The Los Angeles Dodgers’ shortstop plan was carried out from a long-term perspective, but it was twisted by an injury. Gavin Lux (26), the starting shortstop who injured his knee while running base during an exhibition game, seems to be missing too much.
Recently, he made an unconventional decision to put Mookie Betts, who had mainly played as an outfielder all his life and had only had a second base career as a part-time job in the infield, as a shortstop. It’s the Dodgers’ last resort. That’s why the shortstop gap is huge.
The Dodgers left the team ahead of the 2022 season when key shortstop Corey Seager became a free agent (FA). Seager could have been a big franchise star, but the Dodgers couldn’t keep up with Texas’ big bet ($325 million over 10 years). This is because there was already another shortstop, Trey Turner, acquired in a trade during the 2021 season.
Turner also signed an 11-year, $300 million contract with Philadelphia ahead of the 2023 season, and the Dodgers suffered a power leak again. However, the Dodgers did not actively retain Turner this time either. It was believed that Lux, who had been fostered for a long time as the team’s next-generation shortstop, would take over. However, Lux could not play a single game in the regular season and was out of the season, so the framework of the plan collapsed. 안전놀이터
As soon as the Dodgers were in a hurry, they recruited Miguel Rojas to fill the shortstop position. But Rojas should be viewed as an infield utility player rather than a full-time shortstop. It’s hard to fill the void at shortstop for an entire season. This is especially true for the Dodgers, who are aiming for more than just the postseason. Limitations are already appearing here and there. So the possibility of trade comes out all over the place. It is rumored that the Dodgers will reinforce a shortstop in the trade market.
Jim Borden, a columnist for the North American sports media ‘The Athletic’ and former general manager in Washington and Cincinnati, also predicted on the 22nd (Korean time) that the Dodgers would eventually enter the shortstop market. Borden said, “Cleveland is in a position to aim for the postseason in the American League Central, so the trade for (shortstop) Ahmed Rosario won’t mean much.” said.
Then Borden paid attention to the name of Tommy Edman (28‧ St. Louis). Borden said, “If I were the Dodgers, I’d call St. Louis right away and see if they could trade shortstop Tommy Edman.” Under the circumstances in St. Louis, Borden argues, it might be possible. St. Louis is waiting for a call-up from infield top prospect Messin Wynn. It is a central infielder resource ranked 48th in the major league prospect rankings selected by ‘Baseball America’.
While St. Louis announced a poor start, it is clear that they are making a generational change trend by calling up prospects anyway. Wynn is also likely to get a call-up at some point this year, as long as there are no injuries. In this case, a decision must be made about Edmon, who will qualify as a free agent after the 2025 season. You can continue to use it, but you can trade it this year, which has high value because there is a lot of time until FA qualification.
Edmund, whose mother is Korean and famous as a Korean player, participated as a member of the Korean national team in the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), and is one of the central infielders with the best defense in the league. He is an all-weather resource who can play shortstop and second base, and sometimes even play third base and outfield.
He is a National League shortstop Gold Glove winner in 2021, and last year he recorded a batting average of 0.265, 13 homers, 57 RBIs, 32 stolen bases, and an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 0.725 in 153 games, and was reborn as an infielder with above-average offensive power. The Dodgers absolutely need an infield utility player who can specialize at shortstop. As Borden said, there is a theoretical possibility that some kind of negotiation will come and go according to the ‘thought’ of St. Louis.