Michael Rene Rivera (born September 8, 1976) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball catcher.

He played for the Detroit Tigers, San Diego Padres, Milwaukee Brewers, and Florida Marlins during a nine-season Major League Baseball (MLB) career.

[1] Rivera attended Troy State University (where he was a Mid-Continent Conference Eastern Division All-Star) and was signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent in 1997.

Rivera played the entire 2001 season with the Double-A Erie SeaWolves before being called up to the majors in September.

He made his major league debut on September 18, 2001, for the Tigers against the Minnesota Twins as a late inning defensive replacement.

He recorded his first major league hit on September 27 against the Kansas City Royals, a single to left field off Mike MacDougal.

With Miller returning in 2007, and the acquisition of Johnny Estrada from the Arizona Diamondbacks, Rivera began the season with Nashville, but also played in 11 games for Milwaukee.

On April 20, 2010, Rivera signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers and was assigned to the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts.

On September 2, 2010 he signed a minor league contract with the Florida Marlins[1] and was assigned to the Triple-A New Orleans Zephyrs, where he hit .111 in three games.