The Houston Astros were looking to reload after they were defeated by the Detroit Tigers in last year’s American League Wild Card series. The loss ended a string of seven straight seasons where the Astros at least reached the AL Championship Series and pushed the front office to go add a difference-maker in free agency.
The Astros landed on first baseman Christian Walker as this year’s big move to add some punch to the lineup. But his first season of a three-year, $60 million contract has been underwhelming. It gives him a grand opportunity to redeem himself out of the All-Star break but puts him at danger of being exposed as a fraud in the second half.
Astros 1B Christian Walker Must Redeem Himself After All-Star Break
Walker came to Houston last winter with a solid track record from the Arizona Diamondbacks. In eight seasons with Arizona, Walker hit .251/.331/.464 with 146 home runs and 442 RBI. His most production also occurred in his final three seasons, averaging .250/.332/.481 with 34.4 homers and 101.8 RBI per 162 games.
A three-time reigning National League Gold Glove Award winner, it made sense for the Astros to covet Walker this offseason. But at age 34, he’s begun to show signs of regression.
Walker’s production at the plate has plummeted in his first year with the Astros, hitting .229/.286/.374 with 12 homers and 47 RBI over 90 games. His -0.9 wins above replacement would be his lowest since he posted -0.3 WAR with the Diamondbacks in 2018, and although his minus-7 defensive runs saved are his lowest value in that metric since he was a minus-1 that same season.
While the return of several injured players is the biggest storyline coming out of the All-Star break, whether Walker can rebound is a close second. According to Baseball Savant, Walker has declined in several metrics, including barrel rate (11.4%), chase rate (27.9%), and whiff rate (29%), but his average exit velocity of 90.4 mph isn’t far from the 91.2 mph average he put up last season.
Walker also ranks in the 81st percentile with a bat speed of 74 mph, and that could come into play with 34 games remaining at hitter-friendly Daikin Park.
With the second half approaching, Walker needs to start producing to prove his value. If he doesn’t, he could become one of the biggest frauds from this year’s free agent haul.