Read More: Dan Uggla (2B – ATL), Martin Prado (3B – ATL), Colorado Rockies, Atlanta Braves

The Colorado Rockies don’t have an established second baseman or third baseman at the moment, so it shouldn’t be particularly surprising that the club is showing interest in the Atlanta Braves’ Martin Prado, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

Prado, 28, was the Braves’ primary second baseman in 2010, but he’s seen time at third base and in left field since the club added Dan Uggla to fill that position in 2011. Prado slipped to a disappointing .260/.302/.385 line this year with Atlanta, but he was an above-average hitter and one of the league’s best second baseman the year before. Presumably, the Rockies are interested in a potentially resurgent Prado that could provide a major upgrade at second base.

The current Brave isn’t under contract yet for next season, but he’s arbitration-eligible, so his team can tender him a one-year contract for roughly $4.5 million based on his previous salaries and performance. He’s not the only second baseman that the Rockies have shown interest recently, so don’t expect the team to go into next year without adding some additional options at the position.

For more on the Rockies, check out Purple Row, SB Nation’s Colorado Rockies blog.

DENVER – The Colorado Rockies announced today that the club has recalled infielder Chris Nelson from Triple-A Colorado Springs.

In addition, Colorado has reinstated right-handed pitcher Edgmer Escalona from the 15-day disabled list. Both Nelson (#10) and Escalona (#61) will be in uniform and available for tonight’s Rockies vs. Reds game (6:40 p.m. MDT) at Coors Field.

Nelson, 25, has hit .231 (36-for-156) with 9 doubles, a triple, 2 home runs, 12 RBI, 15 runs scored and 3 stolen bases in 49 games for the Rockies this season. Nelson also played 17 games for the Rockies in 2010, and in his 66 career Major League games is a .238 (43-for-181) hitter with 10 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs and 12 RBI. Nelson has spent the remainder of the season at Triple-A Colorado as one of the club’s regular infielders. In 73 games for the Sky Sox this season, Nelson has hit .329 (95-for-289) with 20 doubles, 5 triples, 11 home runs and 65 RBI. Nelson was originally selected by Colorado in the first round of the 2004 First-Year Player Draft out of Redan High School in Georgia.

Escalona, 24, is 0-0 with a 2.55 ERA (17.2 ip, 5 er) in seven relief appearances for the Rockies this season. The La Guaira, VZ is being activated from the 15-day DL after what was his first career trip to the disabled list. In his Major League career, Escalona is 0-0 with a 2.28 ERA (23.2 ip, 6 er) in 12 career outings in parts of two seasons (2010-11) with the Rockies. In 34 appearances with Triple-A Colorado Springs this season, Escalona went 3-1 with a 3.18 ERA (29.2 ip, 14 er) with 40 strikeouts and 11 walks. The right-hander has a career Minor League record of 18-15 with a 3.82 ERA (331.1 ip, 141 er) in 246 appearances. Escalona was originally signed by the Rockies as a non-drafted free agent on September 8, 2004.

The Rockies have a full 40-man roster.

DENVER (AP) — Top pitching prospect Drew Pomeranz, the key acquisition by the Colorado Rockies in the deal that sent Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland, is out indefinitely after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.

The Rockies hoped to bring up Pomeranz, who was assigned to Double-A Tulsa, in September. But those plans are likely on hold after Saturday’s appendectomy, which went well, according to the club.

Pomeranz only joined the Rockies last Tuesday, nearly three weeks after the teams completed the four-player deal. Under baseball’s rules, the Indians could not finalize Pomeranz’s inclusion in the deal until he had been with the club a year since signing his initial contract. He was the fifth overall draft pick in June 2010.

Pomeranz, a left-hander, made his debut as a member of the Rockies organization on Wednesday and threw seven scoreless innings.

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Rockies have recalled infielder Chris Nelson from Triple-A Colorado Springs and designated veteran Alfredo Amezaga for assignment.

Nelson hit .315 with five home runs and 40 RBIs for the Sky Sox this season.

Amezaga was with the Rockies for a month, hitting .242 in 20 games. Rockies manager Jim Tracy said before the game Sunday against St. Louis that if Amezaga isn’t claimed by another club, he will go back to Colorado Springs and play every day. The 33-year-old has missed most of the last two seasons with knee injuries.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Read More: Aaron Cook (P – COL), Clayton Mortensen (P – COL), Colorado Rockies

Colorado Rockies veteran pitcher Aaron Cook was penciled into the starting rotation before spring training, but a series of unfortunate injuries have sidelined him this season. After spending some time in extended spring training building arm strength, Cook was scheduled to pitch three rehab starts for the Rockies AA affiliate Tulsa Drillers, and then one start with the AAA Colorado Springs Sky Sox affiliate.

