Mitch Maier

Mitchell William Maier (born June 30, 1982) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals.

Maier was born in Petoskey, Michigan and attended the University of Toledo. In the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft, he was a first-round selection. He was selected 30th overall by the Kansas City Royals.

Maier began his professional career in 2003 with the AZL Royals as a catcher. He played in 51 games, batted .350 and hit two home runs. In 2004, Maier was converted over to third base. He played for two Single-A teams in 2004, the Burlington Bees and the Wilmington Blue Rocks. In 2005, Maier was converted to another position again, this time to the outfield, due to the presence of third base prospect Mark Teahen in the organization. He played for the Single-A High Desert Mavericks in 2005 and also played for the Double-A Wichita Wranglers.

In 2006, Maier began the year at Double-A. He was named to the Texas League midseason All-Star team. He finished the minor league season with a .306 batting average and had 14 home runs in 138 games. Following the Wranglers elimination in the playoff finals, Maier was promoted to the major league club on September 20. He made his major league debut on September 23, 2006.

In 2007, Maier played for the Triple-A Omaha Royals for the entire season. He played in 140 games and batted .279 with 14 home runs.

Maier made his Major League pitching debut as the 8th Royals position player to pitch in a game on July 26, 2011, against the Boston Red Sox in Fenway Park. He pitched a scoreless inning, but gave up a double to David Ortiz.

On July 4, 2012, Maier was designated for assignment after hitting only .172 in 64 at-bats for Kansas City. On Oct. 6, 2012, Maier elected free agency. Later that month, he signed with the Red Sox on a Minor League deal for 2013.

On December 19, 2013 Maier signed a minor-league contract with the Chicago Cubs.

On March 6, 2014, Maier was released by the Cubs. He signed a minor league deal with the Royals on May 1, 2014.

It was announced that for the 2015 season Maier would serve as the Royals back up hitting coach and would start to learn his trade as a coach.