The Dodgers are close to acquiring infielder/outfielder Tommy Edman from the St. Louis Cardinals, and pitcher Michael Kopech from the Chicago White Sox, according to multiple reports Monday.
Multiple reports indicate infielder/outfielder Miguel Vargas is going to the White Sox, along with minor leaguers Jeral Perez and Alexander Albertus.
According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Dodgers might also send “potentially a fringe prospect” to Chicago in the trade. Earlier reports that minor league infielder Noah Miller had been included in the deal were subsequently retracted.
The White Sox have baseball’s worst record at 27-81 through Sunday. They were widely linked to the Dodgers in talks involving not only Kopech but starting pitcher Garrett Crochet as well. As of this writing, Crochet is still a member of the White Sox.
A switch-hitter, Edman has yet to play this season as he recovers from off-season wrist surgery. He recently began a minor league rehabilitation assignment. In eight games at Double-A Springfield, Edman has six hits including one double.
Edman fills a couple immediate needs. The Dodgers are without their top two shortstops, Mookie Betts and Miguel Rojas, who are injured. The Dodgers have also lacked production from their outfielders other than Teoscar Hernández, and Edman can take over center field while moving Andy Pages to a bench role. Finally, with Max Muncy on the injured list and no clear option at third base, Edman can take over the hot corner for the time being.
Edman won a Gold Glove award in 2021 at second base. In five seasons (2019-23) all with the Cardinals, he’s hit 53 home runs, stolen 106 bases, and slashed .265/.319/.408.
Edman is signed through 2025 on a team-friendly pre-arbitration deal. He’s owed $7 million this year, $9.5 million in 2025, and can become a free agent after next season.
Kopech is a former first-round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox. The 28-year-old right-hander is 2-8 with a 4.74 ERA in 43 games out of the Chicago bullpen this year, with 59 strikeouts in 43.2 innings. He ranks in the 99th percentile in fastball velocity at 98.6 mph, and his expected batting average ranks in the 89th percentile at .204. He also has a high strikeout rate (30.9 percent) and whiff rate (30.6 percent).
Kopech can also become a free agent after the 2025 season. He’s eligible for arbitration for the final time in 2024.
Vargas, 24, had been facing limited playing time this season despite the Dodgers’ needs. He was slashing .239/.313/.423 in 30 games, while playing exclusively in left field. Although the Dodgers had been working him out at third base recently , Vargas is an inferior defender to Edman with less versatility — and, more recently, less pop in his bat.
The Cuban native showed great potential in spring training in 2023, reaching base at a .389 clip while hitting .250 (11-for-44, three doubles, home run). That was enough for him to claim the Opening Day second baseman’s job. But by June, he had hit his way off the everyday roster and was demoted to Triple-A.
Vargas started the 2024 season in the minors again, and was hitting .290 with a .440 on-base percentage and .566 slugging percentage at Triple-A Oklahoma City. However, he has yet to translate that all-around prowess at the plate to the major league level.
In 129 major league games, all with the Dodgers, Vargas is slashing .201/.294/.364 with 11 home runs and five stolen bases.
Photo credit: Jovanny Hernandez / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
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