Castellanos released, admits to beer in dugout

The Philadelphia Phillies released outfielder Nick Castellanos on Thursday after the team was unable to make a deal to trade him. Castellanos then revealed he was benched last season after bringing beer into the dugout during a game.

The team wanted the situation resolved before its first full-squad workout at spring training, which is Monday.

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 was benched last season after he made what Phillies manager Rob Thomson described as “an inappropriate comment” after he was pulled for a defensive replacement in Miami. Castellanos said in September that communication with Thomson had been “questionable, at least in my experience.”

On Thursday, Castellanos posted a handwritten note on social media explaining the incident that preceded his benching. He said he brought beer into the dugout after being taken out of a game and complained to Thomson about team rules. He said teammates took the beer away before he drank any.

“After being taken out of a close ball game in front of my friends and family, I brought a Presidente into the dugout,” Castellanos 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.”

Afterward, he went into the office with Thomson and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.

“We aired out our differences and the conversation ended with me apologizing for letting my emotions get the best of me,” Castellanos said, adding that he was benched the next game as punishment.

Castellanos, who turns 34 on March 4, hit .250 with 17 homers and 72 RBIs in 147 games for the NL East champions last year. Dombrowski said Monday that the Phillies were talking to other teams about him.

Adolis Garcia is expected to replace Castellanos in right field after he signed a $10 million, one-year contract with Philadelphia in December.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.