Christian Dickson Walker (born March 28, 1991) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

and

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

. Considered one of the best defensive first basemen in the majors, Walker is a three-time

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

winner. Walker played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the

South Carolina Gamecocks The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I. The University of South Carolina uses "Gamecocks" as its official nickname and mascot. While the men's teams were traditionally known as the Fight ...

and won the

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is a baseball tournament held each June in Omaha, Nebraska. It is the culmination of the NCAA Division I baseball tournament—featuring 64 teams in the ...

in both

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

and

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, and were runners-up in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

. Selected in the fourth round of the

2012 MLB draft The 2012 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto Rico Baseball Ac ...

by the Orioles, Walker made his MLB debut with the team in 2014. However, Walker was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

four times thereafter prior to becoming the Diamondbacks' regular first baseman in 2019. In 2023, he helped lead the Diamondbacks to win their second

National League pennant The National League pennant winner of a given Major League Baseball season is the team that wins the championship—the pennant—of MLB's National League (NL). This team receives the Warren C. Giles Trophy and the right to play in the World S ...

. After becoming a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

following the 2024 season, he signed a three-year deal with the Astros.

Amateur career

Walker attended Kennedy-Kenrick Catholic High School in

Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough with Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, in the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area. Located ...

. He was drafted by the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

in the 49th round of the

2009 Major League Baseball draft The 2009 Major League Baseball draft was held June 9 to June 11 at the MLB Network Studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. The drafting order is as follows: First-round selections Key Supplemental first-round selections From Baseball Americ ...

, but did not sign. Walker attended the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

and played

for the

from 2010 to 2012. While there, he helped the Gamecocks win the

and

. He also helped the team reach the

2012 College World Series The 2012 NCAA Division I baseball tournament began on Friday, June 1, 2012, as part of the 2012 NCAA Division I baseball season. The 64 team double elimination tournament concluded with the 2012 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, starting ...

, where they lost to the

Arizona Wildcats The Arizona Wildcats are the sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Arizona, located in Tucson, Arizona, Tucson. The Wildcats compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Divis ...

. He finished tied with

Dustin Ackley Dustin Michael Ackley (born February 26, 1988) is an American former professional baseball second baseman and outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees. Ackley played college baseball for ...

for most career hits in the College World Series. Overall in his career at South Carolina, he played in 206 games and hit 336/.427/.533 with 30

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

and 137

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

. In 2011, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Harwich Mariners The Harwich Mariners are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Harwich, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Mariners play their home games at Whitehouse Fiel ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

Professional career

Baltimore Orioles

The

selected Walker in the fourth round, at number 132 overall, of the

2012 Major League Baseball draft The 2012 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 4 through June 6, 2012, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Houston Astros, with the first overall pick, selected Carlos Correa from the Puerto Rico Baseball Ac ...

. He made his professional debut for the

Aberdeen IronBirds The Aberdeen IronBirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in the city of Aberdeen in Harford County, Maryland. They are the High-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles and compete in the South Atlantic League. They were previously members of th ...

, played in 22 games and hit .284/.376/.420 with two home runs. Walker started 2013 with the

Delmarva Shorebirds The Delmarva Shorebirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Salisbury, Maryland. They are members of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Their home games are played at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Shor ...

. In May he was promoted to the

Frederick Keys The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The Keys are based in Frederick, Maryland. The franchise is named for the "Star-Spangled Banner" writer Francis Scott Key, a native of Frederick County. A new team ...

. In July he played in the

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League- ...

. After the game he was promoted to the Double-A

Bowie Baysox The Chesapeake Baysox are a Minor League Baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League. Their home ballpark is Prince George's Stadium. From 1993 to 2024, th ...

. He finished the year playing in 103 games and hit .300/.362/.453 with 11 home runs. Walker started 2014 back with Bowie. On September 17,

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, Walker was called up to the Orioles from the Triple–A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

. He made his major league debut later that day. Facing

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

pitcher

J. A. Happ James Anthony Happ (born October 19, 1982) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He won the World Series as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies, and was an Major League Basebal ...

, Walker hit a double for his first major league hit. On September 20, Walker produced his first multi-hit game, including his first career major league home run, off

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

starter,

Rubby De La Rosa Rubby Nick De La Rosa Corporan (born 4 March 1989) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, and Arizona Diamondbacks, and in Nippon Professional ...

. In 6 games during his rookie campaign, he went 3-for-18 (.167) with 1 home run and 1 RBI. Walker played in 7 games for the Orioles in 2015, going 1-for-9 (.111) with 3 walks. Walker did not appear for the Orioles in 2016, instead spending the year with the Triple-A Norfolk. In 131 appearances for Norfolk, he slashed .264/.321/.437 with 18 home runs and 64 RBI. During Walker's tenure in the Orioles organization, Chris Davis, who had connected for 53 home runs in 2013, 47 in 2015, and 38 in 2016, occupied the top of the franchise's depth chart at first base. On February 21, 2017, Walker was

following the acquisition of

Richard Bleier Richard Sidney Bleier (born April 16, 1987) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, Miami Marlins, and Boston Red Sox. In high school, he was a S ...