Cook pitched his second rehab start for Tulsa today, and was very effective. After allowing a leadoff double to score, the veteran pitcher shut the door, allowing only three total hits and pitching five complete innings (despite a strict pitch count). He threw 77 total pitches, 49 for strikes.

A known sinkerballer, Cook thrives on an effective sinking fastball to produce plenty of groundball outs. In Tulsa, he forced eight groundball outs while allowing zero flyball outs. It was a very effective start for Cook, who is in the final year of his contract and needs to pitch in the majors this season — and soon — to prove he is healthy and deserving of another contract after the 2011 season, whether with Colorado or another club looking to upgrade their rotation.

He is eligible to return from the 60-Day Disabled List on May 31, 2011. Clayton Mortensen would be the likely demotion candidate at the point, should the club decide that Cook is ready to slide into the major league rotation.

DENVER – The Diamondbacks departed Coors Field in the middle of a snowstorm Sunday afternoon, their rubber match against the Colorado Rockies postponed, but in the two games they played over the weekend, the Diamondbacks managed to erase the bad vibes they created during a lackluster spring training.

They might have only split the games, but they showed fight, competitiveness and solid relief pitching, attributes that sometimes were lacking late last season, at least in the eyes of General Manager Kevin Towers.

There was Justin Upton crashing into Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta on Friday. There was Gerardo Parra ostensibly standing up for a teammate by jawing with Rockies pitcher Jorge De La Rosa on Saturday. There was a comeback win in one game, a near-comeback in the other – and frustration was evident after they fell short in the latter.

To be certain, they are small things, but for a club widely picked to finish last in the National League West, they are encouraging indications of a club unwilling to simply roll over.

Towers, discouraged when speaking to reporters five days ago, sounded heartened Sunday.

“I’ve seen some emotions, which to me is really good,” he said. “That’s something I didn’t see the last two weeks of last year.”

Towers said their ability to put together a ninth-inning rally Saturday showed him something, even if it fell short.

“A couple of our coaches said that last year, we would have been done down 3-0,” Towers said. “We didn’t battle back. It’s as much Gibby’s (manager Kirk Gibson) influence as the players’ themselves, pushing one another and challenging one another.”

A Fox Sports Arizona report said Diamondbacks teammates Miguel Montero and Chris Young had a heated conversation after Saturday’s loss, the report suggesting that Montero might have been unhappy Young tried to steal during his at-bat in the ninth inning.

“Guys are upset when we lose ballgames,” Towers said. “I didn’t see that last year. I could tell there was frustration last night. . . .

“After ballgames (last season), it was guys not talking about the game. The game was over, (they were) packing their stuff up and they were gone. Now I see guys sitting around and talking about situations. That’s a real positive.”

Pitching update

With Sunday’s postponed game, the Diamondbacks announced that left-hander Joe Saunders, the scheduled starter, will instead start Monday’s opener at Wrigley Field.

They did not announce what they will do about Tuesday and Wednesday. If they pushed everyone back, it would be Barry Enright and Armando Galarraga. They apparently are considering skipping Galarraga, the No. 5 starter, and keeping Ian Kennedy on track to start Wednesday, as originally scheduled.

Work in progress

Gibson sounded generally satisfied with the way his club has run the bases – specifically, the aggressiveness of Willie Bloomquist, who already has three steals – but he also cautioned that there are things his team isn’t yet capable of doing that will take longer to implement.

He pointed out that on Young’s attempted steal of third Saturday night, Ryan Roberts stayed put at first base. Gibson suggested that in time Roberts will be able to anticipate Young’s thinking.

“There’s a way to understand people the way they look,” Gibson said. “There’s mannerisms that you can share which becomes a conversation, ultimately. We’re not there yet.”

Short hops

Towers said the club had originally targeted Monday or Tuesday as a return date for shortstop Stephen Drew (lower-abdominal strain), but admitted the team still isn’t in the clear as far as avoiding the disabled list. “That’s possible if he goes out and hits and takes infield and doesn’t feel right,” Towers said.

- A makeup date for Sunday’s game has not been announced.

- Towers did not have a timetable for infielder Geoff Blum’s return. He is on the disabled list with a knee injury. “It’s going to take some time,” Towers said.