Pirate Pre-Game Potpourri

-- OK, the Indy hop is done for the time being. Ryan Doumit, Luis Cruz, and Donnie Veal came up; Robby Diaz, Steve Pearce, and Steve Jackson went down. Diaz will get work at the corner infield and second while he's there. Like Delwyn Young, they like the bat, and are trying to find a big-league spot, even if it's on the PNC pine, for him.

-- Sid Hartman of the Minneapolis - St. Paul Star Tribune writes:

There have been rumors that the Twins have been talking to Pittsburgh about a trade for former National League batting champion Freddy Sanchez, who is hitting .316; and/or relief pitchers Matt Capps (1-4 with a 4.71 ERA) or John Grabow (3-0, 3.49 ERA).

If the Twins are going to make a run at the division title, they need to make some deals the way other teams have with Pittsburgh to give themselves a chance to compete

.John Perrotto of the Pirates Report has this report on the rumors:

Colorado has emerged as the front runner for Sanchez and the Pirates have strong interest in Rockies second base prospect Eric Young, Jr., a 24-year-old who is hitting .289 at Class AAA Colorado Springs.

The Rockies are said to be willing to part with relief prospect Casey Weathers, their first-round draft pick in 2007, who will miss the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his elbow in March.

Another name that has reportedly has been brought up in trade talks is Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez. The 23-year-old left-handed hitter began the season with AAA Colorado Springs and had a .339 batting average with 10 homers, 59 RBIs and six steals in 48 games. He's on the Rox roster now.

San Francisco continues to have interest in Sanchez along with Minnesota. Other contenders who have need for second base help include Atlanta, the Chicago Cubs, the Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee.

-- Hey, Jason Stark of ESPN notes that the Nats have taken an onus of the Bucco backs:

While we're on the subject of landmark Nationals feats, they've already done something this year that no team had done since Pop Corkhill's 1891 Pirates:

They were the victims of a 250th win (by Jamie Moyer) and a 300th win (by Randy Johnson) in the same year. In fact, they even did it in the same week. So take that, Pop.

-- Matt Fortuna of the Altoona Mirror features 2B prospect Jim Negrych and the growing pains he and the Curve are experiencing this year.

-- The Bucs inked Robert "Tagg" Bozied to a minor league deal. Bozied, an infielder, has spent most of the past eight seasons roaming the bushes, hitting over 20 HRs three times. He played with Xavier Nady for Team USA in 1999. Taggs started this season playing for the Brother Elephants of the Taiwanese League.

-- The Pirates signed six Latino players today - no, not Sano - and DK of the Post Gazette has capsule reports on them from Rene Gayo.

-- Kip Wells is like the energizer bunny; you can't get rid of him. The Reds signed Wells to a minor-league contract and assigned the 32-year-old RHP to AAA Louisville. He was DFA'ed by Washington on June 24 after he went 0-2 with a 6.48 ERA in 23 bullpen appearances.