Happy birthday to Ryan Roberts, who turns 31 today. As his birthday, in fact, falls on International Talk Like a Pirate Day, I think this should really put an end to any debates over his nickname. All hail the Dread Pirate!

Recaps:

• [AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks beat San Diego Padres to cut NL West magic number to 5 - We may not have made much progress on the magic number this weekend, but, hey, every step is a good one.

• [DBacks.com] D-backs shrink magic number to five - Saunders nearly went a complete game. I'll admit that surprised me, but I'm glad to see it out of him.

• Recap [Atlanta Journal-Constitution] Diamondbacks cut NL West magic number to 5 - "We just couldn't get to Joe Saunders," Padres manager Bud Black said. "His assortment of fastballs in, fastballs down and away. We just couldn't get enough balls squared against him."

• [Canoë] - Les Diamondbacks se rachètent - SnakeBytes is now compliant with Canadian language requirements. Pas de quoi.

• [CBS Sports] Pirates-Diamondbacks Preview - Nine games left. Magic number of five. It's a good time to make a move.

• [MLB] D-backs' Kennedy seeks 20th win vs. Bucs - If you're going to go for 20 wins, the Pirates are playing like the kind of team you want to face.

DBacks News:

• [AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks' scouting team hard at work - The club has begun the process of scouting opposing teams for postseason matchups, and during a meeting at Chase Field last week, manager Kirk Gibson told club scouts not to consider any detail too small.

• [Bangkok Post] D-Backs play MLB Cinderella - "Holy Schmoley! Who are these guys?" We could ask you the same thing. But, hey, glad to see the DBacks are getting attention, even in, say, Thailand. A pretty funny article.

• [MiLB.com] Bauer pitches BayBears to third title - Congratulations, BayBears! Now we'll just expect you to bring that success to the majors in the next year or two.

• [AZ Republic] J.J. Putz thriving again in closing role - "There's something about it," Putz said. "I don't know what it is, but it's just a different animal out there at that time of the game. I love doing it."

• [Call to the Pen] Looming NL Postseason Looking very Tasty - So, we're mandarin orange flavor? Okay...

• [Diary of a Diehard] They Be Walking the Plank, The Scurvy Dogs - Playing the Pirates on Talk Like a Pirate Day! Aye!

• [MLB] Gibson looks back on football days - Gibby once had to choose between baseball and football for his career. He made the right choice.

Around Baseball:

• [Purple Row] Rockies should spend their 2012 money on players, not pitchers - Purple Row looks at how the Rockies might improve next year, and they mention the DBacks success with young pitching as a guideline.

• [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel] Re-enacting a league of their own - Now, this may come as a surprise to you, but I do love when people mix in some historical reenactment with their baseball.

• [The Dong-A Ilbo] Pro baseball team to break salary record to re-sign slugger - It's baseball around the world today. We didn't just include this because the name of the paper made us laugh. Really...

• [Baltimore Sun] Orioles Insider: Reynolds out for doubleheader (and lineups for Game 1)  - Remember Mark Reynolds having problems with a HBP last season? He took another pitch to the head on Saturday, and he's already missed a few games for it.

• [CBS Sports] Pitchers' parks favor those in the NL West - Is pitching in the NL West an unfair advantage for pitchers who play in the NL West? I suspect the guys who have won it while pitching half their games in Chase Field may not think so.