'A tough day' as O's deal Cashner to Red Sox

BALTIMORE -- Orioles general manager Mike Elias said that Saturday's trade of Andrew Cashner to the Boston Red Sox came together over the past week, and that the Orioles¡¯ aim was to stockpile prospects.

Cashner was traded to Boston for two 17-year-olds, outfielder Elio Prado and infielder Noelberth Romero. Both will report to the Dominican Summer League, where the Orioles have two teams.

Cashner is 9-3 with a 3.83 ERA in 17 starts this season. The right-hander had won his past three starts, allowing just three runs on 11 hits in 20 innings.

¡°Kind of a tough day for us saying goodbye to Cash,¡± Elias said. ¡°He was terrific for us all year, a linchpin in the rotation and the clubhouse. I think it was a rejuvenation kind of year for him.¡±

It¡¯s Elias¡¯ first major deal since becoming the Orioles¡¯ general manager in November.

¡°We¡¯ve made no secret of the fact that we¡¯re eyeing our broad, long-term strategy, which is getting the best young talent we can from every angle,¡± Elias said. ¡°And there¡¯s a Trade Deadline coming up. We had talks with several teams, and Boston was the most serious and most aggressive. We ended up getting two very young players that we like. ...

¡°One of my concerns is that we haven¡¯t been pulling from the international market steadily for the last few years. We¡¯ve started now, but that is a pipeline that is lagging for us. I think trading for that age group is going to help us kind of stave off the balance that we¡¯re going to need with the rest of the league and competitors, and equalize it more quickly.¡±

Cashner, who can be a free agent this fall, was surprised by the timing of the trade, since he was scheduled to start Sunday against the Rays. But he wasn¡¯t taken aback by a deal.

¡°It¡¯s a shocking moment, but I kind of saw it coming, just the way our club is trending,¡± Cashner said. ¡°I think it will maybe sink in tonight and once I leave tomorrow.¡±

The 32-year-old Cashner said that he¡¯s looking forward to being in a playoff race with the Red Sox.

¡°It¡¯s definitely exciting,¡± Cashner said. ¡°I think that will more kick in once you get there. You make a lot of relationships in this game, and just saying goodbye to a lot of people is maybe the toughest thing.¡±

Earlier Saturday, the Orioles placed Dylan Bundy on the 10-day injured list with tendinitis in his right knee. Without Bundy and Cashner, the Orioles¡¯ rotation has some vacancies.

¡°It¡¯s a huge hole in the rotation," Elias said. ¡°I think one way of looking at it is it will be more opportunities for young pitchers and fresh arms wherever we find one, and it¡¯s one more slot where maybe we will stumble into something that we¡¯ll have beyond this year. It¡¯s just one of those tough things we¡¯ll have to do. Our guys will figure out a way to step up. It¡¯s going to, especially in the short term, put a little more pressure on the guys that are here to cover innings.¡±

Elias said he didn¡¯t expect any trades to materialize quickly ahead of the July 31 non-waiver Trade Deadline.

¡°I don¡¯t know if we¡¯ll make any more deals,¡± Elias said. ¡°I really don¡¯t. I certainly I¡¯m not adhering to the framework that they¡¯ve got to be complex-level-age players. If it makes sense and we end up making a trade and a player close to the Major Leagues comes back ... I just don¡¯t know right now. We¡¯ve got nothing else imminent, that¡¯s for sure.¡±