Avila lured by chance to play
Free-agent catcher signs one-year contract with Sox
New White Sox catcher Alex Avila loved his time with the Detroit Tigers, a seven-year stay that included an unusual fatherson relationship with Tigers general manager Al Avila, but he made it clear Monday he was ready to cut the cord.
“It will be interesting for sure facing the Tigers again and going to Detroit,’’ said Avila, who signed a one-year, $2.5 million free-agent deal with the Sox that keeps him in the American League Central Division. “It will be a lot of fun. Seven years is a long time in this game to be in this place. So there’s a lot of relationships I have there.
“At the same time, I can’t wait to kick their ass.”
The Sox like Avila’s edge and clubhouse-leadership abilities, but they will value him even more if he stays healthy and adds offense from the left side of the plate to a position and lineup that surely needs a boost. He has been very good in spurts — some longer than others, likely depending on his health — as a receiver, thrower and pitch framer.
At 29 next season, Avila isn’t ready to fade into the background.
“Once I looked at all the teams out there that probably would be looking for a catcher, I thought [the Sox] might be a good fit,’’ said Avila, an All-Star in 2011. “And one of the things that was important to me was an opportunity to play as opposed to being a straight backup catcher.’’
Avila has a special connection to Detroit. His father, Al Avila, was the Tigers’ assistant GM from 2002 to August of this year, when he replaced Dave Dombrowski to become the first Cuban-born GM. The Tigers drafted Avila in the fifth round in 2008. But with James McCann stepping forward as the No. 1 and Bryan Holaday backing him up, it was time to part ways.
“If my dad thinks the team is better off without me, I’m not going to be on the team,’’ Avila said. “That’s just the way it worked out.’’
The Sox believe they are better off with Avila, even though he hit .191 (with a .339 on-base percentage) over 219 plate appearances with Detroit. That’s a far cry from his 2011 All-Star season, when he hit .295 with 82 RBI. A knee injury shelved him for nearly two months in 2015. He also has a history of concussion issues.
So now, with a clean slate, it’s time for Avila to kick some butt with the Sox.
“Coming back from my knee injury and getting healthy, I could still find an opportunity and still be able to produce at a level where I could play more regularly,’’ he said. “As much as I would have loved to come back to Detroit, a baseball player wants to play. He doesn’t want to sit on the bench.’’