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Carlos Javier Correa, Jr. (born September 22, 1994) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Correa was drafted first overall by the Astros in the 2012 Major League Baseball Draft. An honor roll graduate of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and High School, he is the highest selection to come directly from a Puerto Rican high school. Correa is also the third Latino to be the first overall selection in the MLB Draft, after Alex Rodriguez and Adrian González, as well as the first Puerto Rican and Latin American-born player to do so.〔 ==Early life and introduction to baseball== Correa was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, to Carlos, Sr. and Sandybel Oppenheimer. The family had a low income but built a small house in Barrio Velázquez, a fishing village where he was raised. Since early in his life, Correa often played catch in an adjacent alley, which prompted a neighbor to suggest enrolling him in a youth league, the parent-pitch category, when he was five years old. Correa was assigned to play first base due to his hitting ability, while his father continued training him every day during their free time. In 1998, Hurricane Georges caused heavy damage to the family's house.〔 This forced his father to take several odd jobs, but he continued training Correa Jr. on a daily basis. Three years after the hurricane, he was performing solidly in Santa Isabel's Playita Cortada American Baseball Congress affiliate, hitting up to 150 home runs. When the team was eliminated, the league's champion, Rio Grande, recruited Correa to play in the championship series held in Atlanta. However, this move was difficult to the family due to the distance between Santa Isabel and the municipality of Rio Grande. His mother worked as well, but when this was not enough, she began selling food.〔 The citizens of Santa Isabel began helping them organize charity games and his original team donated their sales income to help pay for the travel. Correa was Rio Grande's pitcher and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after striking out eight batters in a team comeback.〔 By the time that he was 11 years old, the family was traveling to the municipality of Caguas to have him practice with higher-level teams. Correa was also an honor student and received a scholarship to attend Raham Baptist Academy.〔 Three years later, the family moved from Barrio Velázquez due to recurrent floods, but kept close ties with those that stayed behind. Joined by his brother, Jean Carlos, in baseball practices, the family once again was forced to work more odd jobs.〔 Soon after, the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and High School (PRBAHS) brought Correa in as a scholarship student. His discipline and talent prompted his coaches to work extra hours to improve his bat and they helped by offering transportation when the family's car was totaled in an accident.〔 In 2010, Correa participated in the Perfect Game BCS Finals and the WWBA PG Underclassman World Championships.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Carlos Correa Baseball Profile )〕 After attending one of these Perfect Game events, Correa made adjustments to his batting motion with his hitting coach, José Rivera. The following year he appeared at the 2011 PG BCS Under-18 Finals and East Coast Professional Showcase.〔 However, it was Correa's performance at the 2011 PG World and National Showcases that promoted him to the top of his class, earning him a spot in the Aflac-PG All-American Game, where he was named Rawlings' Defensive Player of the Year.〔 He closed the year with an appearance in the PG WBAA World Championships.〔 Correa opened 2012 by being selected the MVP in the Víctor Pellot Excellence Tournament, following an extraordinary performance for a shortstop that included a two-home run game. At the 2012 PG World Showcase, he established a PG record with a 97-miles per hour throw across the infield.〔 After graduating from the PRBAHS with a 4.00 average as the class valedictorian and scoring 1560 on the SAT, Correa signed a letter of commitment with the University of Miami.〔 Besides competing for the PRBAHS, Correa was also a member of Team Mizuno and the Puerto Rico National Baseball Team that participated in the youth Panamerican tournament.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Carlos Correa」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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