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Avila

michiganalex

michiganalex

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 5, 2013
Messages
1,987
WHAT THE F???? he had that great year where he was basically the #1/2 guy at C and now he's nothing. Who do we have in the minors that can come up????? and who can they get in the offseason????
 
i am reading up pm James McCann. how close is he to making it to Detroit?
 
I have always liked his defensive game and overlooked his offense. But it's ridiculous now. I'm sure there are stats that say he's on average with the rest of the C's as far as hitting but he's just pure garbage right now at the plate.
 
It is still early and he has always been a slow starter.

He is still taking walks, which is a good thing.

Mechanically, his swing is a mess and unfortunately, we have no hitting instructor who can identify the correction.

Aside from his current lack of offense, his game calling is probably 2nd to none. And the starters have great faith in him.
 
I could live with it if he was at least making contact on pitches in the strike zone, but so far this year he's not even making contact on pitches right down the heart of the plate. He has been dreadful.
 
Alex has struck out 21 times in 36 ab's include his walks 6 and he's got a .500 k ave

This is absolulty atrocious
 
Where is everyone who gave me shit for trashing Avila before the season started? The guy belongs in Toledo at best. I don't care if "he calls a good game," he can't hit and can't throw a base runner out if his life depended on it.
 
Rebbiv said:
It is still early and he has always been a slow starter.

He is still taking walks, which is a good thing.

Mechanically, his swing is a mess and unfortunately, we have no hitting instructor who can identify the correction.

Aside from his current lack of offense, his game calling is probably 2nd to none. And the starters have great faith in him.
Click to expand...

Calling a game is so overrated to me. If you have young inexperienced pitchers then fine, but with guys like JV, Scherzer, Sanchez, Nathan, etc it is an irrelevant fact in my opinion.
 
SpartyNash said:
Calling a game is so overrated to me. If you have young inexperienced pitchers then fine, but with guys like JV, Scherzer, Sanchez, Nathan, etc it is an irrelevant fact in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Hard to tell whether it is "overrated" or not. I think the term overrated is overrated personally lol. I do think it plays a role in the comfort level of the pitcher, and being on the same page together in how to pitch to certain guys. Who knows how big a factor it really plays though.
 
He's actually good at throwing runners out when the pitchers give him a chance to (which is why his caught stealing % isnt always good, our pitchers often suck at holding runners and/or are super slow to the plate), but he needs to start hitting or he's gonna be shuffled to backup and we'll have to find a new starting catcher. His defense and game-calling are absolutely MLB quality, but if his bat cant be, we need a new starter. 21Ks in 36 ab's is ridiculous.
 
Last edited:
Alex Avila has been a better than average MLB catcher. Period.

You don't go from 4.00 PA/K to 2.00 PA/K without something mechanically going awry. 40 Plate Appearances is hardly a good sample. Am I concerned? Yes. Am I crying "chicken little"? No.
 
SpartyNash said:
Calling a game is so overrated to me. If you have young inexperienced pitchers then fine, but with guys like JV, Scherzer, Sanchez, Nathan, etc it is an irrelevant fact in my opinion.
Click to expand...

A pitcher might throw to a certain player 3-4 times in a series, where the catcher can see him 14-18 times. Who knows more about the tendencies of that hitter and what has been getting him out?

Even some veteran pitchers do not like to "think" about how to get a hitter out.

Certain pitchers are "rhythm" pitchers and getting out of synch with the catcher can make a world of difference.

Overrated? I think not. Underrated is more like it.
 
Avila's bad start is compounded by the fact that the team doesn't have a major league shortstop and neither Hunter or Cabrera has started to hit. You have to figure they both will hit, but I think at some point during the season you have to upgrade either ss or c and acquire a player who can hit at a major league level.
 
I don't like the term "game calling". But Avila does excel at pitch framing and pitch locations.
 
He hit the ball well tonight against the Sox, but he still looks lost at the plate at times like he has the past year or so. Hopefully he will come around as he is good behind the plate, just not next to it.
 
Wally Joyner should spend 100% of his time with Avila in the cage. I'd have his meals delivered there and a port-a-let installed.

Lock the thing and don't let them out until Alex's bat starts showing signs of life.
 
LGRW_9 said:
Wally Joyner should spend 100% of his time with Avila in the cage. I'd have his meals delivered there and a port-a-let installed.

Lock the thing and don't let them out until Alex's bat starts showing signs of life.
Click to expand...

This should have been posted a couple days ago.
 
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