Portland Timbers vs. Sporting Kansas City FC in Tucson Desert Friendlies

The Portland Timbers sent rookie forward Schillo Tshuma (pictured, right) and defender Taylor Peay to the Orange County Blues on loan. Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian

The Portland Timbers have sent forward Schillo Tshuma and defender Taylor Peay to the Orange County Blues on loan, coach Caleb Porter said Wednesday.

"It's a great opportunity for them to develop and get games," Porter said. "We feel like those two guys have been here long enough where they've gotten some quality training."

The Orange County Blues was known as the Los Angeles Blues in 2013, and the Timbers loaned Bright Dike and Andrew Jean-Baptiste to the squad last season. Porter said with the first-team playing MLS games on the road (Colorado, Dallas) the next two weeks, he wanted to get those players some game experience.

"They'll hopefully make a jump in the next couple of weeks," Porter said. "We'll evaluate all the players that are on loan and their situation - whether or not we bring them back, how long we keep them there. Depends on how they do and what we're hearing (about) them."

The Timbers used their first-round pick (17th overall) of the 2014 MLS SuperDraft to select Tshuma out of the University of Maryland. Tshuma scored a goal in the Timbers 1-1 draw against Kansas City in a preseason game Feb. 1.

Peay was the Timbers' second-round selection (26th overall) of the 2014 MLS Draft. Peay played at the University of Washington.

-- Geoffrey C. Arnold