Luis Avilan, Relief Pitcher, Washington Nationals

Date of Birth: 7/19/1989
Birthplace: Caracas, Venezuela

Luis Avilan, relief pitcher for the Washington Nationals, was first signed by the Atlanta Braves in August, 2005. He pitched in the Braves' minor league system from 2006 through 2011.

Avilan pitched in 31 games with the Braves in 2012. He had a 2.00 ERA in 36.0 innings. He also pitched 61.1 innings in 16 games in the minors.

Avilan had his best season so far in 2013. That year, he had career highs in games played (75) and innnings pitched (65.0) and a career low ERA of 1.52. The following season, he had a 4.57 ERA in 43.1 innings in 62 games.

The Braves traded Avilan to the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 30, 2015. He finished the season with a career high 49 strikeouts to 15 walks and a 4.05 ERA in 50 games with the Braves and 23 games with the Dodgers.

In 2016, Avilan split his time in the regular season between the Dodgers and the minors. He had a 3.20 ERA in 19.2 innings in 27 games with the Dodgers. In the postseason, he pitched 3.2 innings in 5 games and he gave up 4 hits and no runs. He struck out 3 batters and walked 1.

Avilan pitched in 61 games with the Dodgers in 2017. He finished the season with 2 wins and 3 losses, 52 strikeouts to 22 walks, and a 2.93 ERA in 46.0 innings. He didn't pitch in the postseason.

The Dodgers traded Avilan to the Chicago White Sox on January 4, 2018. He was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on August 22, 2018. He finished the season with 2 wins and 1 loss, 2 saves, 51 strikeouts to 18 walks, and a 3.77 ERA in 45.1 innings in 58 games with the White Sox and 12 games with the Phillies.

Avilan became a free agent on November 30, 2018. He signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets on January 10, 2019. He spent time on the DL in 2019 with left elbow soreness. He finished the season with 4 wins and no losses, 30 strikeouts to 14 walks, and a 5.06 ERA in 32.0 innings in 45 games.

Avilan became a free agent on October 31, 2019. He signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees on February 3, 2020. He pitched 8.1 innings in 10 games in 2020, and he had an ERA of 4.32.

Avilan elected free agency on November 2, 2020. he signed a minor league contract with the Nationals on January 4, 2021. He spent time on the IL in 2021 with left elbow inflammation. He pitched just 5.0 innings in 4 games with the Nationals.

Career pitching statistics for Avilan through 2021 include:

• 458 games played
• 354.0 innings pitched
• 23-11 win-loss record
• 319 strikeouts to 140 walks
• 3.43 ERA

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Luis Avilan
ESPN - Luis Avilan