We have 20 players under contract right now. You are allowed 30. Even if we sign all the trialists, that leaves room for Kassel and Hot. And they don't count against the cap!
I think the bottom line here is, the powers that be decided that Kassel and Hot will not amount to pros, and decided to cut the cord as opposed to stringing them along.
MF I counted 21 players...
Per MLS rules:
A Major League Soccer club’s first team roster is comprised of up to 30 players. All 30 players are eligible for selection to each 18-player game-day squad during the regular season and playoffs.
Salary & Budget:* See section entitled Allocation Money below, under Player Acquisition Mechanisms, for details on buying down a player’s budget charge.
- Players occupying roster spots 1-20 count against the club’s 2012 salary budget of $2,810,000, and are referred to collectively as the club’s Salary Budget Players.
- Roster spots 19 and 20 are not required to be filled, and teams may spread their salary budget across only 18 Salary Budget Players. A minimum salary budget charge will be imputed against a team’s salary budget for each unfilled senior roster slot below 18.
- The maximum budget charge for a single player is $350,000.*
- A Designated Player over the age of 23 counts as $350,000 against the club’s salary budget, unless the player joins his club in the middle of the season, in which case his budget charge will be $175,000.
- A Designated Player 20 years old or younger** (referred to as Young Designated Players or Young DPs) to counts as $150,000 against the club’s salary budget
- A Designated Player 21-23 years old** counts as $200,000 against the club’s salary budget.
- The budget charge for the midseason signing of a Young DP is $150,000 and this amount cannot be lowered with allocation funds.
- Clubs will not have to buy the third DP roster slot to accommodate a Young Designated Player whereas clubs are normally required to buy that slot for a one-time fee of $250,000.
- Clubs are responsible for all amounts above the budget charge for all Designated Players.
** Age of player is determined by year (not date) of birth.
- Players occupying roster spots 21-30 do not count against the club’s salary budget, and are referred to collectively as the club’s Off-Budget Players (maximum of 10 per team).
- All Generation adidas players are Off-Budget players.
- Players occupying roster spots 1-24 will earn at least $44,000 in 2012.
- Players occupying roster spots 25-30 will earn at least $33,750 in 2012.
- Clubs may elect to leave up to two of these roster spots (25-30) vacant and use $35,000 for each empty spot as allocation money.
- Clubs may sign up to two Homegrown Players contracts above the minimum salary and similar to Generation adidas player contract amounts.