The Dodgers were enamored with Tommy Edman long before they traded for him during the 2024 season, then extended him last winter. His versatility on the field has proved quite valuable even as he’s struggled with a right ankle injury during the last two seasons.
Even if Edman is limited to mostly one position in 2026, he remains one of the keys for the Dodgers to unlock their full potential.
Health will be paramount, even if it takes a little time for him to get going this season after ankle surgery
in November. Edman during Dodgers Fest on Saturday said he’s about two and a half weeks removed from wearing a walking boot and is just now ramping up his baseball activity. What’s important is if Edman can avoid being limited by the ankle, which prevented him from playing center field often in 2025.
The ankle has limited Edman at the plate as well. He has a .280 on-base percentage in 530 plate appearances since joining the Dodgers, with an 85 wRC+. But he’s still been valuable to the tune of 2.0 WAR by both Baseball Reference and FanGraphs over that time, thanks to his versatility and plus defense. He has a 103 wRC+ during his two postseasons with Los Angeles, including winning NLCS MVP in 2024.
From 2021-23 with the St. Louis Cardinals, Edman had a 96 wRC+ averaging 150 games, 616 plate appearances, 4.0 bWAR and 3.9 fWAR.
With the Dodgers’ signing of Kyle Tucker to play right field, coupled with Teoscar Hernández in left field and Any Pages in center, Edman might not be needed to play much outfield this season. He figures to see the bulk of his time at second base, where he made 60 of his 90 starts last season. Edman in his career has amassed 28 Outs Above Average and 24 Defensive Runs Saved in his 374 games and 311 starts at second base, where he won a Gold Glove Award in 2021 with the St. Louis Cardinals.
“I love playing second. Obviously I’m very comfortable there,” Edman said on SportsNet LA on Saturday. “I haven’t had direct conversations with [manager Dave Roberts] yet. We’ll see what the roster alignment is, and I guess that I’ll be mostly playing second base. I’ll be ready wherever. That’s kind of been the theme of my career so far.”
Even if Edman doesn’t play much outfield this season, he might still see time around the diamond. Max Muncy had three long injured-list stints over the last two seasons, and over the last four seasons has hit just .165/.281/.375 with an 84 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers. The switch-hitting Edman is a career .273/.314/.495 career hitter with a 118 wRC+ against southpaws. Andy Ibáñez, who signed a one-year deal in January, should also be in the mix at third base and second base against lefties.
Edman could conceivably see time at third base plus occasionally filling in at shortstop and center field as needed, all positions he’s played before. But after playing only 134 games over the last two seasons — Edman also missed the first half of 2024 after wrist surgery — getting something resembling a fully healthy season will be key for this year.
Today’s question is how many games will Tommy Edman play in 2026?
