled in their car that day because opportunities, such as the one the Astros provided the family on Saturday, come along once in a lifetime.
So there Corbin was with his family, his mom Kayla, dad Josh and three-year-old little brother Jackson, when Correa strolled over to him before batting practice.
“Hey there, Corbin,” Correa said with a big league smile. “My name is Carlos Correa. It’s so nice to meet you.”
Corbin’s smile was as big as Texas, and the two chatted for a bit, took pictures and did the standard meeting thing players sometime do before Correa headed over to take some swings at the plate.
Correa turned to Corbin before he headed there. Whatever he said to him seemed important. Corbin was happy, his family was beaming and even the ground crew and folks who work for the Astros were now wearing newly lifted smiles.
During batting practice, Correa swung the bat like he’s been in the majors for years. He has a good swing, smooth and easy. The ball practically leaps off his bat whenever he makes contact, and he seems to have a real knack for finding the sweet spot.
Maybe he can be as good as A-Rod someday.
The bat he used was beautiful. There’s just something about baseball. Isn’t there? That piece of wood looked like a trophy almost or something that belonged in a museum someday. And honestly if Correa turns out to be as good a ballplayer as everyone cheering for the Astros hopes he is, it very well might be.
I’m not sure what it is, but that bat looked like a work of art.
But that bat had purpose, too. Correa turned on the fastballs during the session like they had done something to his family. It was like watching a world-class fighter have a go at the heavy bag. It’s a space where both the brutality of blunt force and the smooth, poetic beauty of artistic movement coincide. It was amazing.
It seemed like Correa was hitting baseballs for hours. Everyone had turned to watch him do it, too, and everyone was disappointed when the exhibition ended.
When he was finished, the slender and athletic Correa, nimbly made his way over to the hordes of early arriving baseball fans. He did it on purpose. He signed autographs. He took pictures.
Heck, for all I know he was over there kissing babies like he was running for president or something.
But the latter is probably not something that really happened. Correa seems too good a person for mere politicking. At least that’s what I thought when he made his way back over to Corbin a short time after.
“Here you go,” the future Houston Astros' all-star shortstop told the seven-year-old battling bone cancer as he handed him his bat. "Here you go," he said each time he handed him one of his gloves.
"Thanks for coming today."
Correa went hitless in the 8-1 loss to the Mariners that day. But he hit a home run with everyone else.
Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained firsthand.
Kelsey McCarson is a boxing writer for Bleacher Report and TheSweetScience.com who sparred undefeated junior middleweight Jermell Charlo last year to raise money for Corbin's cancer treatments. You can contribute to the fundraiser for Team Corbin at GoFundMe.com. All money collected goes to Corbin's medical fund.
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