Friday (last updated 10 AM):

Today it was confirmed that Yuni is completely healthy and that Tacoma manager Darren Brown was told from the higher ups to pull him, according to Ryan Divish.  This was all assumed yesterday, but it’s good to have confirmation.

I feel pretty confident that a potential deal with the Pirates is going to be for Wilson, not Sanchez.  The M’s can’t overpay for him, not when they’ve already got a plus defender with an above average bat at the position.  I could live with giving up Yuni and Wlad, but not Yuni and Halman or Yuni and a big league reliever (I have a feeling they’ll be wanting one of White or Lowe).  Halman, Lowe, White– one or two of those guys could be used for Sanchez perhaps, but I’d prefer to leave them out of Wilson negotiations.

USSM mentions that the M’s should try to scoop up Ian Snell if they make a deal with Pittsburgh, which I can’t argue with.  The guy has been all over the place in the big leagues but he has been putting up some ridiculously dominate performances since being sent down the AAA.  The M’s could use another starter with upside.  I get the impression that the Pirates are willing to sell low on him to get rid of his salary and avoid any future frustration.

Of course, there is a chance a trade comes through and it isn’t with the Pirates.  Watch Yuni get traded to the Royals later today.

Thursday (last updated 11:40 pm):

Here is what we know:

• Marc DelPiano, a special assistant to Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington, was spotted at Safeco Field by Seattle Times beat writer Geoff Baker.
• Pittsburgh SS Josh Jack Wilson and 2B Freddy Sanchez have been in a lot of trade rumors recently.
• The Mariners need help at either SS, 2B or 3B, all three of which could be filled by Wilson or Sanchez.
• Yuniesky Betancourt was a late scratch from his rehab outing in Tacoma in what was called an “organizational decision.”
• Yuni was a target of Huntington’s a few years ago, when then Seattle GM Bill Bavasi allegedly turned down a Yuni for Adam LaRoche swap.
• The Mariners had discussions with the Pirates focusing around Wilson and Betancourt earlier this season.
• Wilson is set to make $7.25M this season and has a $8.4M club option for next year ($600K buyout).  Sanchez is owed $6.1M this season and has an $8M vesting option for next season that will most likely vest.  Yuni is owed $9M through 2011, with a $6M option for 2012 ($2M buyout).
• M’s GM Jack Zduriencik is refusing to comment on why Yuni was pulled.
• Baker has updated the link above reporting that the Mariners have had interest in both Sanchez and Wilson.
• It’s also worth noting that Sanchez has been day-to-day with a sore back.
• Baker reports post game that Zduriencik again declined to comment on Yuni’s pulling.  He also writes that the Pirates have had interest in Wlad Balentien and Greg Halman in the past.

The super quick scouting report on Wilson is that he’s basically what Yuni was supposed to be– that is, he’s Yuni’s bat with plus-plus defense.  He’s on pace to be a 3.5 WAR player this year, which would be the second highest of his career.

The super quick scouting report on Sanchez is that he makes great contact, doesn’t walk a ton but makes up for it by hitting for average.  Has a little more pop than Wilson, but not much.  Plays above average defense at second and third, and could probably play passable defense at shortstop in a pinch, although don’t think too much about that.  Sanchez is on pace to be a 4.5+ WAR player this season.

If a deal is indeed in the works, Yuniesky would almost half to be involved to help offset the salary coming to Seattle, whether it is Wilson or Sanchez.  The Pirates should also be seeking a first baseman, so Mike Carp and Jeff Clement could be on their radar, as well as Brad Nelson.  In a conversation yesterday a Mariners beat writer implied that there were several scouts in Tacoma last night to see how Clement handled playing first base.

That’s all for now, although I’ll be updating the bullet points if anything else comes in.