The Yankees have officially released Aaron Hicks

THE New York Yankees Outfielder Aaron Hicks was officially released on Friday, nearly a week after being designated for assignment.

THE Yankees also recalled right-hander Randy Vazquez from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, while shortstop Nick Ramirez was optioned to Triple-A.

Hicks has more than two years left on the seven-year, $70 million contract he signed in 2019. In 28 games this season, he batted .188 with one home run and five RBIs.

New York owes the 33-year-old $10.5 million for the rest of this season and a total of $19 million over the next two seasons.

In his career, Hicks hit .230 with 101 home runs and 356 RBIs in 898 games for the Minnesota Twins and Yankees

“It is what it is,” Hicks told the New York Post after being named to the assignment. “That’s part of the business side. I’ve just got to move on to the next chapter. … It’s a really good baseball team. It just kind of felt like it wasn’t working out for me.”

The 24-year-old Vazquez can make his league debut. He is 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA in nine starts at Triple-A this season.

Ramirez, 33, had a 2.00 ERA in six relief appearances Yankees in this season. He is 6-5 with a 4.36 ERA in 70 career starts with the Detroit Tigers (2019-20), San Diego Padres (2021) and Yankees

— Field Level Media