Astros Veteran Finally Getting on Track After Brutal Early-Season Slump

When the Houston Astros announced they had signed veteran first baseman Christian Walker in free agency, it was seen as a positive move.

First base was a glaring hole for the team after their last signing, Jose Abreu, flamed out. Not even halfway through his three-year contract with the team, the Astros waived him because he was performing so poorly.

Abreu’s MLB career likely came to an end because of his performance with the Astros. And some fans were getting deja vu watching Walker out of the gate.

He was brutal through April with a .196/.277/.355 slash line, four home runs, five doubles and nine RBI.

That isn’t close to the kind of production the team was hoping for when they agreed to a three-year, $60 million deal. But, as Eno Sarris of The Athletic (subscription required) pointed out, there was reason for optimism.

How Has Christian Walker Broke Out of His Slump?

“He’s still in the 64th percentile for barrels, and about the same for hard-hit rate. His bat speed is still in the 76th percentile. Something like expected slugging percentage is not as predictive as those other factors — not every colorful slider on the Statcast page is equally meaningful,” Sarris wrote in a piece that was published May 9 and used numbers through May 6.

Walker’s wRC+ was 42 points lower in 2025 than it was in 2024. He was a major reason the team's cleanup spot was producing such anemic numbers.

But some of the metrics Sarris looked at hinted that the veteran first baseman would soon be able to break out of his slump.

In the games that have followed, he has been right.

Since the piece was published, Walker has two multi-hit games, going 5-for-10 overall with a double, triple and five RBI. He has walked twice and struck out twice, as well.

Walker is riding a seven-game hit streak and has recorded a hit in eight out of nine games played thus far in May, slashing .314/.375/.429 slash line through 40 plate appearances.

The Astros would certainly like to see a little bit more power from him with only four home runs on the season, but some of his advanced numbers suggest that a power surge will occur in the near future.

His improvement could not have come at a better time since designated hitter Yordan Alvarez went on the injured list with a hand injury.

As an already thin and underproducing lineup, losing their only left-handed hitter and a perennial MVP candidate wasn’t going to make things any easier offensively.

But Walker getting on track, as some of the numbers suggested he would, is a welcome sight for Houston.

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