| Tommy Edman | |
|---|---|
 Edman with theSt. Louis Cardinals in 2022 | |
| Los Angeles Dodgers – No. 25 | |
| Utility player | |
| Born: (1995-05-09)May 9, 1995 (age 29) Pontiac, Michigan, U.S. | |
Bats: Switch Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 8, 2019, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| MLB statistics (through March 19, 2025) | |
| Batting average | .263 |
| Home runs | 60 |
| Runs batted in | 244 |
| Stolen bases | 112 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Thomas Hyunsu Edman (Korean: 곽현수;Hanja: 郭賢洙;[1] born May 9, 1995) is an American professionalbaseballutility player for theLos Angeles Dodgers ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theSt. Louis Cardinals. Edman also represents theSouth Korean national team in international competition.
Born inPontiac, Michigan, and raised inSan Diego,[2][3] Edman played college baseball atStanford University for three seasons before being selected by the Cardinals in the sixth round of the2016 Major League Baseball draft. He played in their minor league system before making his MLB debut in 2019 and quickly becoming a part of their starting lineup, playing various infield and outfield positions. He won aGold Glove Award as the National League's top defensive second baseman in 2021. The Cardinals traded Edman to the Dodgers at the 2024 trade deadline, where he wonNLCS MVP honors and helped the Dodgers win the2024 World Series over theNew York Yankees.
Edman graduated fromLa Jolla Country Day School inLa Jolla, California, in 2013, where he was selected to an All-Academic Team.[4] He attendedStanford University, where he playedcollege baseball for theStanford Cardinal. After his freshman year, he played in theNew England Collegiate League for theNewport Gulls, where he was named an All-Star and was named best defensive player.[5]After his sophomore season in 2015, he playedcollegiate summer baseball for theYarmouth–Dennis Red Sox of theCape Cod Baseball League, where he batted .304,[6] was named startingsecond baseman for the East Division All-Star team,[7] and helped lead the Red Sox to the league championship.[8] As a junior in 2016, Edman started every game atshortstop andbatted .286 with 24RBIs and led Stanford inruns (35),hits (61),triples (4) andstolen bases (8) in 54 games, earning a spot on thePac-12 Conference first team.[9]
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TheSt. Louis Cardinals selected Edman in the sixth round of the2016 Major League Baseball draft.[10] Edman signed with the Cardinals and was assigned to theState College Spikes, where he spent the whole season, posting a .286 batting average with four home runs, 33 RBIs, and 19 stolen bases in 22 attempts over 66 games.[10] He was named aNew York-Penn League All-Star with the Spikes.[11] In 2017, he played for thePeoria Chiefs,Palm Beach Cardinals, andSpringfield Cardinals, batting a combined .261 with fivehome runs and 55 RBIs in 119 total games between the three clubs.[12]
Edman began the 2018 season with Springfield, where he was named aTexas League All-Star.[13] During the season, he reached base in 32 straight games, breaking Springfield's all-time record.[14] He was promoted to theMemphis Redbirds at the end of the season, helping them win thePacific Coast League title and was named a co-MVP of the PCL playoffs, along with teammateRandy Arozarena.[15] In 126 games between Springfield and Memphis, Edman slashed .301/.354/.402 with seven home runs, 41 RBIs, and 30 stolen bases in 35 attempts.[16] After the season, theCardinals assigned Edman to theSurprise Saguaros of theArizona Fall League (AFL).[17]
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Edman began the 2019 season back with Memphis, batting .305/.356/.513 with seven home runs, 29 RBIs, and nine stolen bases over 49 games.[18] On June 8, his contract was selected and he was called up to the major leagues for the first time.[19] He made his debut that night as apinch hitter versus theChicago Cubs atWrigley Field.[20] Edman recorded his first MLB hit on June 14 againstSteven Matz of theNew York Mets[21] and his first career home run on June 20 againstTayron Guerrero of theMiami Marlins.[22] On July 18, he hit his first careergrand slam off ofRobert Stephenson of theCincinnati Reds.[23] Over 92 regular-season games with St. Louis in 2019, Edmanslashed .304/.350/.500 with 11 home runs, 36 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases in 16 attempts.[24] He had the fastest sprint speed of all major league third basemen at 29.4 feet/second.[25] In the post-season, he had six hits, including three doubles, in 19 at-bats in theDivision Series but was hitless in 14 at-bats in theNational League Championship Series against theWashington Nationals.[24]
Edman was named the starting third baseman for the Cardinals in thepandemic shortened2020 season.[26][27] Over 204at-bats, he batted .250/.317/.368 with five home runs and 26 RBIs.[24] He had three hits in 14 at-bats during the2020 National League Wild Card Series.[28]
