Роберто Авила: Легенда мексиканского бейсбола

Mexican baseball player (1924–2004)

Roberto Francisco Ávila González (April 2, 1924 – October 26, 2004), known as "Beto" in Mexico and as "Bobby" in the United States, was a Mexican professional baseball second baseman. A native of Veracruz, Mexico, Ávila began his career playing for the Puebla Angeles of the Mexican League from 1943 to 1947. He played 10 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians from 1949 to 1958 before dividing the 1959 season between the Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, and Milwaukee Braves. Ávila won the 1954 American League batting championship with a .341 batting average. He also received The Sporting News American League Player of the Year award in 1954 and was named to the American League All Star team in 1952, 1954, and 1955. After retiring as a player, Ávila owned a Mexican baseball team and became president of the Mexican League. He became mayor of Veracruz in 1980 and later served two terms in the Mexican national legislature. He was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971 and the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010.

Ávila was born in 1924 in Veracruz, Mexico, to Maria Gonzalez and Jorge Ávila. Ávila played baseball and soccer as a youth. He began playing professional soccer as a teenager. He then switched to baseball, playing for the semi professional Cordoba club. He began as a pitcher, but later converted to second base.

Ávila began his baseball professional baseball career at age 19 with the Puebla Angeles of the Mexican League. He played for Puebla from 1943 to 1947. In 1947, he led the Mexican League with a .346 batting average.

The Cleveland Indians signed Avila in 1948 for a $17,500 bonus and assigned him to the Baltimore Orioles, the Indians' farm team in the International League. He appeared in 56 games for the Orioles and compiled a .220 batting average. He made his major league debut on April 30, 1949, but with Hall of Famer Joe Gordon starting 145 games as the Indians' second baseman, Ávila appeared in only 31 games and had only 14 at bats during the 1949 season. In 1953, Ávila had one of his best defensive seasons. He led American League second basemen in fielding percentage (.986), assists (445), and range factor per nine innings (5.86). His batting average, which stood at .392 at the time of the injury, fell precipitously after the injury but then rebounded. He ended the season with career highs in batting average (.341), on base percentage (.402), home runs (15), RBIs (67), and runs (112). The 1954 Cleveland team, loaded with talent that included Ávila, Bob Lemon, Larry Doby, and Al Rosen, won 111 games and the American League pennant. The 1954 World Series matched the two leagues' batting champions, Ávila and Willie Mays. Ávila had only two hits in 15 at bats during the World Series. Ávila was the first Mexican born player to play in an All Star Game and the first to win a batting championship. In his final season in the major leagues, he played for three different teams. He was traded by the Indians on December 2, 1958, to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Russ Heman and $30,000. He was shifted to right field by the Orioles, starting nine games at the position. He compiled a .170 batting average in 47 at bats. He returned to second base and hit .244 in 45 at bats for Boston. In his first game for the Braves, he hit a two run home run in the ninth inning for a Milwaukee victory. He started 45 games at second base for the Braves and hit .238 in 172 at bats.

In 11 major league seasons, Ávila compiled a .281 batting average and a .359 on base percentage with 1,296 hits, 80 home runs, 467 RBIs, 725 runs, 185 doubles, 35 triples, and 78 stolen bases in 1,300 games. In 1971, he was inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1980, Ávila was elected as the mayor of his home city of Veracruz. He later served two three year terms in the Mexican national legislature. In 1999, The Sporting News chose Ávila as the second baseman on its All Star Latin American team. In 2004, Ávila died at age 80 in Veracruz. The cause of death was complications from diabetes and a lung ailment. In 2010, Ávila was posthumously inducted in the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2020, Ávila was selected as the starting second baseman on the Mexican League Historic Ideal Team by a committee of baseball journalists and historians.