BRADENTON, Fla. - First-year catcher Neil Walker is trying to make the most of his limited time in the Pittsburgh Pirates' spring training camp.

Walker, the Pirates' first-round draft pick in 2004, received a nonroster invitation to the big-league camp as part of the $1.95 million signing bonus he received last summer. With minor-league camp opening Monday, Walker graduate is expected to be reassigned in the first round of roster cuts.

"I'm just trying to break the ice and get used to the professional baseball lifestyle," Walker said. "I'm trying to stay focused on what I have to do. In high school, you play two games a week, and now we're playing it every day."

Brian Graham, the Pirates' director of player development, said the 19-year-old switch-hitter has benefited from playing alongside catchers Benito Santiago and Humberto Cota.

"This definitely will boost his confidence," Graham said. "He's learning how to be a professional, how others go about their business. He can evaluate his skills versus their skills. He's getting a crash course on how to be a big leaguer."

Walker made a favorable first impression against major-league pitching. In his first at-bat this spring, he hit a pinch-hit single Saturday against the Minnesota Twins.

At Pine-Richland High School, Walker batted .657 with 13 homers and 42 RBI in his senior season. He became the first Pittsburgh-area player to be drafted in the first round by the Pirates and the first catcher selected by the organization in the first round since Jason Kendall in 1992.

Walker continued to open eyes in his first professional season. Assigned to rookie-level Bradenton, Walker batted .271 with 12 doubles, three triples, four homers and 20 RBI in 192 at-bats. He was promoted to short-season Williamsport at the end of the year and batted .313 with three doubles and seven RBI in eight games.

"Some guys had more raw power, but nobody had Neil's swing and consistency," Bradenton manager Woody Huyke said. "His swing is natural. You don't have to fool around with him and make adjustments. Just let him swing. He can hit."

Huyke, a long-time manager and coach in the Pirates' farm system, said Walker compares favorably to other catchers that he has watched, including Kendall, Tony Pena, J.R. House and Junior Ortiz.

"He's probably got more power than any of the guys I had before," Huyke said. "He has it from both sides of the plate. He hit the ball pretty darn good. I think he can play in the big leagues and be an impact player behind the plate."

This season, Walker was rated the No. 2 prospect in the Pirates organization by Baseball America and the No. 81 prospect in the minors by the same publication. Walker will open the season at Hickory and hopes to finish it at Lynchburg, the higher of the organization's two full-season Single-A affiliates.

"To play 140 games in the minor leagues is going to be a real test for him," Graham said. "He's never played anywhere near that."

Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon said the biggest adjustment Walker needs to make is adapting to the speed of the major-league game.

"As he continues to do it more and more, he'll get used to it," McClendon said. "He'll be fine."

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Notes:

Left-handed pitcher Oliver Perez is scheduled to pitch batting practice for the second time Tuesday. That could be the last step for Perez before he is cleared to pitch in a spring training game. ... The Pirates have given a minor-league tryout to Nick Bierbrodt, a 26-year-old left-hander who once was a top prospect. Bierbrodt is 6-9 with a 6.66 ERA in 38 career games with four teams. His career was interrupted in 2003 when he was struck in the chest by two bullets while sitting in a car at a fast-food drive-thru window. ... Maels Rodriguez, a 25-year-old Cuban defector, worked out for the Pirates last weekend before returning to his home in Miami. Rodriguez once threw 100 mph as a reliever in international competition, but he did not display that type of velocity during his workout. General manager Dave Littlefield said he would maintain contact with Rodriguez's agent.