The Pittsburgh Pirates unconditionally released infielder Ramon Vazquez, who was designated for assignment on Sunday in order to set the Opening Day roster. Vazquez is now a free agent, able to sign with any team. The Pirates are on the hook for the full $2 M salary that Vazquez was owed in 2010, although they would be relieved of up to $400 K if another team signs him this season.
On a related note, MLB Trade Rumors had a feature today giving each team one contract mulligan, and Vazquez was who they came up with for the Pirates. I can’t argue with that, especially since every other bad contract the Pirates have had recently (Ian Snell, Jack Wilson/Freddy Sanchez options) has been successfully traded away.
