Detroit Tigers trade rumors: Cubs and Blue Jays interested in Alex Avila
By Matt Snyder
Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila has drawn trade interest from the Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays according to Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com
The Detroit Tigers have not officially waved the white flag on the 2017 season, but a trade deadline selloff looks inevitable as the team stands seven games out of the division lead with a 35-43 record. When the trades start to come, the first players to be sent packing will be those who are due to hit free agency in the offseason.
Included in that group of impending free agents is slugging catcher Alex Avila. According to Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com, Avila is drawing trade interest from a few teams, including the Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays.
"Alex Avila has been the Tigers’ best hitter this season, according to manager Brad Ausmus. Not even Detroit’s general manager — Al Avila, Alex’s father — could have expected that when the younger Avila signed a one-year, $2 million deal as a free agent last winter. But now Avila is on the radar of teams looking for help behind the plate, including the Cubs and Blue Jays."
We heard speculation of a potential Tigers and Cubs match earlier this week when the latter sent Miguel Montero packing after he made disparaging remarks about a teammate, but now Morosi has given us confirmation of genuine interest on the part of the Cubs.
Avila has been one of the best catchers in all of the major leagues this season and has a chance to make the American League All-Star team for the second time in his career. He’s the only catcher in baseball with an OPS north of 1.000 (minimum 100 plate appearances) and is one of only 10 players at any position to have eclipsed that mark (Tigers outfielder J.D. Martinez is another).
It’s not clear what type of return package Avila would bring to the Tigers in a trade. He’s a rental player with some history of injury and doesn’t carry the hitting track record that a player like J.D. Martinez does, so teams might not be willing to part with top-tier talent.
Then again, he’s been hitting at an elite level all season and has made significant changes to his batted ball profile, shifting it to a flyball-heavy approach. If that change is real there’s no reason not to expect Avila to go on hitting at an above-average level.
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Avila has hit .315/.431/.586 in 195 plate appearances with 11 home runs and 2.4 wins above replacement to his name. Avila’s career high in home runs is 19 which came in his All-Star season of 2011.