Wednesday afternoon the Houston Dynamo announced that the team had waived defender Jordan Graye.
The 24-year-old Graye was acquired ahead of the 2011 season from the Portland Timbers in exchange for a 2014 draft pick. Graye's playing time with the Dynamo was limited, and the young defender only made one official appearance for Houston in a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup qualifying match in April, but managed to play in five games in the MLS Reserve League. The defender did not feature in any first team action for the Dynamo.
From a fan's perspective, there are two ways to look at this news.
The first is to view the release of Graye with a positive spin. With Graye out of Houston, the Dynamo have an open roster spot and an extra $44,000 in salary cap space. While Graye's salary was not high, coming in just above the league minimum, the extra salary cap space could be enough for the Dynamo to promote someone from the Dynamo Academy or to go after a young player from somewhere else in the league.
The other way to view this situation is with a bit of frustration. With the transfer window open and Houston needing to plug a few gaps in the line-up, why would the club decide to release a player when he could be used as a part of a trade for another player? With a low salary and some potential, Graye could have been used to sweeten a deal and improve Houston's position in a potential trade.
What do you think Dynamo fans; do you agree with the Dynamo's decision to release Graye or do you think they should have held onto him and used him as trade bait?