Cleveland Browns: Awkward timing for Tyvis Powell release
The Cleveland Browns decided to part ways with safety Tyvis Powell on Friday. Unfortunately, the team probably could’ve picked a better time to do so.
The Cleveland Browns claimed safety Tyvis Powell off waivers from the Seattle Seahawks earlier this offseason. At the time, the move made plenty of sense. Cleveland was thin at the safety position, and Powell was a 23-year old with size (6-3, 210 pounds) and athletic potential.
It obviously didn’t hurt that Powell was a Bedford, Ohio native and that he played his college ball at Ohio State. In many ways, Powell coming to Cleveland was a bit of a homecoming.
“You grow up watching your hometown team and you get to finally become part of your hometown team, it’s a blessing,” Powell said after being claimed, per Doug Lesmerises of Cleveland.com.
Unfortunately, Powell’s homecoming was short-lived. The Browns decided to part way with him on Friday, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com:
#Browns announce they've waived safety Tyvis Powell
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) June 9, 2017
What the Browns didn’t know when they released Powell was that he was scheduled to throw out the first pitch at Friday’s Cleveland Indians game.
According to Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com, the ceremonial pitch was coordinated by the Indians, Powell’s agent and Ohio State. While Powell isn’t a star, he’s a former Buckeye standout and a hometown kid, so the idea definitely makes sense.
Per Meisel, Powell decided to go ahead with the pitch anyway. While all of this created an awkward situation for both Powell and the Browns, it was apparently unintentional. According to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon-Journal, the Browns weren’t intentional with their timing:
#Browns were unaware Tyvis Powell was set to throw out first pitch at Indians game when they cut him. Awkward timing but not cold-blooded.
— Nate Ulrich (@ByNateUlrich) June 9, 2017
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The good new for Powell is that his release comes early enough in the offseason that he should have enough time to stick with another team. And even if the timing was unintentionally awkward, the Ohio State product still experienced a cool moment throwing out the first pitch in Cleveland.