George John Maisel (March 12, 1892 – December 20, 1968) was an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

with the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

and the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

between 1913 and 1922. Maisel batted and threw right-handed. He also played minor league baseball for 12 seasons and was a manager in the minor leagues from 1925 to 1927.

Early years

Maisel was born in

Catonsville, Maryland Catonsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 41,567 at the 2010 census. The community lies to the west of Baltimore along the city's border. Catonsville contains the majority of th ...

, in 1892.

Baseball player

He began his professional baseball career in 1912 playing for the Harrisburg Senators of the Tri-State League and the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

On September 16, 1912, Maisel was drafted by the

from Harrisburg. He appeared in 11 games for the Browns in 1913, making his major league debut on May 1, 1913, at age 21. Maisel managed only three hits in 18 at bats with the Browns for a .167 batting average. Maisel spent the 1914 and 1915 seasons playing for the

Scranton Miners The Scranton Miners, known as the Scranton Apollos from 1970 to 1977, were a professional basketball team based in Scranton, Pennsylvania that was a member of the American Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association. Arthur Pacht ...

of the New York State League. He compiled a .316 batting average for Scranton in 1915. In 1916, Maisel was acquired by the

and became a backup third baseman to

Ossie Vitt Oscar Joseph "Ossie" Vitt (January 4, 1890 – January 31, 1963) was a Major League Baseball third baseman and manager in the American League for the Detroit Tigers (1912–1918) and Boston Red Sox (1919–1921). Vitt later became manager of the ...

. At the start of the 1916 season, ''Baseball Magazine'' wrote: "Maisel won universal praise for his speed, but his normal hitting gait is not strong enough at the present time to beat out such a clever performer as Oscar Vitt." Maisel appeared in only eight games for Detroit and had no hits in five at bats. During the 1916 season, the Tigers released Maisel to the

Montreal Royals The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, during 1897–1917 and 1928–1960. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club (Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; pi ...

of the

. He compiled a .296 batting average in 115 games for the Royals. In October 1916, the Tigers sold Maisel to the San Francisco Seals of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

. He compiled a .308 batting average in 169 games for the Seals during the 1917 season. During the 1919 and 1920 seasons, Maisel played for the Portland Beavers in the Pacific Coast League. He compiled a career-high .323 batting average in 1920. At the end of the 1920 season, a dispute arose as to whether the San Francisco or Portland club held the rights to Maisel. Maisel's strong performance at Portland earned Maisel a third opportunity to play in the major leagues. He spent the 1921 and 1922 seasons with the

. He had the best major league season in 1921. He was the Cubs' starting center fielder and compiled the fourth best fielding percentage (.978) among all National League outfielders. He also compiled a .310 batting average in 393 at bats. During the 1922 season, Maisel appeared in only 38 games for the Cubs. His final major league appearance was on September 30, 1922, at age 30. Although Maisel's major league career ended in 1922, he continued to play in the minor leagues for several more years. He played for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

of the AA

from 1923 to 1925. He continued to hit for good average in Toronto, compiling batting averages of .321 and .318 in 1923 and 1924.

Baseball manager

Maisel served as the manager of the

Wilkes-Barre Barons The Wilkes-Barre Barons were a basketball team from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The Barons played between 1933 and 1980 in different American leagues. The team won 11 titles during this time, including while playing in the American Basketball ...

in 1925 and 1926 and of the

Reading Keystones The Reading Fightin Phils (also called the Reading Fightins) are a Minor League Baseball team based in Reading, Pennsylvania, playing in the Northeast Division of the Eastern League. The team plays their home games at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Rea ...

in 1927.

Family and later years

Maisel's brother Fritz Maisel played for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

from 1913 to 1917, and his cousin, Charlie Maisel played for the

Baltimore Terrapins The Baltimore Terrapins were one of the most successful teams in the short-lived Federal League of professional baseball from to , but their brief existence led to litigation that led to an important legal precedent in baseball. The team played i ...

in 1915. Maisel died in 1968 at

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, at age 76. He was buried at

Baltimore National Cemetery Baltimore National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located along Maryland Route 144 on both sides of the boundary between the neighborhoods of Beechfield in Baltimore City and Catonsville in Baltimore County. It encompasses . , th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maisel, George 1892 births 1968 deaths Baseball players from Baltimore County, Maryland Major League Baseball center fielders St. Louis Browns players Detroit Tigers players Chicago Cubs players Baltimore Orioles scouts Minor league baseball managers Harrisburg Senators players Baltimore Orioles (International League) players Scranton Miners players Montreal Royals players San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Portland Beavers players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Wilkes-Barre Barons (baseball) players Reading Keystones players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players People from Catonsville, Maryland Burials at Baltimore National Cemetery