The San Francisco Giants, already in first place in the National League West, picked up some veteran infield help by acquiring shortstop Marco Scutaro from the Colorado Rockies for second-base prospect Charlie Culberson.

#SFGiants acquire IF Marco Scutaro and cash from the #Rockies in exchange for minor league IF Charlie Culberson—
San Francisco Giants (@SFGiants) July 28, 2012

Scutaro, who can also play second and third, is hitting .271 with four home runs and 30 RBIs this season. Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com tweets that Scutaro will play third for now for the injured Pablo Sandoval, but he could eventually slide over to short or second. The Giants are currently using Ryan Theriot at second and Brandon Crawford at short.

Culberson, 23, made his big-league debut in May but played in just six games this season for the Giants, with three hits in 22 at-bats. The organization’s sixth-best prospect according to MLB.com, Culberson has spent most of the season at Triple-A Fresno.

The Rockies’ official site has more info on Culberson.

The Colorado Rockies are nearing a deal that would send a pitcher to the Red Sox in exchange for shortstop Marco Scutaro, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

Rockies finishing up a deal for Boston's Marco Scutaro. A pitcher would go back to Boston. Deal revived today.

—
Troy Renck, Rockies (@TroyRenck) January 21, 2012

This deal first sprung up yesterday evening before later fizzling when the Rockies encountered financial difficulties with taking on Scutaro’s salary. The Red Sox have exercised their option to bring Scutaro back in 2012 for $6 million.

The deal is back on, though it’s unclear exactly what the Red Sox will get in return for the 36-year-old veteran shortstop. Young righty hurler Clayton Mortensen is one name being discussed, but the swap is far from final.

The Rockies, of course, have All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki already signed long-term. They are expected to either re-deal Scutaro or move him to second base, where he can replace the departed Mark Ellis. Ellis left Colorado to sign with the Dodgers back in November.