Reinforcements are coming to the Marlins rotation.
Miami acquired right-handed starting pitchers Andrew Cashner and Colin Rea in a seven-player trade with the Padres on Friday.
The Marlins also received minor league righty reliever Tayron Guerrero. Heading to San Diego are a pair of top Miami prospects, power pitcher Luis Castillo and first baseman Josh Naylor, plus pitchers Jarred Cosart and Carter Capps.
The Marlins are tied with the Cardinals for the second National League wild card heading into the weekend, and now they add depth to a starting five that has been sapped by injury and ineffectiveness in recent weeks.
Jose Urena and Cosart have filled out the back end most recently _ Urena is starting Friday and Cosart was set to do the same Saturday _ but at least Cashner and perhaps Rea will slide into those spots.
Neither Cashner nor Rea are having especially strong seasons.
Cashner _ 6 feet 6, 235 pounds and 29 years old _ will be a free agent at season's end. He owns a 4.76 ERA and 1.39 WHIP in 16 starts this season, dealing with neck and hamstring strains along the way. He has never been as effective as he was in the first half of 2014, when he posted a 2.36 ERA before landing on the disabled list for two months.
Rea, meanwhile, has lasted more than six innings just four times in 18 starts this season, his first full one in the big leagues. He has a 4.98 ERA and 1.46 WHIP, striking out fewer than two batters for every one he walks. After opening the season in the Padres' bullpen, the 6-foot-5, 225-pound Rea quickly moved to the rotation, where he has remained.
Rea will remain under team control through the 2021 season.
The stabilized rotation comes at a cost: a weaker Miami farm system that already had little in the way of big-time prospects. Naylor, 19, the club's first-round draft pick in 2015, is years away from the major leagues but is seen as having considerable power potential and a suspect glove. He was the Marlins' No. 2 prospect, according to Baseball America and MLBPipeline.com's rankings.
Naylor might be best known to some fans for injuring fellow prospect Stone Garrett with a knife last month in a prank gone wrong. He has spent this season with Low-A Greensboro, hitting .269 with a .317 OBP and .430 slugging mark. He had nine homers and 24 doubles.
Castillo, 23, isn't as highly regarded in various prospect rankings, but might ultimately be the better player. His fastball regularly reaches the high 90s, and with Class A Advanced Jupiter this season he posted a 2.25 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 100 innings.
The cost at the major league level will be felt almost immediately, with the Marlins needing a spot starter in place of Cosart on Saturday against the Cardinals. The 26-year-old Cosart (5.95 ERA in four games) pitched to mixed results in the big leagues for the Marlins.
Capps is out for the season after having Tommy John surgery during spring training. His 1.16 ERA and 16.8 strikeouts per nine innings across 30 appearances made him one of the best relievers in baseball.
Guerrero, 25, pitched in one big league game for San Diego, splitting most of the season between Triple-A and Double-A.
This marks the second time in a month the Marlins and Padres matched up in a trade. Reliever Fernando Rodney came to Miami from San Diego June 30.