In 2021, Edman was named the club's startingsecond baseman after the departure ofKolten Wong and the acquisition ofNolan Arenado.[29] He earned theMajor League Baseball Player of the Week Award for the National League after batting .426 with two home runs from August 23 through August 29.[30] Edman appeared in 159 games for the 2021 season, slashing .262/.308/.387 with 11 home runs, 56 RBIs, 41 doubles, and thirty stolen bases over 641at-bats.[31] His 41 doubles tied withOzzie Albies for second in the National League, afterBryce Harper's 42.[32] He won theGold Glove Award at second base, one of five Cardinals to win the award that year, an MLB record.[33] In the one-gameWild Card Game against theLos Angeles Dodgers, he had three hits in five at-bats with two stolen bases, but the Cardinals lost on a walk-off home run.[34]
Edman returned as the Cardinals' starting second baseman to open the2022 season.[35] In mid-May, after the demotion of starting shortstopPaul DeJong and the call-up of top second base prospectNolan Gorman, Edman moved to shortstop.[36][37] On June 11, 2022, Edman hit his first careerwalk-off home run and RBI, a two-run home run that secured a 5–4 victory versus theCincinnati Reds.[38] He finished the 2022 season slashing .265/.324/.400 with 13 home runs, 57 RBIs, 31 doubles, and 32 stolen bases over 577 at-bats in 153 games.[39] He had one hit in six at-bats in theWild Card Series against thePhiladelphia Phillies, which the Cardinals lost in two games.[40]
On January 13, 2023, Edman agreed to a one-year, $4.2 million contract with the Cardinals, avoiding salary arbitration.[41] He appeared in 153 games (mainly at shortstop, second base, and center field) and batted .265 with 13 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 32 stolen bases.[42]
Edman and the Cardinals agreed to a two-year deal worth $16.5 million on January 22, 2024, again avoiding salary arbitration.[43] After undergoing wrist surgery in the offseason, he was shut down during spring training due to renewed wrist discomfort.[44] On May 6, Edman was transferred to the 60–day injured list.[45]
On July 29, 2024, the Cardinals traded Edman to his home stateLos Angeles Dodgers in a three-team deal that also sentMichael Kopech and Oliver Gonzalez to the Dodgers,Erick Fedde andTommy Pham to St. Louis, and sentMiguel Vargas, Alexander Albertus, andJeral Pérez to theChicago White Sox.[46] He made his season debut with the Dodgers on August 19.[47] Edman played in 37 games for the Dodgers, splitting time between shortstop and center field, with a .237 average, six homers and 20 RBI.[24] He had four hits in 17 at-bats (.235 average) in the2024 NLDS.[24]
In the2024 National League Championship Series, Edman took home the seriesMVP honors after helping lead the Dodgers to theWorld Series by defeating theNew York Mets in six games, hitting a two-run home run in the Game 6 clincher.[48] Edman hit .407 in the series and tied the Dodgers club record by notching 11 RBIs in one postseason series.[24] He subsequently won his first World Series championship, when the Dodgers beat theNew York Yankees in five games. In the series, he batted .294 (5-for-17) with one home run and one RBI.[49]
On November 29, 2024, Edman signed a five-year, $74 million contract extension to remain with the Dodgers including a sixth-year club option.[50]
In 2023, Edman was called to theSouth Korea national baseball team. He played infielder during the2023 World Baseball Classic. In 11 trips to the plate, he had 2 hits and 1 walk. The team did not progress past pool play.[51]
Edman is the son of Maureen Kwak and John Edman, Jr. He has Korean heritage from his mother’s side[52] and has European heritage from his father's side. His father John played four years ofcollege baseball atWilliams College inMassachusetts,[53] and is a teacher and varsity baseball coach atLa Jolla Country Day School, Edman'salma mater.[54] His mother Maureen was born inSouth Korea and moved to the United States as a child.[55] Edman's older brother, John, works in research and development for theMinnesota Twins.[56] His younger sister, Elise, played volleyball atDavidson College[57] and worked as a systems engineer for the Cardinals.
On November 23, 2019, Edman married his wife, Kristen. The couple had originally planned the wedding for October 5 but were forced to reschedule due to theCardinals' participation in the2019 National League Division Series.[58] The couple has one child.
Edman is aChristian,[59] and has said, “Obviously, as a baseball player, your goal is to win the World Series. But I think for me, my goal is to be able to use the platform that I have to impact as many people as I can. It’s important for me as a Christian to be able to spread the word of God as much as I can.”[60]