McCutchen has no structural damage in sore knee

PITTSBURGH -- Starling Marte was due to miss his second start of the season, left out of the Pirates' original lineup for Sunday's series finale against the Astros. Instead, Andrew McCutchen missed his second start, scratched with a sore right knee.

McCutchen reported the discomfort following pregame batting practice and was set down as a precaution. An immediate doctor's exam confirmed the lack of structural damage, and McCutchen was confident of being able to resume playing following Monday's off-day.

"I just felt a little uncomfortable, and wanted to make sure everything was OK," said McCutchen, who revealed having felt some irregularity in the joint since Thursday's game against the Brewers.

"There was a small play where I slid home, and came up not feeling right. Something caused an uncomfortable feeling, so I wanted to check everything out. I didn't want to jeopardize the rest of the season. Better safe than sorry. I didn't want to sit out today, it's just something I had to do, but we were able to get a win, so it's OK. And I should be good to go [Tuesday]."

"I didn't want to play him [after McCutchen reported the discomfort]," manager Clint Hurdle said. "After our doctors saw him, he felt better about his situation."

"Yeah," McCutchen agreed, "it was a lot better than just sitting on it not knowing what was happening."