Al Avila out as vice president, general manager of Detroit Tigers

Al Avila is out as executive vice president and general manager of the Detroit Tigers, it was announced Wednesday.

«Once I decided to make a change, I sat down with Al and thanked him for his nearly 22 years of service to our organization,» CEO Christopher Ilitch said in a statement.

Ilitch said he would oversee the search process for Avila's replacement.

«I want to re-establish our momentum and progress towards building a winning team and I am driven to find a talented executive to help us do that,» Ilitch said.

Detroit, which is on pace for a sixth consecutive losing season, has the second-worst record in the American League at 43-68, and the Tigers are last in the AL Central entering Wednesday's game.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.