Phillies release infielder Ryan Flaherty

By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor

The Philadelphia Phillies granted non-roster invitee infielder Ryan Flaherty his unconditional release on Thursday, opting to not sign the six-year veteran to a big league contract with a week remaining until Opening Day.

Flaherty, 31, exercised the out-clause in his contract on Wednesday, allowing the Phillies 48 hours to decide to whether to grant his request, or add him to the 40-man roster. The club opted to instead stick with the more-versatile utilityman Jesmuel Valentin and Pedro Florimon, with versatility being an important factor for manager Gabe Kapler.

Flaherty hit .351/.390/.514 spanning 37 at-bats this spring, with three doubles, one home run, eight RBI, three walks, three strikeouts and 19 total bases. In the month of March alone, Flaherty produced a .400/.424/.600 slash with 12 hits in 30 at-bats.

Just nine non-roster invitees remain in Phillies' big league camp: right-handers Pedro Beato, Tom Eshelman, Drew Hutchison and Francisco Rodriguez, catcher Matt McBride, infielders Scott Kingery, Will Middlebrooks and Adam Rosales, and outfielder Collin Cowgill. Middlebrooks will miss significant time this season while recovering from a fractured left fibula suffered on Feb. 24.