The Philadelphia Phillies have released outfielder Nick Castellanos, making him a free agent who can sign with any club for the league minimum.
Castellanos, still owed $20 million, is going into the final season of a five-year, $100 million contract. The Phillies will owe the entirety of that sum, minus the prorated portion of the league minimum.
Castellanos, 33, hit .250 with 17 homers and 72 RBIs in 147 games for the National League East champions last year.
Castellanos was benched late last season in Miami after he made what Phillies manager Rob Thomson described as “an inappropriate comment” after he was pulled for a defensive replacement. Castellanos said in September that communication with Thomson had been “questionable, at least in my experience.”
On Thursday, Castellanos addressed the “Miami incident,” in an Instagram post. He did not reveal the comment that angered his teammates but admitted to bringing a beer into the dugout out of frustration after Thomson removed him from the game.
“After being taken out of a close ball game in front of my friends and family, I brought a Presidente into the dugout,” Catellanos wrote. “I then sat right next to Rob and let him know that too much slack in some areas and too tight of restrictions in others was not conducive to us winning.”
Castellanos also thanked his teammates for taking the drink away from him before he took a sip and said he apologized to them, Thomson and Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.
Adolis Garcia is expected to replace Castellanos in right field after he signed a one-year, $10 million contract with Philadelphia in December.
