According to Donnie Collins of the Scranton Times-Tribune, the Yankees have released Russell Branyan.
Don’t feel bad if you forgot Branyan was with the Yankees. I know I did. The veteran slugger hooked on with the Bombers on a minor league deal over the winter, but was limited to just 33 games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this season due to, you guessed it, back problems. The 36-year-old was productive when in the lineup, hitting .309/.348/.645 with 11 home runs, 39 RBI and a 1.093 OPS in 33 games, but didn’t play another game after July 6.
The free-swinging Branyan owns a lowly .236 batting average over 14 major league seasons, but he has also amassed 194 home runs and an .814 OPS. However, given his age and constant back issues, we have probably seen the last of him in the big leagues.
