Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed why the Dodgers scratched infielder Tommy Edman ahead of Sunday’s series finale against the San Diego Padres.
The Dodgers originally had Edman batting fifth and playing third base for the contest, but took him out three hours before game time and put Alex Freeland in the No. 5 spot to play second base while moving Miguel Rojas over to third.
Edman wore a slider off of his right foot in the eighth inning of Sunday’s win over the Padres and played the remainder of the game, but felt some soreness in his ankle afterwards. Roberts said the Dodgers are “being cautious” with the decision, which makes plenty of sense due to Edman’s recent injury history.
The infielder spent the first few months of the season on the injured list recovering from offseason surgery on his ankle, which landed him on the injured list two separate times in 2025. He’s hitting the cover off of the ball in his 15 games since returning, so his health is extremely important to the Dodgers.
Edman has one homer and nine RBIs through his 15 games so far, scoring six runs as well. He has a .354/.446/.521 slash line for a .967 OPS in 2026.
The Dodgers have primarily played Edman in left field, though he has also made an appearance at center field while regularly featuring at second and third base.
When Did Tommy Edman Come to the Dodgers?
Edman landed in Los Angeles in a deadline day deal which also brought reliever Michael Kopech to the Dodgers in 2024. While Edman wasn’t the main piece of the deal, he provided valuable depth for the Dodgers during what would become a historic World Series run.
He had a .711 OPS through 37 games that year, but really turned things up in the postseason.
Edman had a .862 OPS with two homers and 13 RBIs in the 2024 postseason, winning the NLCS MVP award after an otherworldly performance against the New York Mets. 11 of his 13 postseason RBIs came in that series, and he batted .407 through the six-game series.
The Dodgers will hope the extra day of rest benefits Edman as he looks to put together another productive season with the Dodgers.
One Response
Never met him, but I like Tommy. He seems to have good skills, a great attitude and be enthusiastic. Everything good. Now, today’s game is different, when they’ve got crazy money tied up in even a bench player, the teams are extremely cautious, but damn, it seems like Tommy gets hurt a lot. Now I don’t think he wants to get hurt, or miss time, and hopefully everything will get resolved, soon, because he’s a very valuable player when healthy. But if it’s frustrating for me, what must it be like for him?