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MLB

Braves Release Tom Glavine

Posted Jun 03, 2009 6:15PM By Ed Price (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Braves, MLB Transactions

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Tom GlavineHours before Randy Johnson went for his 300th win, the Braves released the last pitcher to reach the milestone.

Rather than pay $1 million to activate Tom Glavine from the disabled list, with $2.5 million more in possible bonuses down the line, Atlanta released him.

Agent Gregg Clifton said in an interview on the MLB Network that Glavine "definitely" will pitch again in the majors.

"We've already had a number of teams call us in the last few hours," Clifton said. "Tom has said to me he's not retiring. He feels good."

Glavine, 43, has a 305-203 career record, with 244 of his wins coming for Atlanta (but No. 300 with the Mets).

He underwent surgery on his left elbow last year and began this season on the disabled list. As he was about to be activated in April, he suffered a shoulder setback that left him wondering if he would return. But his shoulder improved and he threw 11 scoreless minor-league innings in two recent rehabilitation outings.

Last month, Glavine said he "could live with" throwing 82-83 mph, figuring he would win with that slow a fastball because of his control and smarts.

"The question that I have," Clifton said, "is why wasn't Tom given an opportunity – after all these years and all the success he's had – to be able to see whether or not he could still do it on a big-league mound."

His contract included a $1 million base salary, a $1 million bonus for his first day on the active roster and $1.25 million bonuses for reaching 30 and 90 days on the active roster.

"We appreciate and respect everything Tom has done for and brought to the Atlanta Braves organization and our fans," Braves general manager Frank Wren said in a prepared statement. "His accomplishments for our club during his Hall of Fame career is a measure of his dedication that we will always respect and admire. We wish him nothing but the very best."

Instead of adding Glavine to their rotation, the Braves called up heralded prospect Tommy Hanson to start Saturday, bumping fellow rookie Kris Medlen to relief.

Tags: Tom+Glavine

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