Veteran free agent quietly undercuts Christian Walker’s trade appeal

The Astros are one of the few teams whose offseason success will seemingly be defined more by roster subtractions than additions. Instead of a marquee free agent or blockbuster trade, the most exciting rumors almost all revolve around Houston finally finding a trade partner for Christian Walker's problematic contract.

It's not the most encouraging central theme for an offseason, especially after the team missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016, but somehow, it gets even worse. It's tough enough to find a team willing to give up prospects for a declining 34-year-old first baseman who's still owed $40 million over the next two years, but to make matters worse, he's not even the best veteran available at his position.

Paul Goldschmidt's free agency may be limiting the trade market for Christian Walker

Goldschmidt is a few years older than Walker, but his best years are also behind him. After winning the NL MVP award in 2022, his offensive production quickly regressed to league average, but he managed to be somewhat productive for the Yankees last year, posting a 103 wRC+ and 0.8 fWAR. He was roughly as productive as Walker was (99 wRC+, 1.1 fWAR), but he was $7.5 million cheaper.

Now that he's a free agent, he'll probably be even more affordable while still maintaining a similar statistical profile. He fits the niche of being a strong veteran presence with a lower financial barrier and no need to sacrifice other roster talent. So why would teams bother pursuing Christian Walker if Paul Goldschmidt is still available?

The only hope would be for Walker to return to form in 2026. Based on his numbers over the past few seasons, 2025 was an anomaly and could've been the result of needing more time to adapt to a new environment after being in Arizona for eight years. There's also evidence that he primarily struggled to hit in his new home ballpark.

Dan Szymborski of FanGraphs remains somewhat optimistic about what he has left in the tank and wrote in his 2026 ZiPS Projections for Houston that he believes it's not too late for him to turn it around.

His projected 105 wRC+ and 1.8 fWAR still don't warrant his salary, but ZiPS is typically quite conservative, and he could find himself back in 120 wRC+/3.0 fWAR territory if he manages to figure things out. Goldschmidt doesn't have as high a ceiling as Walker, but his floor also isn't as catastrophic for new suitors.

Walker isn't the only corner infielder that the Astros are trying to deal before Opening Day, but he's definitely proving to be the hardest. The road back to the top of the AL West won't be an easy one, especially given how comparatively active Seattle's offseason has been, but the Astros could move within striking distance if they find a way to shed the dead weight.