The Boston Red Sox released outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. on Thursday.
Bradley, 32, rejoined the Red Sox after the team acquired the outfielder and two minor leaguers in a December 2021 trade with the Milwaukee Brewers, giving up slugger Hunter Renfroe.
He was hitting .210 with three home runs and 29 RBIs in 92 games for the Red Sox while making $9.5 million this season.
"We were hoping, offensively, it was going to be a lot better than last year," manager Alex Cora said. "He had some stretches at home that were good. Obviously, he struggled toward the end. We weren't able to get him to be consistent hitting the ball the other way. This year, there weren't too many strikeouts. But toward the end, there were a lot of ground balls to the pull side. Offensively, it just didn't work out."
Bradley, who has a career .228 batting average, was a mainstay for Boston during his first stint with the Red Sox from 2013 to 2020, earning an All-Star nod in 2016 and MVP honors during the 2018 American League Championship Series. He had 62 outfield assists while making 769 starts for the Red Sox.
Jarren Duran started in center on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series against the Royals. He was hitless with a run scored and a walk in the 7-3 loss.
"The last two weeks, [Duran] has really been good with his jumps," Cora said. "He made some adjustments pre-pitch and with the first step. He'll play a lot."
