Shocking Carlos Correa trade almost cost Astros a player fans already soured on

It's still surreal to see Carlos Correa back in a Houston Astros uniform after the shocking move that was made at the MLB trade deadline. Many hurdles had to be cleared in order for the Astros and Twins to find common ground on a deal, eventually leading to the Astros taking on a majority of the contract, with the exception being the $33MM the Twins have kicked in.

With the Astros taking on most of Correa's remaining money, that was the reason they escaped the trade with only having to give up left-handed pitching prospect Matt Mikulski. The trade, however, almost looked completely different. With the dust settling from the deadline, Bob Nightengale reports that the Astros originally wanted to send Christian Walker to the Twins as part of the Correa trade.

"The Twins had the opportunity to acquire Houston Astros first baseman Christian Walker in their Carlos Correa trade talks, but passed, not wanting to take on the two years and $40 million left on his contract. It’s possible Walker is shopped this winter to make room for Isaac Paredes at first base."

Astros were ready to dump offseason disappointment in one variation of the Carlos Correa trade

Signed by the Astros to a three-year deal worth $60MM last offseason, Walker has struggled this season, posting a 96 wRC+ with 15 home runs. Once the Correa rumor was first floated, there was a question of how the Astros were going to balance out the remaining money on his contract, considering their preference to avoid the luxury tax. Including Walker's contract in the trade certainly would have helped.

Nightengale's intel also doesn't bode well for Walker's future in Houston. For the rest of this season, it's an easy fit with Correa taking over third base with Isaac Paredes likely out for the remainder of the year.

The question becomes what the Astros will do next season once Paredes is back. It would seem, one scenario could be for Paredes to shift over to first base, leaving Walker without a starting spot. However, that's a question for the offseason, and circumstances certainly will change by then. After all, since June 1, Walker has turned a corner by posting a 118 wRC+ with 8 home runs.

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