NL Central Watch: July 22

Here's a quick glance at what's happening around the National League Central.

Inside this Derrick Goold notebook in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, we see the Cardinals are trying to reach a deal with the Orioles to land closer George Sherrill. If the Cardinals want to stay in the race, they must improve their bullpen.

The Brewers continue to be aggressive before the July 31 non-waivers trade deadline and also are trying to secure a deal with the O's for Sherrill. Their latest acquisition, veteran second baseman Ray Durham, reported for duty Monday. Manager Ned Yost stresses that Rickie Weeks remains his starting second baseman, but tells Durham the team will ''play it by ear'' according to pitching matchups.

With ace Roy Oswalt on the disabled list, the out-of-contention Astros, according to Buster Olney, are making a hard push for Padres left-hander Randy Wolf, who was once on the Cubs' radar before they landed Rich Harden.