Nick Swisher released by Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves have released Nick Swisher despite him being owed $15 million for the upcoming season. The Cleveland Indians are on the hook for $5 million of that, which puts the $10 million balance on the Braves' books.

Swisher, who is 35, is now a free agent and can be signed by any team. However, over the past two seasons, Swisher has only managed a .278 wOBA over 661 plate appearances. By wRC+, Swisher has been 25 percent worse than league average.

Swisher's last useful season was 2013 for the Indians, in which he managed a wRC+ 13 percent better than league average and amassed 2.1 wins above replacement by FanGraphs estimations.

The Braves didn't really have a spot for Swisher; especially if he continued to hit so poorly. As a first baseman or corner outfielder, Swisher would have had to compete with Freddie Freeman, Nick Markakis, Hector Olivera, Michael Bourn, and Emilio Bonifacio for playing time. Furthermore, t appears that their utility outfield/infield spot will be taken by Kelly Johnson instead.

It seems like a long shot for any team to take a chance on Swisher at this point. A team looking purely for injury depth may see Swisher as a feasible addition, but that might take until the season is underway.