Surging McCutchen back up to No. 3 spot ... by his choice

Andrew McCutchen's all the way back.

The Pirates' generational player will bat in his familiar No. 3 spot in the order Tuesday night against the Rays, back up from No. 6 for the first time since May 23.

And he'll be there because it's his choice, he and Clint Hurdle confirmed, to try to spell struggling Gregory Polanco.



"I know that it's a place that needs a bat," McCutchen told me before batting practice this afternoon. "I've been feeling really good. This is a decision I made more for myself. I felt like this was a place that ... if Polanco was hitting really well, then I'm fine with staying in the six-hole. But he's a little uncomfortable right now. He's still trying to find himself. I know that's how I felt at one point. So why not give him the same chance?"

Here's some of our conversation: