Royals notebook: Maier gets opportunity as Gathright goes on DL
By DAVID BOYCE
The Kansas City Star
Outfielder Mitch Maier got a little taste of major-league baseball in 2006 when he was a September call-up. He is in position to get a more significant look.
The Royals called up Maier from Class AAA Omaha Thursday and placed outfielder Joey Gathright on the disabled list because of right shoulder bone bruise.
“I’ve been playing with it the last five days,” said Gathright, who is batting .251 in 82 games. “The shoulder hurts when I swing and miss.”
Maier, 26, was the 30th overall pick in the 2003 draft. He played five games for the Royals late in the 2006 season and was batting .316 for Omaha with nine homers and 41 RBIs in 85 games.
“I got my feet a little bit wet. Hopefully, a little bit of the nerves are gone,” Maier said. “I had a hit in the big leagues before. I’m not going to be up there fretting about getting my first hit. Hopefully, that will help out.”
Maier was in the starting lineup Thursday night. He played center field and batted ninth, going one for four with a single.
Royals manager Trey Hillman said Maier has been solid in center at Omaha, so he plans to keep David DeJesus and José Guillen at the corner spots.
“I like his athleticism. I talked to (Omaha manager) Mike Jirschele, and he said Mitch has been playing a real good center field,” Hillman said. “I just like the way he goes after the ball. He’s got good instincts in the outfield, especially for a guy who wasn’t originally an outfielder. I’m anxious to see how he roams this big area in center. We’ll get him right into the mix.”
Maier was tested early, catching four fly balls in the first two innings.
“He got good jumps,” Hillman said. “I thought he looked very comfortable for his first game up here this season. I didn’t see false steps, nor did I see bad routes.”
Howell’s return
When lefty J.P. Howell, now a Rays reliever, played his first season with the Royals, he always had an optimistic outlook. Howell made a rapid climb through the Royals’ system in 2005, moving from the top Class A team to Class AA to Class AAA to Kansas City in a half a season.
“Being in the league taught me how to deal with failure really quick,” Howell said. “I had a few successes in games, but the majority was failure. I think that’s why they got rid of me.”
Howell was traded from the Royals midway through 2006 in a deal that brought Gathright to Kansas City. It was Dayton Moore’s first trade as the Royals general manager.
It couldn’t have worked out better for Howell. He has played a role in Tampa Bay’s amazing climb to first place in the East. Howell is 6-0 with a 2.55 ERA as a reliever.
Stretch problems solved
Brian Bannister pitched so well the first month of the season that he never figured out that there might be something wrong when he threw from the stretch.
That’s because he wasn’t pitching much with men on base. That changed in May, but it wasn’t until recently that Bannister realized his pitches from the stretch weren’t as sharp.
“I need to get my pitches down when I’m throwing out of the stretch,” Bannister said. “I was pushing the ball, and that leads to less life and more home runs.”
Teahen ailing
Outfielder Mark Teahen was out of the starting lineup Thursday because of soreness in his back and hamstring.
“He’s not feeling too good,” Hillman said, “so we’ll let that settle down.”
Minor details
Northwest Arkansas first baseman Kila Kaaihue hit his 25th home run Wednesday and knocked in three runs in the Naturals’ 4-3 victory over Tulsa.
To reach David Boyce, sports reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4745 or send e-mail to dboyce@kcstar.com
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