KANSAS CITY — The only mitt missing from Mark Teahen’s collection is a catcher’s glove.

The Royals’ current outfielder, former third baseman and sometimes first baseman keeps four gloves in his locker — none of which seems particularly neglected the past two seasons.

This night, he’ll grab the outfielder glove on his way out for warm-ups prior to the Royals’ matchup with the San Francisco Giants at Kauffman Stadium. Tomorrow, who knows? That’s life for Teahen on a defensive carousel the past two seasons.

Teahen came to the Royals from the Oakland organization as a part of the three-team, Carlos Beltran trade in 2004. He made his major league debut the next season and in 2005 and ’06 logged 237 games at third base — his natural position since sophomore year at St. Mary’s (Calif.) College.

But Teahen ceded third to highly touted rookie Alex Gordon last year and has been a positional nomad since. This season, Teahen has played 14 games at first base, 20 in left field and 41 in right (He played five games in center field last year just for good measure).

“Initially, just like anyone, I was a bit ticked off because you prepare yourself to be a big-league third basemen,” Teahen said of the switch. “I understood it was the best thing for the team and understand it only helps me be more versatile and more valuable.”

Prior to Gordon’s arrival in Kansas City, Teahen had no experience in the outfield at any level, but that didn’t seem to sour him to the situation, according to teammates.

“The best thing about Mark is he is a team player. I could see that the first day I walked in. He took that transition very well,” Gordon said. “He moved out there with no complaints.”

And it’s not as if the Royals have let Teahen get too comfortable at any new position either. The 26-year-old arrives at the ballpark each afternoon needing a lineup card check to figure out where he will be playing that particular evening. On Friday, manager Trey Hillman penciled Teahen in right field — his regular place at least the past few weeks.

“I come to field and check the lineup card and figure out what glove to take out to the field,” Teahen said. “For the most part it doesn’t mess with you too much, but it’s nice when you kind of get settled into a routine.”

To Teahen’s credit, his defensive stats would seem to indicate he’s as good in the outfield as third, if not better. In 237 games at third, Teahen committed 34 errors and had a .719 zone rating — the percentage of balls fielded by a player in his typical defensive zone.

In 205 games in the outfield, Teahen has just seven errors with a zone rating of .839 or better at each of the three positions. In right field, Teahen has a rating of .899 — better than Ken Griffey Jr., Vladimir Guerrero, Jermaine Dye, J.D. Drew or Bobby Abreu.

Teahen’s athleticism allowed him to make the transition to the outfield without too much trouble, but the Redlands Calif., native surprised some Royals with his arm strength, recording 17 outfield assists last season. While he readily admits there are more tough plays to make at third and he wasn’t entirely comfortable there his rookie season, Teahen sees some sort of success story in those statistics.

“I guess the zone ratings and anything else, I don’t look at that,” Teahen said. “But it’s nice to know it’s comparable to other guys in the league.”

Of course, there still are some awkward moments in the process. Friday night, Jose Castillo hit a line drive to right. Teahen initially turned over the wrong shoulder as he ran toward the wall. But he spun back to his right and caught the ball as he crashed into the fence, holding on long enough for the out before it squirted out of his glove.

But Teahen understands each learning experience increases his value to the Royals organization. That didn’t help him in arbitration last season — a process based mostly on offensive numbers — or in the next three years of his contract. But it seems conceivable Teahen’s ability to play five positions would make him more attractive on the open market.

Teahen swears those concerns are far removed from his mind right now, and if given the choice, he doesn’t even know which glove he would choose to use on a daily basis if given the choice.

“I don’t know which one I prefer to be honest with you right now. It’s kind of a coin flip,” Teahen said. “Obviously my comfort zone was third base coming up. Now that I am out of that, it’s kind of whatever I’m feeling that day.”

Sports reporter R.J. Cooper can be reached at rjcooper@npgco.com