According to a report by MLB.com, Giants’ second baseman Freddy Sanchez needs to have surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee.

San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy, however, is hopeful the procedure can be put off until the offseason and that the second baseman can still contribute to the team’s playoff drive after a few days of therapy.

“We’ll wait and see what happens in these next two games,” Bochy said prior to the finale of a three-game series here with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

So the club isn’t yet shutting down Sanchez for the remainder of a season that has 11 games remaining, even though the Giants took the field Wednesday night trailing Colorado by five games in the National League Wild Card standings.

Sanchez, who suffered the injury taking an awkward step on the infield in the bottom of the first inning of Monday night’s game, checked into the clubhouse Wednesday afternoon “limping pretty good,” according to Bochy.

Sanchez is hitting .284 since joining the Giants, but he certainly hasn’t made the impact that the club had hoped when they acquired the second baseman from Pittsburgh in exchange for Tim Alderson, one of the club’s top pitching prospects.

Sanchez just hasn’t been healthy enough to have an impact for the fading Giants, who are four games back of the Rockies in the NL Wild Card standings and essentially need a miracle over the next two weeks to make the postseason.

There has to be some within the Giants’ organization that are second guessing the trade for Sanchez, although hindsight is always 20/20.

It’s no secret that the San Francisco Giants have one of the worst offenses in baseball this year. They’re ninth in the NL in batting average (.258) and dead last in runs scored (398), on-base percentage (.307) and slugging percentage (.691). Given how bad their offense is, the actors that played Roger Dorn, Jake Taylor and Pedro Cerano from “Major League” would compile a better lineup than the puss (save for Pablo Sandoval) that the Giants fill their lineup card with on a nightly basis.

So when you read or hear that San Fran traded for Pirates second baseman and ’06 batting champ Freddy Sanchez on Wednesday, it’s easy to think that the Giants just added the equivalent of Mickey Mantle’s bat to their lineup.

There’s no question that Sanchez is a dramatic upgrade over the players that San Fran has tried at second base this year, which include Emmanuel Burriss, Kevin Frandsen, Juan Uribe, Matt Downs and Eugenio Velez. And there’s no question that the Giants are better today than they were yesterday, just based on the fact that Sanchez will actually take pitches (something Giants hitters avoid at all cost), drive gaps and get on base.

But make no mistake: Brian Sabean still overpaid.

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With the MLB trade deadline approaching on Friday, I’ll post everything I see and hear regarding the rumors in baseball. So bookmark this page and come back to it, because I’ll be updating it frequently throughout the day today.

Cliff Lee:
- FOX Sports.com writes that the Dodgers are pushing hard for Indians’ ace Cliff Lee, who is also being pursued by the Phillies. Philadelphia has already made a formal offer of Triple-A right hander Carlos Carrasco, shortstop Jason Donald, catcher Lou Marson and Single-A right hander Jason Knapp to Cleveland for Lee.

- Yahoo! Sports is also reporting that the Phillies are on the verge of acquiring Lee for Carrasco, Knapp and two more minor league players.

Jack Wilson and Ian Snell:
- According to a report by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates have traded shortstop Jack Wilson and Ian Snell to the Mariners for Jeff Clement, Ronny Cedeno and right handed pitchers Aaron Pribanic, Brett Lorin and Nathan Adcock. Clement is a 25-year old catcher who had been hot in Triple-A in May, but the Seattle organization seemingly soured on him long before that.

Freddy Sanchez:
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting that a deal between the Pirates and Giants involving second baseman Freddy Sanchez could be imminent. Sanchez has been held out of the Bucs’ last couple games due to a knee injury, which could have slowed down negotiations between the two clubs. But apparently the injury isn’t serious and a deal could be done as early as today.

- The Gazette is reporting that there is no major issues with Sanchez’s knee and is currently listed as day to day.

- Dejan Kovacevic writes via his Twitter page that Sanchez gave the Bucs a contract proposal of 3-years, $20 million, but the club rejected it.

Jarrod Washburn:
- The Brewers are no longer pursing starter Jarrod Washburn according to FOX Sports.com. Milwaukee apparently doesn’t want to give up any of their top prospects in order to make a push this season, so what you currently see is what you’re going to get with the Brewers the rest of the season.

- Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse is reporting that the Reds have acquired outfielder Wladimir Balentien from the Mariners in exchange for RHP Robert Manuel.

Over the past couple weeks a foregone conclusion around the baseball world was that the Pirates would wind up dealing second baseman Freddy Sanchez at some point before the July 31 trade deadline. Much like many Buc veterans before him, Sanchez was as good as gone.

But the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is now reporting that the Pirates aren’t engaged in any active talks regarding a Sanchez trade and that no deal is imminent. According to the report, the Bucs aren’t in any hurry to trade Sanchez and might wind up keeping him in a Pirate uniform for the foreseeable future.

That said, what Pirate isn’t available? This organization has prided itself on losing over the past 15-plus years and seemingly wouldn’t hesitate trading one of its veteran players. Sanchez is also their biggest trade piece and if a contender like the Giants or Rockies puts together a deal involving multiple prospects, it would be hard for the shaky Pittsburgh front office to sit idle.

Chances are, the Bucs are playing coy and Sanchez will still be dealt at some point over the next two weeks. If Colorado put together a trade package that included Eric Young Jr., I highly doubt Pittsburgh would take a pass.

One of the more intriguing names on the trade market is Pirates second baseman Freddy Sanchez, who is currently batting .316 with six dingers and 33 RBI. And as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting, the Bucs are pushing hard to deal him before the trade deadline.

Two teams that covet the second baseman are the Giants and Rockies, each of whom are battling it out behind the Dodgers in the NL West and are in the thick of things for the NL Wild Card. Sanchez would be a nice catch for either team, although something for both clubs to consider is his salary. The All-Star makes $6.1 million this year and will make $8 million in 2010 if he picks up another 271 plate appearances before the end of the season.

Colorado might hold an edge over San Fran in the Sanchez sweepstakes because Pittsburgh is reportedly gaga over Rockies’ minor leaguer Eric Young. The 24-year-old has 23 extra base hits, 37 walks and a whopping 47 steals so far in the minors and if the Rox are willing to part with him, they could have Sanchez in uniform sooner rather than later.

That said, the Giants always have an abundance of pitching, but whether or not they’re willing to give any of it up remains to be scene. Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson are certainly out of the question, but GM Brian Sabean could still put a decent package together with the likes of Jonathan Sanchez or Kevin Pucetas, coupled with a couple of offensive prospects. (Sabean would probably be willing to throw Fred Lewis into the mix as well, although who knows if the Bucs would even want the struggling 28-year-old outfielder.)

It’ll be interesting to see which team eventually winds up making a move for Sanchez. Either way, it appears that his days in Pittsburgh are numbered.