Catching isn't the front-burner situation it was to Detroit last winter. This time it's a back-burner issue.
A year ago, the Tigers knew they were sending Brandon Inge back to third base, a move that worked out quite nicely, and having traded away Ivan Rodriguez, there was no one in place at the position the organization felt satisfied with.
So general manager Dave Dombrowski struck quickly during the winter meetings and obtained Gerald Laird from Texas.
Laird recorded career highs in games and at-bats, and was so good at throwing out runners many felt that he, not Minnesota's Joe Mauer, should have been voted a Gold Glove.
But he did not have a career high in hits and showed a glaring deficiency offensively in situational awareness.
Most of the time, with runners on base, Laird swung as if he thought he were in a home run hitting contest. That didn't work out so well because Laird hit only four home runs, not close to his best total (nine).
So with Laird eligible for free agency after next season, the Tigers are quietly taking a wait-and-see approach. They will observe next summer whether Laird, an excellent bunter with good legs for a catcher, can learn to go the other way with outside pitches and cut down on his two-strike swing.
Detroit is positioning Alex Avila, the son of assistant general manager Al Avila, to be its next long-term catcher after he made a solid impression in a late-August call-up.
Avila showed patience at the plate, excellent power from the left side, better-than-expected defensive ability and a solid, accurate arm. He did not wow scouts while with Class AA Erie, however, and after a hot start with the Tigers, he showed a weakness against breaking balls.
So the Tigers have a decision in the spring: to let him play every day for Class AAA Toledo and work on his skills or have him as part of a limited platoon with Laird in Detroit.
The fact that Dombrowski is on record as saying he hasn't made up his mind which would be best for Avila or the Tigers tells you the organization is aware the youngster, a convert to catching at Alabama the year he was drafted, still has shortcomings that need to be overcome.
Last winter the Tigers signed Matt Treanor with the idea that he would spell Laird once or twice a week. Treanor played four games before needing hip surgery and was recently let go, although he could be re-signed to a minor league deal and brought back in the spring.
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