7/24 12:25: According to John Fay of Cincinnati Enquirer, Gary Matthews Jr exercised his opt out clause of his contract with the Reds. He now becomes a free agent.

7/23 18:19:Gary Matthews Jr. will opt out of his Minor League contract with the Cincinnati Reds, according to his agent Scott Leventhal (via Mark Sheldon of MLB.com).

“Everything was amicable,” Leventhal said Friday night. “It just didn’t work out. It’s wasn’t for lack of performance. They didn’t have the roster spot.”

The Reds had a Saturday deadline to call up the 35-year-old Matthews to the big league club. Matthews will now opt out of his deal and will look elsewhere for a big league job.

Matthews was signed by the Reds to a Minor League deal on June 24th. The outfielder started the year with the New York Mets but was designated for assignment in June and eventually released by the team.