The baseballs Andruw Jones hit for the Dodgers rarely followed that particular path. So the team parted ways with the All-Star center fielder-turned-albatross Thursday, giving him an unconditional release.

Thirteen months after trumpeting Jones as the middle-of-the-order bat they had gone long enough without, the Dodgers couldn't find any team willing to trade for him at a bargain-bin price. They released him in return for agent Scott Boras restructuring the contract two weeks ago.

"Obviously this is a disappointing day for both us and Andruw, as we all had high hopes for him when he signed last year given his track record and everything that we had seen from him in the past and heard about him," General Manager Ned Colletti said in a statement.

"I know that Andruw is also very disappointed in the way things turned out, and the best thing to do at this point is to turn the page, and we wish him well."

The Dodgers did get something out of letting the highest paid player in the team's history walk - payroll flexibility.

They owed Jones $22.1 million from the two-year, $36.2 million contract he signed last winter, and he agreed to defer that amount evenly over the next six years, with the team paying him about $3.6 million per year.

The Dodgers will save more than $13 million from their 2009 payroll that could be put toward re-signing Manny Ramirez and one or two more free-agent pitchers.

In return, Jones becomes a free agent and gets a chance to start over elsewhere after hitting .158, with three home runs, and going on the disabled list three times with knee injuries.

Jones, 32 in April, spent his previous 12 seasons in Atlanta as a five-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glover, and he could try to return. He has been working out with his old teammates.

In Los Angeles, Jones was overweight and booed mercilessly by fans in his own stadium who grew tired of his strikeouts. He asked for a trade after the season.

Any team can now sign Jones for the major league minimum of $400,000.

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TRONCOSO STARTING

Reliever Ramon Troncoso, starting in the Dominican Winter League at the request of the Dodgers, could become a candidate for a rotation spot.

He went 3-0 with a 2.57 ERA while adding a curve to his sinkerball.

"I'd like to be a starter," said Troncoso, who was 1-1 with a 4.26 ERA in 32 games in his rookie season.

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MORE Dodgers NOTES

Jonathan Broxton, Andre Ethier, Russell Martin and Jason Repko filed for salary arbitration.

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