Quick trivia question: which catcher in baseball has the highest fWAR this season? Is it Brian McCann? Joe Mauer? Matt Wieters?
Nope. It’s Alex Avila of the Tigers.
The 24 year old Avila has blossomed in a big way for the Tigers this season. He’s been worth 5.4 fWAR on the season, more than any other catcher in baseball, including McCann (3.8), Mauer (1.4) and Wieters (3.4). His .921 OPS is second among catchers, behind just Mike Napoli of the Rangers (1.000), who has gotten time at first base this season as well and has 116 fewer plate appearances than Avila.
Not only has Avila been the class of catchers in baseball, he’s also been one of the best hitters on a strong Tigers team. That .921 OPS is second on the team, behind only superstar first baseman Miguel Cabrera and his .996 mark. In fact, that .921 OPS is 89 points higher than Victor Martinez’s, who was signed to a four year, $50 million contract before the season started. Avila is making just $425,000 this season, in his second year in the majors with extended playing time.
Avila’s path to the majors was quick and efficient. After being drafted out of Alabama in the fifth round of the 2008 draft, he OPSed .768 in 213 at bats for the West Michigan Whitecaps of the Midwest League. In 2009, Avila was moved all the way up to the Erie SeaWolves in the AA Eastern League, and he again fluorished, with a .814 OPS in 329 at bats. He got a cup of coffee in the majors in 2009, getting into 29 games for the Tigers. He spent all of 2010 with Detroit and OPSed a disappointing .656 in 294 at bats, but the 10.8% walk rate was very encouraging.
Avila has broken out of his shell this year. In addition to that stellar .921 OPS, he has a 13.1% walk rate (fourth among MLB catchers behind Chris Iannetta of the Rockies, Napoli, and division-mate Carlos Santana of the Indians), a .223 ISO (fourth behind Napoli, JP Arencibia of Toronto, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia of the Red Sox), and a catcher-leading .303 batting average.
One caveat with Avila’s season. In addition to the eye-popping numbers he’s posted across the board, he also has a .374 BABIP, which is the fifth highest among all players in baseball. Teammate Austin Jackson led baseball with a .396 BABIP last year, which propelled him to a .745 OPS. This season, the BABIP is down to .341, and Jackson’s OPS has also fallen to .706. Granted, Avila and Jackson are not similar players. One is a power hitting catcher, while one is a slap hitting center fielder.
In 2012, Alex Avila might not be the best catcher in baseball again. But will he be ONE OF the best catchers in baseball? I’d bet on it. With Cabrera, Justin Verlander, and Martinez all locked up for the next three years minimum, Avila seems like he’d be a great candidate for a long-term extension. Great catchers don’t grow on trees, and the Tigers have one.
