Red Bulls Dump Espindola, Akpan

Nestled in this MLSsoccer.com story on players eligible for Thursday's Re-Entry Draft (more on that later) is news that the Red Bulls have parted ways with Fabian Espindola and Andre Akpan.

The two forwards join Brandon Barklage and Heath Pearce as former 2013 Red Bulls in the re-entry process.

Espindola's release comes on the heels of news that the Red Bulls were reportedly working to restructure his contract, as it was set to jump to $450,000, from the relatively modest $150,000 he was paid last season.

It'll be interesting to see who takes a chance on him, and with nine goals during the 2013 campaign, you have to imagine someone will. The downside is that he's streaky, and while that's a problem with strikers everywhere, his valleys seemed particularly deep, with his peaks not quite making up for them.

Akpan is another interesting case. Last year he was paid $67,595, too much for a fifth choice striker who played 127 minutes. But he did score by the truckload with the reserves, so we'll see how much teams were paying attention there.

If neither Espindola, Akpan, Barklage or Pearce are taken in Thursday's re-entry draft, they're eligible for the draft's second Dec. 18. The remaining players are available on a first come, first served basis.