Free-agent 1B Walker, Astros agree to 3-year, $60M deal (source)

Slugging free-agent first baseman Christian Walker and the Astros have agreed to terms on a three-year, $60 million contract, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand on Friday. The club has not confirmed the deal.

Acquiring Walker constitutes the Astros' second seismic shift in less than a week, as they also traded star outfielder Kyle Tucker to the Cubs for a package that included third baseman Isaac Paredes. Given Houston now has Walker and Paredes to man the corners, it seems almost certain that longtime third baseman Alex Bregman -- a two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion -- won't be back in 2025.

It also seemingly shuts the door on the team acquiring third baseman Nolan Arenado, who blocked a potential trade to the Astros earlier this week by declining to waive his no-trade clause.

Walker declined a qualifying offer from the D-backs, so the Astros will lose their second- and fifth-highest picks in the 2025 Draft plus $1 million from their international bonus pool for the upcoming signing period when the deal is official. But they will also receive a pick if and when Bregman signs somewhere else.

Walker, 33, has quietly established himself as one of the game’s top first basemen over the past three seasons, pairing strong production at the plate with elite glove work.

The right-handed slugger ranks fifth among primary first basemen with 11.4 WAR (per Baseball-Reference) since the beginning of 2022, recording 95 homers, 281 RBIs and an .813 OPS (123 OPS+) over 1,880 plate appearances and leading the position with 38 Outs Above Average in that span.

If not for a left oblique strain that kept him out of action for more than a month in 2024, Walker likely would have reached the 30-homer plateau for the third straight season. He finished with 26 dingers and 84 RBIs over 130 games for the D-backs and also took home his third straight Gold Glove Award. Though Walker has more of an all-fields approach at the plate, he’s sure to benefit a bit from the Crawford Boxes at Minute Maid Park.

A late bloomer, Walker took a long time to find his footing in the Majors after making his debut with the Orioles way back in 2014. He appeared in only 13 games with Baltimore before changing teams three times via waivers in less than five weeks during 2017, going from the Orioles to the Braves to the Reds to the D-backs.

Walker finally received a chance to earn regular playing time after Arizona traded longtime first baseman Paul Goldschmidt to the Cardinals in December 2018, and he responded with 29 homers and an .824 OPS over 152 games in 2019.

After another solid showing during the shortened 2020 season (.792 OPS), Walker slipped to a .697 OPS with just 10 homers over 115 games the following year, missing time with a right oblique strain. However, he rebounded in 2022, producing a career-high 36 homers with an .804 OPS and winning his first career Gold Glove Award.

Walker won another Gold Glove in 2023 and hit 33 homers with an .830 OPS over 157 games in the regular season before helping Arizona make a surprising run to the World Series.

The Walker addition comes just two years after the Astros signed former AL MVP José Abreu to a three-year, $58.5 million deal in November 2022. He struggled throughout his two years in Houston, though, and the club ultimately released him on June 14, 2024. Abreu had just a .362 OPS with two homers in 35 games last season. He slashed .217/.275/.351 over 176 total games with the Astros.

Jon Singleton played the majority of games at first base for the Astros in 2024, hitting .234/.321/.386 in 119 contests.

Walker is no doubt a significant upgrade in production on both sides of the field. Even with the likely loss of Bregman on the horizon, the Astros’ infield looks improved with Walker and Paredes manning the corners along with Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña up the middle.