PITSBURGH - The Pittsburgh Pirates dropped outfielders J.J. Davis and Tony Alvarez, utility infielder Abraham Nunez and first baseman Carlos Rivera from their 40-man roster Friday and designated them for assignment.

Davis, the No. 8 overall pick in the 1997 June draft, played in only 53 games after making his major league debut in 2002, hitting .163. He began last season with the Pirates but hit only .143 in 25 games and spent most of the season on the disabled list or on minor league rehabilitation assignments.

Nunez spent most of the last six seasons with the Pirates as a utility infielder, never hitting higher than .262. He hit .236 in 112 games last season.

Alvarez played briefly for the Pirates in 2002 and 2004, hitting .250 with two homers and 10 RBIs in 38 games. Rivera hit .218 in 85 games the last two seasons, mostly as a late-inning defensive replacement.

All four players must pass through waivers before they can join a Pirates minor league team.

Added to the 40-man roster were first baseman Brad Eldred, who hit .301 with 38 homers and 137 RBI with Class A Lynchburg and Double-A Altoona last season; outfielders Chris Duffy, Rajai Davis and Nate McLouth and right-handers Jeff Miller, Matt Peterson and Leo Nunez.

The moves left the Pirates with a full 40-man roster. A year ago, they had only 37 players going into the winter meetings - apparently, with the intent of adding players via trades - but wound up losing five players in the Rule 5 draft.