Detroit — Let’s start with the numbers. Because they are eye-popping.
Alex Avila, among major league hitters with at least 150 plate appearances, has the highest hard-contact rate (57.5 percent, according to FanGraphs.com). Chasing him on that list are Miguel Sano, Nick Castellanos, Paul Goldschmidt, Aaron Judge and Miguel Cabrera.
His line-drive percentage (27.1) ranks eighth in baseball.
Avila’s wRC-plus (adjusted runs created) of 176 ranks fifth. He ranks eighth in on-base percentage (.430), ninth in slugging (.611) and has an offensive WAR of 14.6. More traditionally, he is hitting .311 with 10 home runs, 27 RBIs and a 17.