from the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

Arizona Diamondbacks

On March 6, 2017, the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

, who had

Joey Votto Joseph Daniel Votto (born September 10, 1983) is a Canadian-American former professional baseball first baseman who spent his entire 17-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Cincinnati Reds from 2007 to 2023. He was the second Canad ...

at first base, claimed Walker off waivers. The

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

, who had

Freddie Freeman Frederick Charles Freeman (born September 12, 1989) is a Canadian and American professional baseball first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Freeman made his MLB debut with the Atlanta Braves in 2010 and played ...

at first base, also put a waiver claim on Walker, but lost due to the order. On March 28, 2017, Walker was waived by the Reds and claimed off waivers by the

, who had

Paul Goldschmidt Paul Edward Goldschmidt (born September 10, 1987), nicknamed Goldy, is an American professional baseball first baseman for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Arizona Diamondbacks and St. ...

at first base. On March 30, Walker was removed from the

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

and sent outright to the Triple-A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, w ...

of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

(PCL). He was selected as the 2017 PCL Most Valuable Player after hitting .309/.382/.597 with 32 home runs and 114 RBI in 133 games for Reno. On September 10, the Diamondbacks selected Walker's contract, adding him to their active roster. In 11 games for the team, he went 3-for-12 (.250) with 2 home runs and 2 RBI. Walker played in 37 games for Arizona in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, hitting .163/.226/.388 with three home runs, six RBI, and one stolen base. Following the 2018 season, the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

acquired Goldschmidt, clearing a path for Walker to become the Diamondbacks' regular first baseman. In

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, Walker played his first full major league season, played in 152 games and made 603

plate appearances In baseball, a player is credited with a plate appearance (denoted by PA) each time he completes a turn batting. Under Rule 5.04(c) of the Official Baseball Rules, a player completes a turn batting when he is put out or becomes a runner. This ha ...

, batting .259/.348/.476 with career-highs in home runs (29) and RBI (73). With 8 stolen bases, he established another career high. Walker graded with a +9 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) rating, the best in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

(NL) among first basemen, and led all major league first basemen with 139 assists. In the pandemic-shortened

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

season, Walker played in 57 of 60 possible games and slashed .271/.333/.459 with seven home runs and 34 RBI. Walker made 115 appearances for Arizona during the

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

campaign, batting .244/.315/.382 with 10 home runs and 46 RBI. In

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, Walker played in 160 games and hit a career-high 36 home runs with 94 RBI. Following the season, he won his first career

. On January 13,

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, Walker agreed to a one-year, $6.5 million contract with the Diamondbacks, avoiding salary arbitration. On May 31, 2023, Walker connected for his 100th career home run, and, the following day, collected his 500th career hit. He finished the season batting .258/.333/.497 with 36 doubles, 33 home runs, and career-highs of 103 RBI and 11 stolen bases in 157 games played. Walker placed 8th in the NL in doubles, 10th in RBI, and fourth in

putouts In baseball statistics, a putout (PO) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out (baseball), out by one of the following methods: * tag play, Tagging a runner with the ball when he is no ...

(1,075) at first base. He also helped lead the Diamondbacks to a

Wild Card Wild card most commonly refers to: * Wild card (cards), a playing card that substitutes for any other card in card games * Wild card (sports), a tournament or playoff place awarded to an individual or team that has not qualified through normal pla ...

title, win the NL pennent and a

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

appearance, where they were defeated by the Texas Rangers in five games. In the postseason, Walker batted .217/.360/.350/.710 over 17 games, with 5 doubles, 1 home run, 7 RBI, 13

bases on balls A base on balls (BB), better known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches during a plate appearance that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The bas ...

, and 6 stolen bases without being

caught stealing In baseball, a runner is charged, and the fielders involved are credited, with a time caught stealing when the runner attempts to advance or lead off from one base to another without the ball being batted and then is tagged out by a fielder wh ...

. Following the season, he was awarded his second consecutive Gold Glove. Walker played in 130 games for the Diamondbacks in

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, batting .251/.335/.468 with 26 home runs and 84 RBI. He won the Gold Glove Award for the third straight year.

Houston Astros

On December 23, 2024, Walker signed a three-year, $60 million contract with the

. He connected for his first home run as an Astro on April 3,

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

, off Joe Ryan, leading a 5–2 win over the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

. On April 23, 2025, Walker hit the 150th home run of his career off

Bowden Francis Robert Bowden Francis ( ; born April 22, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the seventh round of the 2017 MLB draft. He made hi ...

in a 3–1 win over the

. Walker hit his first

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not have an opp ...

as a member of the Astros on May 25 against Casey Legumina of the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

to a secure a 5–3 win. It was his third career walk-off hit.

References

External links

South Carolina Gamecocks bio
also archived as of April 1, 2023, a
web.archive.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Christian 1991 births Living people Aberdeen IronBirds players Arizona Diamondbacks players Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Bowie Baysox players Delmarva Shorebirds players Frederick Keys players Gold Glove Award winners Harwich Mariners players Houston Astros players Major League Baseball first basemen Norfolk Tides players Reno Aces players South Carolina Gamecocks baseball players People from Norristown, Pennsylvania