The End is rarely pretty for professional athletes. On occasion, the athlete, mindful that his/her skills have declined to the degree that they are no longer elite, will let us know it is The End, announcing that a particular season will be their last.

Some amble away quietly, like the Good Guy in the old cowboy movies. Their departures often goes unnoticed until some ask, "Whatever happened to [fill in the blank]?"

Most often, The End is sad. Men, some barely past the peak of their youth, are cut or ignored. Or both. Not on their terms, as it's often said. Their heart and mind still says I can play, but the body can't follow through.

Less than a week after the 43-year-old, 305-game winning certain HOFer was unceremoniously cut by the Atlanta Braves (where he won a World Series ring in 1995). Glavine is reportedly pondering a grievance against the team for firing him for "business" reasons rather than for his ability to pitch.

Coming off shoulder and elbow surgery, Glavine said he was ready to pitch. He wanted to have the ball in his hand at least one more time.

The timing of the move (the day before he would have been activated for a Sunday start) was, at best, squirrelly, at worst, cruel. It allowed the Braves to avoid paying him $1 million bonus due when he was placed on the active roster.

"By not paying me, I think that freed up some money for them to do that," Glavine said. "So I think it was much more of a business and financial situation than it was a performance situation."

He's probably right. Of course it was a business decision. Baseball's collective bargaining agreement says players cannot be released for soley financial reasons (wink) but it happens all the time in sports. Not always involving a legend, but it happens nonetheless.

That said, the cut was cold. Glavine's status as an icon in Atlanta, his value to the franchise as a tie to the team's most recent glories exceeds $1 million.

Even the Braves admit they bungled it.  “I, as the president of the club, could have taken more time to explain not only the circumstances around the decision, although we made that decision in unanimous fashion, but to explain to Tommy our high regard for him,” said John Schuerholz. “But I don’t feel like I really expressed myself as completely and as fully and to the level that somebody like Tommy deserves,” Schuerholz said.

Here's the irony. The Braves bungle is allowing Glavine to go out on his own terms.

If he thinks about it, if he allows his anger and personal embarrassment to subside, I bet he'll see that wading through a protracted grievance process isn't the way he'd like to go out.

It would make an ugly exit even uglier, a The End not befitting Glavine.

Right now, the ball's in his hand again. Right where he wanted it all along.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images/File/Mike Zarrilli