<p>LAKELAND, Fla. -- If the season opened Sunday, Alex Avila would be playing through back spasms. He gets them a couple of times a year, he said, but it usually doesn't force him out of the lineup.</p><p>Since Grapefruit League play hasn't started yet, however, Avila isn't pushing it. He missed a second day of Tigers workouts Sunday, spending most of the morning in the clubhouse while receiving treatment and doing lower-back exercises.</p><p>Avila felt enough improvement by midday that he expects to return on Monday, when Justin Verlander throws to hitters for the first time this spring.</p><p>"The way I'm feeling today, I most likely would be available [Monday]," Avila said. "That's according to how I progressed from yesterday."</p><p><a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20140223&content_id=68230700&notebook_id=68231898&vkey=notebook_det&c_id=det">Keep reading...</a></p>