Notes, Fanning the Trade Rumor Flames...

In case you're wondering why the game was delayed before it got wet, boomers have been rolling over the City from the west since about 7 PM and the National Weather Service predicts "...rain in store for the evening. Brief downpours and cloud to ground lightning can be expected." Of course, it hasn't rained yet and game time has been reset to 8:45. Anyway, if you're looking to feed your Bucco Jones in the meanwhile, here's a few notes:

• The Pirates have placed Neil Walker on the 15-day DL (right side soreness that Clint Hurdle said involved the oblique) and have recalled Josh Harrison from Indy. We're curious to see whether it's Josh or Brandon Inge that goes when The Kid returns to action.
• Pedro, if you hadn't noticed, is back at cleanup again. We'll see if it takes this time.
• Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports wrote that the Pirates scouted Matt Garza's last outing. But he doesn't think that Pittsburgh is high on the list to bid for him. 
• In Jeff Sullivan's Fangraphs chat, he posted regarding possible Pirate moves: "Nate Schierholtz would still make an awful lot of sense. (Alex Rios) would be a splash, albeit an understandable one, for Pittsburgh. Bud Norris maybe a fit...with Wandy possibly done for awhile."
• Because of the new CBA, Jeff Locke is eligible to pitch one inning in the All-Star Game even with his start due on Sunday. Tough choice; the team would rather he didn't work on a day's rest (remember, they pushed him back just for warming up in the bullpen) but it is his first All-Star game.
• Jeff Passan of Yahoo!Sports gives Clint Hurdle the NL manager of the year for the first half, then follows with a lengthier "Why We're Not On the Pirate Bandwagon" post.
• Altoona 2B Jarek Cunningham was the runner-up in the Eastern League All-Star home run derby. He's hit 14 long balls during the year.