SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants acquired infielder Freddy Sanchez from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, and made it a convenient switch for the three-time All-Star.

The teams announced the trade right after the Giants beat Pittsburgh 1-0 in 10 innings. Sanchez merely had to change clubhouses to join his new team, which is in the thick of the NL wild-card race.
San Francisco sent minor league pitcher Tim Alderson to the Pirates for the 31-year-old Sanchez, the 2006 NL batting champion.
Sanchez is hitting .296 with six home runs and 34 RBIs, and did not play in this week’s series against the Giants because of a tender knee. He was an All-Star in 2006, 2007 and this year.
It was the second trade of the day for the last-place Pirates, and second swap of the week for the Giants. Friday is the deadline for teams to make deals without waivers.
Pittsburgh sent shortstop Jack Wilson and pitcher Ian Snell to Seattle for shortstop Ronny Cedeno, Triple-A catcher-first baseman Jeff Clement and three minor league pitchers earlier in the day.
The Giants acquired infielder-outfielder Ryan Garko from Cleveland this week.