Snider, Ishikawa elect free agency

PITTSBURGH -- The Pirates cleared a few spots on their 40-man roster on Friday, as Travis Snider and Travis Ishikawa elected free agency and reliever Deolis Guerra was sent outright to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Following those moves, and the Orioles' waiver claim of right-hander Vance Worley on Tuesday, the Pirates have 42 players on their 40-man roster, including five on the 60-day disabled list, two players (A.J. Burnett and Aramis Ramirez) set to retire and six other pending free agents.

The Pirates claimed Ishikawa off waivers from the Giants on July 5. The 32-year-old first baseman/outfielder hit .224 with one home run and eight RBIs in 38 games with Pittsburgh, limited mostly to pinch-hitting duty.

Video: MIL@PIT: Ishikawa singles, advances on error

Snider, 27, took an interesting path back to the Pirates this season. After acquiring Snider in January in exchange for pitching prospects Stephen Tarpley (the Bucs' No. 24 prospect) and Steven Brault (No. 25), the Orioles released Snider in August.

Less than a week later, Snider signed a Minor League deal with Pittsburgh. Shortly after that, he joined the Bucs as a September callup. Snider hit .192 with a .699 OPS in 18 games for the Pirates this season.

Guerra went 2-0 with a 6.48 ERA in 10 appearances for Pittsburgh this season. The Indians picked up the 26-year-old right-hander on waivers, only to send him back to the Pirates due to a pre-existing left knee injury.

With Snider and Ishikawa off the roster, the Pirates have nine remaining arbitration-eligible players: Pedro Alvarez, Francisco Cervelli, Jared Hughes, Jeff Locke, Mark Melancon, Jordy Mercer, Chris Stewart, Neil Walker and Tony Watson.