The Diamondbacks’ annual claim of having “competition” for roster spots during spring training took a blow on Tuesday with the demotion of right-hander J.B. Bukauskas, who dominated Cactus League hitters but was sent out weeks before the start of the season.

Bukauskas, 24, retired each of the 12 batters he faced with nine strikeouts in four appearances, overpowering hitters with a mid-90s fastball and two secondary pitches. He struck out the side on Saturday in his most recent appearance.

Given the way he has thrown, he might have a claim on being the most impressive pitcher in the entire Cactus League this spring — and yet he was optioned to Triple-A Reno on Tuesday morning.

General Manager Mike Hazen said the club had “a number of guys that are throwing well” who are also pushing for roster spots. Manager Torey Lovullo did not mention the performance of others but instead said there were finer points to Bukauskas’ game that needed polishing.

None of the team’s explanations seemed to hold up, particularly given the team’s prior insistence that any player in camp has the opportunity to compete for a spot. During a team-produced “Clubhouse Access” video the Diamondbacks posted online last month, Lovullo is heard telling players early in spring about the level of competition they should expect.

“This is going to be a very competitive camp,” Lovullo said. “There are a number of spots available. If you don’t think you’ve got a chance to make this team, you’re wrong.”

In reality, the move almost certainly was related to a roster rules technicality. Starting Tuesday, players who are in big league camp and get hurt must be placed on the major-league injured list. In other words, if Bukauskas were to blow out his arm and miss the season, he would receive major-league pay and accrue a full year of service time.

Otherwise, it is hard to imagine why the club would send Bukauskas down on Tuesday. Even if others have looked good, there is still more than two weeks to go before Opening Day, meaning there is plenty of time for things to change.

Moreover, if there were things Bukauskas needed to work on, it would seem to make sense for him to do so with the club’s major-league coaches.

Hazen justified the move by saying that Bukauskas wasn’t the only player told he had a chance to win a job.

“(Lovullo) said it to 65 players,” Hazen said. “(Bukauskas) did throw well, yes. But that doesn’t mean there’s not other guys that aren’t throwing or in a position to make our roster that also have been competing. We can’t just take each one of those individually. I get he was throwing well and he’s a good player and we’re hoping to have him on our team — and is going to be on our team at some point — but right now we made this decision today.”

Hazen also pointed to a number of other considerations. He mentioned Bukauskas’ limited experience as a reliever. He hinted at Bukauskas’ uneven track record in the minors. And he noted that other players are on major-league deals, thus mostly assured of jobs.

Lovullo was asked if Bukauskas was under the impression he could have made the club. Lovullo said Bukauskas was. That prompted a follow-up question about what Bukauskas could have done differently in order to not get sent down.

“I think you guys are focused on one thing, such as three or four scoreless innings and basically overmatching every hitter that he faced,” Lovullo said. “We’re looking at different things: Controlling the running game, consistency of pitches that are landing in certain spots, sign sequences, understanding the importance of all those little things that eliminate the black noise. He’s on the right path. He’s very close. We just felt he needs a little bit more fine-tuning in those areas.”

Bukauskas could still make the Opening Day roster, though he would have to replace an injured player.

Short hops

• Shortstop Nick Ahmed, who hasn’t played since March 6 due to right knee soreness, was in the first version of Tuesday’s lineup against the Oakland Athletics before being scratched prior to first pitch. Lovullo said Ahmed was out due to a “personal issue” and would be back in a matter of “days.” Hazen said he’s “not concerned right now” about Ahmed’s ability to be ready for the start of the season.

• In addition to Bukauskas, the Diamondbacks optioned right-hander Corbin Martin, infielder Geraldo Perdomo and outfielder Stuart Fairchild to Triple-A. First baseman Seth Beer was reassigned to minor league camp.

Diamondbacks 12, Athletics 3

At Salt River Fields

At the plate: CF Ketel Marte led off the bottom of the first inning with a solo homer but departed after the third inning with left ankle soreness, an injury that manager Torey Lovullo did not characterize as being serious. Marte rolled the ankle while running the bases in the bottom of the third. Marte was scheduled to remain in the game for a couple more innings, Lovullo said, adding it was his decision to remove him from the game. “It didn’t make sense to me to take that chance,” Lovullo said. 1B Asdrubal Cabrera swung the bat well from both sides of the plate. He smoked a double to left field off Athletics LHP Jesus Luzardo in the third inning then crushed a home run to right field off RHP Burch Smith in the fifth.

On the mound: LHP Madison Bumgarner threw four innings, giving up two runs, each of which came on a solo home run in the fourth. Bumgarner did not walk a batter and struck out three. “It was really just two pitches that I would like to do over again,” Bumgarner said. “The rest of them I felt pretty good about. It was nice to get up and down four times and get some at-bats and kind of feel like a regular game.” Bumgarner was the first Diamondbacks pitcher to take an at-bat in a Cactus League game. He walked in his first plate appearance and struck out looking vs. former Giants RHP Sergio Romo in the other one, jawing briefly with home plate umpire Adrian Johnson over the Strike 3 call. “It was just normal stuff,” Bumgarner said. “We’re competing out there. It was against a good friend of mine and longtime teammate. It was fun.” The home runs Bumgarner allowed came against 2B Jed Lowrie and LF Chad Pinder. RHP Taylor Clarke threw three scoreless innings, allowing four hits, to close out the game. Clarke did not walk a batter and struck out two.

Wednesday’s game: Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen vs. Rangers RHP Kyle Gibson, 6:05 p.m., Surprise Stadium.

Reach Piecoro at (602) 444-8680 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @nickpiecoro.

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