The Kansas City Royals have released Michael Saunders after the Canadian outfielder rejected an assignment to Triple-A, according to a report from Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com.

The Royals signed Saunders to a minor league deal with an invited to spring training earlier this off-season. The 31-year-old Saunders started last year with the Philadelphia Phillies before signing with the Toronto Blue Jays later in the year, batting a combined .202 with six home runs and 21 RBIs in 73 games.

Saunders was an All-Star for the Blue Jays back in 2016, powered off his strong first half of the season. He finished that year batting .253 with 24 home runs and 57 RBIs.