He knew the lay of the land, having lingered around Comerica Park since his early high school years, and when Alex Avila arrived at his locker inside the Tigers' clubhouse as a rookie six years ago, longtime clubhouse manager Jim Schmakel didn't have to tell him whose number it was.
Hanging inside was the home uniform he longed to wear. On the front, the historic emblem of his favorite team. On the back, his last name — a name long respected in the baseball community — and a number.
Which number a player wears depends on when they come into the ballpark and what's available, Schmakel said recently, but in the case of the kid he watched grow up — the quiet, unassuming son of the assistant general manager — it was dependent on the player.