The Pittsburgh Pirates are getting closer to settling two of their most contested position battles, but that involved cutting one of their standouts of spring training.
The Pirates optioned outfielder Travis Swaggerty and infielder Tucupita Marcano to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday to reduce their major-league camp roster to 38 players.
The 25-year-old Swaggerty, a 2018 first-round pick, slashed .379/.471/.690, going 11 for 29 with three home runs and 10 RBIs in 19 Grapefruit League games. He was tied for the team lead in RBIs and hit a 433-foot homer, one of the longest of spring training.
Swaggerty was contending for a fourth spot in the outfield with Miguel Andujar, Connor Joe and Canaan Smith-Njigba, but the Pirates want him to have a chance to play every day. Swaggerty had a slash line of .254/.342/.390 with 15 doubles, eight triples, nine homers, 55 RBIs, nine runs scored and 20 stolen bases at Indianapolis last season.
Marcano, 23, was competing for the starting job at second base with Ji Hwan Bae, Rodolfo Castro, Mark Mathias and Chris Owings. He batted .148 (4 for 27) with a double, three RBIs and three runs scored in 14 Grapefruit League games. Marcano batted .206 with six doubles, two triples, two homers and 13 RBIs in 49 games for the Pirates last year.
