Major League baseball player Alexander Thomas Avila was born January 29, 1987 in Hialeah, Florida and attended Archbishop McCarthy High School. Originally drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 2005 June draft, the team failed to sign him.

He attended the University of Alabama where he was converted from a 3rd baseman to a catcher. He earned All Southeastern Conference honors as both a Sophomore and Junior.

As A Freshman in 2006 he batted .271 (55 for 203) with 41 runs scored, 14 doubles, five home runs and 42 RBI in 60 games.

As a Sophomore in 2007 he hit .296 (66 for 223) with 38 runs scored, 15 doubles, 14 home runs and 61 RBI in 57 games

As a Junior in 2008 he hit .343 (82 for 239) with 57 runs scored, 12 doubles, 17 home runs and 62 RBI in 61 games

After his Junior year he was once again drafted in the fifth round of the June 2008 draft by the Detroit Tigers, where at the time his dad Al, served as Vice President and Assistant General Manager. The senior Avila had reservations about the organization drafting his son, but they assured him they were taking the best player available. On a side-note, ex Los Angeles Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda is Alex's Godfatherhttp://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100420&content_id=9447746&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det'

He made his Major League debut August 6, 2009 with the Tigers and gave the fans a preview of what could be an outstanding career. In only 64 At Bats he hit .279 with 5 Home Runs, 4 doubles and 14 RBIs.

Being a player who swings from the left side, and who is also a catcher, is a big plus for the Tigers who play their home games in a park much friendlier to left handed hitters, than to those who hit from the right.

Alex Avila had an outstanding spring training and made the Tigers 25 man Active Roster. He traveled north with the team from Florida to open the season in Kansas City. He went 1 for 3 in the series, starting the second game as the Tigers dropped an 11 inning game. Although he outhit Gerald Laird in Spring Training and during the 2009 regular season he is designated the backup.

Alex has gotten off to a rough start in the batters box. Thirty game into the season he is hitting under .200 and has just two home runs and 2 RBIs, both in the same game. He is having difficulty finding his batting stroke in limited action.

Alex hit at a .429 pace from May 31st through June 17th, raising his average from .176 to .230.

Alex Avila - Season Statistics

2010 Season Statisticshttp://tigers.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=488671

Alex Avila played the first 4 months of the season at Double AA Erie before making his Major League debut with the Detroit Tigers in August of 2009. In limited action he displayed the ability to hit major league pitching and should remain a fixture in Motown for many years to come. He sported a .279 batting average with 14 runs batted in. Along with hitting for a solid average he knocked out 5 home runs and 4 doubles which proved he was much more than just a singles hitter.

His father Al Avila, who happens to be part of the Tiger front office, was just as excited as his son when Alex had his first hit (a run scoring double against Baltimore) and then his first homer.

Before arriving in Detroit and while playing for Erie, Alex made the mid-season All Star Team. He threw out 43.6 percent of base-runners attempting to steal (34 of 78) ,tops in the Eastern League, showing that he can not only hit, but also owns a strong arm and good footwork.