ATLANTA — Tom Glavine made his retirement official yesterday when he returned to the Braves in a loosely defined new role.

Glavine was hired as special assistant to Braves president John Schuerholz, and the two stood together before reporters for the first time since Glavine’s unexpected release last summer.

The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner was bitter when the Braves let him go, but he said any anger at Schuerholz and general manager Frank Wren has dissipated.

The 43-year-old former pitcher will work with Schuerholz on baseball and business projects, and he will occasionally assist Wren and manager Bobby Cox.

Glavine was 305-203 with a 3.54 ERA from 1987-08, winning 20 games or more five times in 17 seasons with the Braves and spending five years with the Mets. He was a 10-time All-Star, won the NL Cy Young Award with Atlanta in 1991 and 1998 and helped the Braves win the 1995 World Series.