Avila eager to work with Nats pitchers again, seek first ring

The thought of reuniting with Max Scherzer six years since they were last batterymates in Detroit certainly was appealing to Alex Avila. As was the opportunity to catch Patrick Corbin and Jon Lester again after previous opportunities in Arizona and Chicago, plus the chance to work with Stephen Strasburg for the first time in his career.

All of that made the Nationals attractive to Avila as he prepared for free agency last fall. But none of that familiarity with the pitching staff was as important to the veteran catcher as the No. 1 reason he wanted to come to D.C.

"Not just being familiar with some of the guys on the staff, but also the fact that they're a team built to win now," he said Wednesday during a Zoom session with reporters. "Their goal is to win a World Series. I had a great conversation with Mike Rizzo about it yesterday. That was at the forefront of my mind going into it, and I was very happy that Washington had the same type of interest."

Avila, whose one-year, $1.5 million deal with the Nationals became official Wednesday, has 12 years of big league experience on his resume. He's been an All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner with the Tigers. He made the postseason four times with them (2011-14), then again with the Cubs in 2017 and the Twins in 2020.

What Avila doesn't have is a World Series ring. And he believes, at this stage of his career, that his best opportunity to get one is with a Nationals club seeking a return to the Fall Classic after a disappointing 2020 season.

The Nats don't need Avila to catch 133 games like he did way back in his All-Star campaign of 2011. At least, that's not the plan going in. Yan Gomes will be the No. 1 catcher entering spring training, and if all goes well manager Davey Martinez wants him to start 100 or so games behind the plate. That leaves 60 or so games for Avila, which is comparable to his workload for the Diamondbacks in 2018-19.

"Whenever Davey needs me in the lineup, I'll be ready to go then," he said. "That's kind of my mindset."

Known more for his work behind the plate than at it, Avila is especially excited to catch the Nationals pitching staff, some members of which he already knows well. He caught Lester twice in 2017 with the Cubs and caught Corbin 14 times in 2018 with the Diamondbacks.

Most notable, of course, was all the time Avila spent with Scherzer in Detroit. No catcher has worked more games with Scherzer than Avila, who has done it 107 times.

"He was always one of my favorite guys to catch," Avila said. "He was always so well prepared going into games. And I got to watch him develop, really, into what he is now. It'll be a thrill for me to be able to catch him again."

The feeling appears to be mutual. Avila said Scherzer was among the first to text him after he agreed to his deal with the Nationals last week. And as the two conversed, Scherzer reminded his once and future catcher they can help each other out not only in the field but in the lineup.

"He's like: 'You get on, I'll drive you in,'" said Avila, owner of a modest .235 career batting average but strong .348 on-base percentage. "Maybe we can get Max a few RBIs."