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MLB Trade Deadline: Marlins Acquire Andrew Cashner, Colin Rea In 7-Player Deal

By Mark Suleymanov
Published on: 06:29 PST, Jul 29, 2016

After a high volume of interest in recent weeks, right-handers Andrew Cashner and Colin Rea are taking their talents to South Beach.

As first reported by Buster Olney of ESPN, Cashner, one of the most sought-after pitchers on the trade market is heading to the Miami Marlins. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald later reported that Rea, another solid rotation piece, is headed to Miami with Cashner. Right-handed reliever Tayron Guerrero is also headed to San Diego.

In return, the Padres have acquired right-hander Jarred Cosart, top first base prospect Josh Naylor, minor league righty Luis Castillo, and oft-injured reliever Carter Capps, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this year.

Cashner, 29, has been hampered by injuries in recent years, including hamstring and neck strains this season, but the hard-throwing righty is poised to play a key role for the Marlins’ starting staff. In 16 starts this year, Cashner sports a 4-7 record with a 4.76 ERA in 79-and-one-third innings. He has been solid over his last three outings, going at least five-and-two-thirds innings and allowing no more than three earned runs.

Still averaging nearly 94 mph on his fastball and not too far removed from a 2013 campaign in which he went 10-9 with a 3.09 ERA, Cashner still has a lot of strong points. He is set to hit the open market after the season, so he’s likely nothing more than a rental for the last two months of the season.

Rea, 26, is a more surprising piece headed to Miami. The right-hander is in the midst of his second big league season and has pitched well, posting a 5-5 record with a 4.98 ERA in 19 games (99-and-one-third innings). The Cascade, Iowa, native is more than a rental as he’s not set to hit free agency until 2022 at the earliest and isn’t arbitration-eligible until 2019.

Formerly ranked the Padres’ No. 4 prospect by MLB.com and No. 7 prospect by Baseball America, Rea’s improved velocity have increased his ceiling as a major leaguer.

Miami is expected to limit superstar pitcher Jose Fernandez’ innings, and they just lost offseason acquisition Wei-Yin Chen to the disabled list. Adam Conley and Tom Koehler have been serviceable, but Cashner and Rea will add stability to the rotation.

As for the Padres, following the trade of Cashner, Rea, and Drew Pomeranz, their rotation is comprised of five starters who were not in the rotation on Opening Day.

The Marlins also receive Guerrero, a 25-year-old reliever who has struggled with a down season in the minors. In 32 games between Double-A and Triple-A, Guerrero sports an unsightly 5.30 ERA. Last season, he pitched to a 3.05 ERA in 48 games between the two levels. Guerrero made his major league debut earlier this season, pitching two innings in relief.

San Diego’s big acquisition is Naylor, a 19-year-old first baseman. In 89 games at the Class-A level, he’s slashing 0.269/0.317.0.430 with nine homers and 54 runs batted in. The 12th overall pick from last year’s draft was rated as a Top 100 prospect by Baseball America and the Miami No. 2 prospect behind 2016 first-rounder Braxton Garrett. Naylor’s defense and speed are still a work in progress, but his good contact skills have him in a position to be a solid contributor with the bat.

The right-handed flamethrower Castillo was ranked No. 8 on the Marlins’ top prospect list by MLB.com. At 23-years-old, he made the switch from the bullpen to the rotation last year at Class-A. This season, he’s pitched well at Class-A Advanced, going 7-3 with a 2.25 ERA in 100 innings. He’s capable of reaching triple digits on the radar gun but generally throws in the mid-to-high 90s.

Cosart, 26, a former top prospect and first-round pick of the Phillies, has struggled to parlay his talent into results. He was a part of the deal that sent Hunter Pence to Philadelphia in 2011. The Padres will be his fourth organization in five years. In 58 career starts, Cosart wields a 16-18 record with a 3.69 ERA in 329-and-two-thirds innings.

Finally, the Padres acquire Capps, a reliever who posted an outstanding season out of Miami’s bullpen last year. In 30 games, he pitched to a 1.16 ERA with 58 strikeouts in 31 innings. While his unorthodox delivery was the subject of a lot of criticism, he showed the ability to be a top-flight bullpen piece — something the Padres hope he will be in 2017.

[Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images]

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