The Montreal Expos on Thursday released Hideki Irabu in a move that could end the major league career of the injury-prone Japanese right-hander.
Montreal made the announcement after Irabu finished a seven-day suspension imposed on Aug. 29 for what his agent Don Nomura described as a drinking spree that led him to be hospitalized one day before his scheduled start in the minor leagues.
Irabu, who is currently going through a rehabilitation stint with Triple-A Ottawa, went 0-2 with a 4.86 earned run average.
He is 2-7 with a 6.69 ERA over two seasons with the Expos as knee and elbow problems kept him on the disabled list for much of his stint, limiting him to 11 starts in 2000 and only three this season.
The 32-year-old former Lotte Marines star was traded to Montreal in December 1999 after going 29-20 with a 4.80 ERA over two-plus seasons as the fifth starter in the New York Yankees rotation.