Casualty of the Mitchell Report?

ESPN.com is reporting that the Baltimore Orioles have released outfielder Jay Gibbons, noting this move has nothing to do with his impending suspension due to his involvement with receiving a shipment of HGH (Human Growth Hormone).

Yep, and the Easter Bunny and Santa Clause both exist, Barry Bonds is the rightful Home Run King, and JFK was killed by only one shooter.

According to ESPN.com:

Gibbons batted .189 with no homers and four RBIs in 16 games this spring training after playing in only 84 games last season. Baltimore owes him $11.9 million for the next two seasons as part of a $21.1 million, four-year contract he agreed to in January 2006.

You don't think that the Orioles could have gotten something for him, even if it was a low level prospect or two? The Mets are badly in need of a healthy outfielder, and the Orioles could have taken advantage of that situation.

Time and time again this spring, we've seen the same old line of "Don't worry about his spring training numbers, they don't translate into regular season success/underperformance". Why would the Orioles be so quick to pull the trigger on Gibbons?

The AP broke the initial story, with team president Andy MacPhail leading the propaganda machine:

The team didn't see him getting much time as a reserve outfielder and left-handed designated hitter, and keeping the more versatile Scott Moore as a utility player made far more sense.

"The decision was essentially down to two players, and we made a baseball decision," said club president Andy MacPhail, who delivered the news to Gibbons.

"We laid it out pretty clearly," MacPhail said. "For you to be a productive player you need to play, and that opportunity just doesn't exist here absent some horrific injury. His words were, 'I agree completely.'"

Spencer Fordin, from MLB.com, writes:

Excising Gibbons from the roster means a little more of a clear substitution pattern for Trembley. Huff and Kevin Millar will rotate at first base and designated hitter, and Moore will pick up playing time from them and from third baseman Melvin Mora. Gibbons will likely end up elsewhere within the next few weeks, but his former teammates will keep him in mind.

"When you hear something like that, its always emotional," said Millar. "It's like one of your family members, [but] you understand where it's coming from. You understand when you look around at the roster and there's a lot of left-handed hitters. ... It was going to be tough for Jay to get at-bats, and obviously, it's been a dogfight for the last couple years for him."