TWO FOR THE SHOW

It has been a goal for Phil Avlas for three years.

Ever since the night he watched Kennedy High lose to El Camino Real, 13-11, in the City Section baseball final at Dodger Stadium in 1997, Avlas had been hoping for a return engagement.

This time with him playing for the Golden Cougars.

“I’ve visualized it a little bit,” Avlas said. “I knew I was coming to school [at Kennedy] and I thought, ‘Wow, what if that was me behind the plate?’ ”

Ask and you shall receive, with a touch of irony thrown in by the baseball genie.

Avlas gets his wish tonight when the Golden Cougars (22-11-1) face El Camino Real (21-8) in the City Championship game at 7:30 at Dodger Stadium.

Not only is the junior catcher and cleanup hitter getting a chance to live a dream, he’s doing it with the added incentive of El Camino Real as the opponent.

“The whole thing hasn’t kicked in for me yet,” Avlas said. “It’s going to be a hell of a ride [on the bus to the stadium]. Once I step on that field, it’ll kick in.”

Avlas, an All-City second-team selection in 1999, is not the outwardly excitable type. He is not flashy or loud and doesn’t carry a chip on his shoulder. But he can help beat a team in many ways without fanfare.

There’s the strong arm with the fluid motion. And the slick footwork that greatly contributes to the pitch-blocking skills. And the quick bat that has produced a team-leading .480 average, 36 runs batted in and three home runs.

“He’s potentially the best we’ve had here,” Coach Manny Alvarado said. “If he wasn’t catching, he’d be a shortstop. His hands are that soft.”

Avlas fell in love with catching without much of a courtship.

“When I was 9, I was at a [Little League] practice and nobody wanted to catch,” Avlas said. “My dad and my uncle were the coaches and I asked if I could catch. They stuck me behind [the plate] and I’ve been there ever since.

“It’s fun for me. . . . I have the best view on the field.”

The Kennedy pitchers know they have an extremely reliable guy in Avlas, someone who can bail them out of an inning by throwing out a baserunner or by selling the umpire on a borderline strike by swiftly framing the pitch.

“He has an awesome cannon and comes up with the big play,” sophomore right-hander Adam Geery said of Avlas. “You have a lot of confidence in yourself when you go to the stretch because you know he’ll throw people out.”

A good defensive catcher who can hit is a bonus, and the Golden Cougars hit the jackpot with Avlas, who tinkered with his swing over the summer to take advantage of Kennedy’s expansive field, where it’s 358 feet to the left-center field fence and 453 to right-center field.

Avlas, a right-handed batter, wanted to hammer a few more line drives to the alleys and fewer fly balls that would be likely outs. The approach produced 10 doubles and two triples.

Last year, Avlas batted .369 with seven doubles and 19 RBIs.

“I was mostly a pull hitter,” Avlas said. “I’ve been making pretty good contact going to the right side.”

The Golden Cougars will welcome any contact Avlas makes tonight, whether slamming a shot up the alley or tagging out a runner at the plate. Whichever the case, don’t expect Avlas to showboat. He plans to pursue his goal of three years with his quiet but intense demeanor.

“All I’m out there for is to just play the game and win,” Avlas said.