This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Real Salt Lake announced Thursday that it has placed midfielder Adolfo "Fito" Ovalle on waivers on his 19th birthday.

The RSL academy product from Layton signed as a Homegrown Player on March 6, 2015, spending the remainder of the 2015 season on loan with RSL's USL affiliate, Real Monarchs. Ovalle had 16 starts and 21 overall appearances with the Monarchs, finishing the year with two assists in 1,379 minutes played.

Ovalle, who became the club's third-ever Homegrown signing from Utah, never made a first-team appearance with RSL.

"Following a series of discussions with Fito we have reached the understanding that we cannot fulfill his short term goals, desires, and aspirations. In lieu of this, Real Salt Lake has placed him on waivers," RSL general manager Craig Waibel said in a club statement. "We thank him for his contributions to our organization and wish him nothing but the best that the sport has to offer him in the coming years."

Ovalle was a key contributor to the U-16 RSL academy team that won the 2012-13 U.S. Soccer Developmental Academy National Championship. He also represented Chile's U-20 team four times since his debut in 2014.

More recently, Ovalle was excused from team activities in March while he tended to undisclosed personal matters, Waibel told the Tribune last month.

The waiver claiming period starts the first business day after the league delivers notice to teams and expires the following business day, according to the league's roster rules and regulations guideline. If Ovalle clears waivers, he becomes available to sign on a first-come, first-served basis.

Waiving Ovalle puts RSL first-team roster size — which can feature as many as 28 — at 25 active players with Park City's Sebastian Saucedo currently on a year-long loan at Mexican club Veracruz.

-Chris Kamrani

Twitter: @chriskamrani