Dustin Ackley will make his debut tomorrow, but Blue Jays righty Zach Stewart got his first taste of The Show today against the Orioles. Stewart, acquired by former Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi in the July '09 Scott Rolen deal, ranked 44th on Keith Law's preseason top 100 prospects list for ESPN. On to today's links…
- Baseball America's Jim Callis reports that the Rays are on the verge of signing supplemental first round picks Jeff Ames and James Harris. The team signed two other supplemental first rounders earlier today.
- Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe hears that the Diamondbacks are considering calling up Wily Mo Pena for interleague play (on Twitter). Pena has not been in the big leagues since 2008, but he's hitting .356/.431/.736 with 21 homers for Arizona's Triple-A affiliate, and he could DH in AL parks.
- Andy Martino of The New York Daily News speculates about the possibility of Mets center fielder Carlos Beltran winding up with the Phillies at the trade deadline.
- The Phillies "are making inquiries on established and pricey veterans" as they search for a right-handed hitting outfielder, reports ESPN's Buster Olney. We covered this topic on Monday, under the impression that pricey players were not a fit. If the Phillies do have these types on the radar, players like Michael Cuddyer and Ryan Ludwick could enter the mix in my opinion.
- MLB is interviewing former Dodgers executives as its investigation nears its conclusion, reports Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times.
- The first player from the 2011 draft class could be the Diamondbacks' Trevor Bauer, in the opinion of ESPN's Jason Churchill and Keith Law, assuming they sign him (Insider required).
- I talked Royals with Nick Wright of 610 Sports yesterday; download an mp3 of the audio here.
