BRADENTON, Fla. -- The Pirates whittled down their Spring Training roster on Thursday morning, sending nine players to Minor League camp.
The Bucs optioned catcher Elias Diaz and infielder Max Moroff to Triple-A Indianapolis and reassigned relief prospect Edgar Santana, pitchers Brandon Cumpton, Dan Runzler and Jason Stoffel, infielders Eric Wood and Joey Terdoslavich and outfielder Eury Perez.
Diaz (No. 11), Santana (No. 25) and Moroff (No. 26) are ranked by MLBPipeline.com on the Pirates' Top 30 Prospects list.
With less than a week remaining in Florida, the Pirates have 38 players remaining in camp. Thursday's moves did little to clarify their Opening Day roster picture, as all four candidates for the final rotation spot, a handful of potential relievers and a number of bench options are still in big league camp.
Diaz is the third catcher on the Pirates' depth chart, and he would receive the first callup if something happens to Francisco Cervelli or Chris Stewart. Diaz hit .273 with a home run and two RBIs in 12 games this spring, getting playing time while Cervelli participated in the World Baseball Classic and Stewart eased into the spring.
"We like where he is right now. We feel like he could come in and catch at the Major League level tomorrow, if need be. We just don't have the need right now," general manager Neal Huntington said. "The reality is -- [manager] Clint [Hurdle] said it this morning to Diaz -- we haven't gone a season where we've only needed two catchers. Now it's just a matter of innings, getting him consistent at-bats, consistent opportunities to prepare for his season, so if we have the need early in the year, he's ready to go."
Santana captured some attention this spring with a hard fastball and wipeout slider. He struck out 10 batters and posted a 3.86 ERA in seven innings over six appearances. The right-hander's unusual career path may lead him to Pittsburgh later this year.
"His rise through our system has been terrific, and it's for a reason," Huntington said. "We're excited about where he is, and he showed up very good in Spring Training."
Moroff hit .115 in 26 plate appearances while drawing seven walks and striking out seven times. Moroff, who made his brief Major League debut last year, drew 90 walks but struck out 129 times while batting .230/.367/.349 in Triple-A last season.
"He has terrific command of the strike zone," Huntington said. "The challenge has been increasing what he's looking for just a little bit so he can do some damage in early counts so that he doesn't give pitchers free strikes as often as he did last year. We love the command of the zone. We love the barrel."
Stoffel didn't pitch in camp due to right shoulder discomfort. Cumpton, who made 22 appearances for the Pirates in 2013-14, is throwing off the mound in bullpen sessions following Tommy John and shoulder surgeries and likely won't be ready for the start of the season.
"He's worked so hard. That's why we kept him in camp for a while, is to keep him with [pitching coach] Ray [Searage], to keep him in this environment, to give him a light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak," Huntington said. "He's in a good spot right now."