WASHINGTON -- Less than two weeks after the Braves provided him a chance to renew his baseball career, Scott Spiezio once again finds himself unemployed and still fighting the substance abuse issues that have haunted him over the last year.

Before Saturday afternoon's game against the Nationals at Nationals Park, Braves general manager Frank Wren announced that Spiezio had been released from his Minor League contract.

Spiezio, who on Monday pled guilty to driving under the influence and hit-and-run charges in Orange County, Calif., was informed of the decision early Saturday morning. The 35-year-old veteran utility player left the Braves little choice when he showed up late on Friday for Triple-A Richmond's game against Lehigh Valley.

"We had an agreement with Scott that he would do three things," Wren said. "One was to continue his aftercare, which included testing. Second was that he would attend [Alcoholics Anonymous meetings] and the third thing was that he would show up at the park every day, ready to play. Yesterday, he wasn't ready to play."

While Wren wouldn't specify what allowed the Richmond coaching staff to make this determination, Spiezio's past provides indication that substance abuse issues likely played a part.

The Cardinals placed Spiezio on the restricted list last August to deal with unidentified substance abuse issues. His problems got much worse on Dec. 30, when he crashed his 2004 BMW and then had an physical altercation with a friend in the friend's apartment.

Knowing that Spiezio's guilty plea wouldn't force him to miss any time this season and believing that he was truly ready to turn his life around, the Braves signed him to the Minor League deal on March 31.

Wren spoke to Spiezio on Saturday morning to tell him of this decision.

"He's really saddened by it," Wren said. "It's two-fold. I think he was really appreciative of the opportunity, and he realized -- and we realized -- that he needed more time to continue his rehabilitation."

When they signed Spiezio, the Braves hoped that he would be able to strengthen their bench with his defensive versatility and experience as a pinch-hitter. Now, they're just hoping, for the sake of his health and well-being, that he'll have the time to right himself with proper care.

"He just needs more time, and he needs to be in an environment where he can get the kind of care that he needs," Wren said.

During the five games that he played with Richmond, Spiezio hit .333 (7-for-21).

"He'd played very well and played himself into a position where we felt [that], at some point, he could probably help us," Wren said. "Dave Brundage, our Triple-A manager, was clearly saddened this morning when I talked to him, because he thought Scott was making good progress on all fronts."