Christian Walker's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

Free-agent first baseman Christian Walker agreed to a three-year, $60 million deal with the Houston Astros on Friday. It's yet another sign that the Astros won't be re-signing All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman this winter. The Astros acquired infielder Isaac Paredes from the Chicago Cubs in the trade that sent outfielder Kyle Tucker to Chicago, so Paredes should replace Bregman at the hot corner. Walker will end up taking over first-base duties from Jon Singletary, who had struggled against left-handed pitching. Walker, who is entering his age-34 season, is a three-time Gold Glover and also has been a stable source of power production for fantasy managers, averaging just under 32 home runs in each of the last three seasons. Only Pete Alonso and Matt Olson have more homers at the first-base position than Walker since the start of 2022. Walker should see a slight fantasy boost with the move to Houston.

According to Peter Gammons of the MLB Network, the Seattle Mariners would "love" to acquire free-agent first baseman Christian Walker. However, Gammons noted that the first baseman is currently out of their price range, but trading starting pitcher Luis Castillo could open enough space on the books for the infielder. Castillo's name has been circling around trade discussions all offseason, and it could make sense given Seattle's depth at that position. Last summer, Walker held a solid .251/.335/.468 slash line with 26 home runs. Under the hood, the 33-year-old generated a .351 xwOBA, a 13.3% barrel rate, and a 48.0% hard-hit rate. Walker would provide some nice, consistent power to the Seattle lineup. The Yankees have also been a team that has expressed interest in the 33-year-old.

With the New York Yankees failing to re-sign superstar outfielder Juan Soto, they have renewed contract negotiations with free-agent first baseman Christian Walker, according to sources. In addition to Walker, the Yankees are multi-tasking on pitchers and hitters as they look to make a big splash to try and replace some of Soto's production. If the 2025 season began today, Ben Rice would be New York's starting first baseman. But if the Yankees sign Walker, it could allow them to dangle Rice in a trade for a pitcher such as Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet. Walker turns 34 in March and is likely to receive no less than a three-year deal. The Yankees would prefer if he were left-handed, but he's been a consistent power threat over the last few seasons and has won the last three National League Gold Gloves at first base. A move to the Bronx would give Walker even more fantasy upside.