FORT MYERS, Fla. — Carlos Correa is well aware of what the still-unsigned, high-end free agents on the market are going through right now. Players had already reported to camp in 2022 by the time he signed his first deal with the Twins, then last year, his free agency process saw him agree to deals with three separate teams on his way to officially returning to Minnesota.

So an offseason with no free agency?

“It was so (chill),” the 29-year-old shortstop said.

Not having to go through free agency once more allowed Correa to get back to work earlier — it was delayed in previous offseasons because he did not want to risk injury while he was unsigned — where the shortstop worked on tweaking his swing, focusing on his lower-body positioning and his hands.

That after a season in which Correa, who was dealing with plantar fasciitis for most of 2023, did not produce at the plate as he had come to expect of himself. The shortstop hit .230 with a .711 OPS and a 94 OPS+ (100 is league average) — all well under his career norms.

The aim, he said, was trying to get back to what worked in the past, particularly in 2021, one of his best seasons, when he felt everything in his swing was short and very compact.

“(It’s) just (a) more efficient swing, more direct, more compact, no unnecessary movements,” he said. “Just trying to be consistent with my moves.”

Correa’s offseason consisted of getting to the gym sometime between 6 and 7 a.m., working out and then taking groundballs and hitting. When he got home, his focus shifted to his family, where he would play with his young sons, Kylo, 2, and Kenzo, 11 months, until they went to bed.

Save for a 10-day vacation, three days of which were spent at Disney World and the other seven on a cruise, that was Correa’s schedule for a majority of the offseason at home in Houston as he prepared for the upcoming season.

It took a couple of months, he said, for the plantar fasciitis in his left foot to clear up, but now he says he’s been feeling great and his foot remained that way as he started running and doing his infield work.

“He’s got that kind of vibe right now that he’s in a good place,” manager Rocco Baldelli said.

The shortstop also sounded very positive about the team assembled around him, praising the team’s offseason moves — most of which happened in the past couple weeks. Correa’s first day of camp was Thursday, and he said in his first glimpses of his teammates that he thought “a lot of guys are looking dangerous already.”

“Our bullpen’s really solid. Our starters, we’ve got a lot of options. And then you look at our lineup and our lineup is pretty damn good. We’ve got what it takes to go out there and compete against anyone,” he said. “Now, it’s just staying healthy and putting the pieces together in order for us to go out there and have a good season.”

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