WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES

2007
DSL:  238/304/310, 42 AB, 1 HR, 3 BB, 6 K, 1-2 SB

Played briefly in first DSL season.  He played mostly second in 2007-08.

2008
DSL:  262/312/324, 256 AB, 10 2B, 2 HR, 14 BB, 19 K, 5-5 SB

Didn’t hit a lot in first full season, but made good contact, striking out less than once every 13 ABs.

2009
DSL:  315/358/494, 267 AB, 21 2B, 9 HR, 17 BB, 20 K, 8-14 SB

Avila stayed in the DSL and saw a power spike, ending up as one of the league’s best hitters.  He struck out only slightly more than he walked.  He moved to third and had some defensive problems, with 22 errors in 56 games.

2010
R:  277/327/472, 195 AB, 15 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 12 BB, 33 K, 9-12 SB

Was one of GCL’s best power hitters, finishing tied for first in HRs and tied for second in doubles.  He was, however, a little old for the level at age 20.  His plate discipline was marginal and his K rate roughly doubled from 2009.

2011
A:  216/275/289, 380 AB, 14 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 27 BB, 57 K, 9-16 SB

The Pirates moved Avila up to West Virginia and the move didn’t go well.  He got off to a terrible start, hitting .149 in April with just one extra base hit in 74 ABs.  He improved a little after that, but never really got going.  Avila didn’t strike out a lot, just a little more than once every seven ABs, but he never hit the ball with any authority.  He had an especially bad time with RHPs, hitting just 201/259/261 against them, suggesting that he was easily victimized by sliders.  He also had problems defensively, with 27 errors, although his error rate slowed rapidly as the season went along.  His range seems decent at worst.

Avila was skipping a level in 2011, but at 21 he was an appropriate age for low A.  He didn’t make much progress over the course of the season, so it’s hard to regard him as a prospect now.  He’ll return to West Virginia, where he’ll have to compete for playing time with Jodaneli Carvajal, Kirk Singer and Chris Lashmet.