ST. PETERSBURG -- As trade rumors begin to pick up around a suddenly slumping Rangers team, Andrew Cashner reflected on the Deadline swap that sent him to Miami last year.
To put it simply, that week "was not fun," Cashner said. While standing in the Padres bullpen before a start, false rumors began swirling that he had been dealt. Cashner didn't know whether he would be making his scheduled start. But he straightened out that mess by calling his agent and went on to pitch that game.
But Cashner was not the only Padres player being shopped during that series with the Blue Jays.
"I saw my teammate [Melvin] Upton trade clubhouses while we were there in Toronto; that was tough," Cashner said. "Any time you grind with these guys, it's always tough seeing someone go."
With Upton out of the picture in San Diego, the Padres would soon also be bidding farewell to Cashner. San Diego sent the right-hander to the Marlins a day after moving Upton.
"My phone started blowing up at 5 in the morning," Cashner said. "My girlfriend had woken me up at the time, she told me that I had been traded with Miami. … It was weird. I woke up and obviously started packing quick."
The Rangers have lost five in a row, falling to 4 1/2 games back of the final American League Wild Card spot, with five teams sitting between them and the Yankees. Should the slide continue much longer, the Rangers could be persuaded to sell, and farewells made in the Texas clubhouse.
The pressure to succeed in order to keep a roster from being ripped apart at the Trade Deadline can be a distraction if a team is unfocused. Manager Jeff Banister used a saying while speaking to media on Friday to convey a need to concentrate on what happens on the field.
"Think about those white lines out there, the fair lines?" Banister said. "They keep the foul out. Just remember that, if you know what I mean."