ANAHEIM -- Houston, we have a first-base problem.
Entering Saturday, since the start of 2023, Astros first basemen rank at or near the bottom of MLB in nearly every offensive category: .219 average (30th), -2.8 fWAR (29th), .646 OPS (30th), .288 OBP (30th) and so on.
Much of that can be attributed to José Abreu, who struggled so mightily for the Astros last season that the team released him in June, less than halfway through his three-year, $58.5 million deal.
Heading into 2025, the Astros looked to Christian Walker for stability at the position, signing the longtime Diamondback and three-time Gold Glove winner to a similar three-year, $60 million contract.
But as the halfway point of the ’25 campaign approaches, the offensive woes at first base have not subsided.
After Saturday’s 9-1 loss to the Angels, Walker owns a .214/.282/.361 slash line (.643 OPS) -- all career lows since he became a full-time starter in 2019. He has 25 more strikeouts (85) than hits (60) this season.
The 11-year MLB vet isn’t panicking.
“Feeling better lately, I feel like myself lately,” Walker said Saturday. “Numbers are close to normal. I think I started so slow that the average and stuff are slowly coming up, it’s going to be very much a chip-away-at-it-all-year type thing. But I think a good challenge for me right now is not getting caught up in what the scoreboard says.”
Astros manager Joe Espada said he anticipates a turnaround any day.
“For me, it’s finding some green grass, and the ball just to get through, for him to get some luck behind his swings,” Espada said. “I feel like he’s right on every pitch, he’s swinging at strikes, and that’s all the stuff that we kind of track, how he goes about the process of getting to get good pitches. … I think it’s just going to happen for him here pretty soon.”
Saturday was a good start: Walker’s fourth-inning RBI single left the bat at 105 mph, and just barely skipped under Angels shortstop Zach Neto’s glove and into left field. Those hits have been hard to come by for Walker, whose expected batting average (.240) and xSLG (.428) are both well above his actual numbers, despite a solid hard-hit rate (45.4%, 63rd percentile), barrel rate (12.4%, 75th percentile) and bat speed (74 mph, 81st percentile).
Walker said bad luck could be part of his slow start. But he’s not using it as an excuse.
“There was a stretch where I felt like I was hitting a couple balls a game over 105 [mph exit velocity] and not really getting much to show for it,” he said. “I’d say lately, luck is hard to come by. But I’m not going to sit here and say, ‘Feel bad for me, I’m unlucky.’
“I think there’s things I can be doing in the box to create my own luck and make it a little bit better. I think that’s a part of it, as far as things that you can control, picking good pitches and hitting balls hard. I can’t really control where the defenders are.”
Espada dropped Walker to the sixth spot in the lineup on Thursday, which he said was partly due to the ascension of Astros rookie outfielder Cam Smith, who has been swinging a hot bat of late.
“It is what it is,” Walker said. “Obviously, I want to be 3-hole, 4-hole every day. But, given the circumstances and how I’m performing, it’s the way it’s falling right now. I plan on earning my way back into the 3-hole or 4-hole soon. But, whatever skipper thinks the best lineup is, that’s what we’re rocking with.”
It’s a small sample size, but Walker has hit well in the sixth spot in his career, sporting a .282 average with an .875 OPS in 51 games -- both better than his stats batting third or fourth, which he’s done in a combined 661 games.
Walker doesn’t expect to contend for a batting title any time soon. But he knows he’s a better hitter than his stat line suggests.
“Starting slower than I have in the past, I think initial reaction as hitters is to want to [ask], ‘What’s different? What am I doing wrong? What’s missing?’ and it’s easy just to start tinkering,” said Walker. “I think there’s always a time and a place for an adjustment, that’s constantly what we’re doing.
“But I think I had to remind myself, ‘Hey, your swing’s not broken, trust yourself, be ready to hit, stay in the moment.’ And I think little things like timing and trying to make good decisions goes a long way.”