Tommy Edman goes 4-for-5 in Dodgers’ win

Hernández hit a massive home run against Chris Sale in Game 3 and will be rewarded with another start. Tommy Edman will head to the bench for the second straight game.

Edman had started in each of the Dodgers’ last five games, but he’ll get a breather in this one as we head into the final weekend of the regular season. Enrique Hernandez will draw a start at second base and will bat ninth against Giants’ right-hander Yunior Marte.

Edman brought the first run across for the Dodgers on a bases-loaded walk in the second inning before scoring on a single by Freddie Freeman. He later extended the Los Angeles lead with a solo homer off Wandy Peralta in the sixth inning. The 31-year-old has his eight homers with 43 runs scored, 40 RBI, and six steals while slashing .245/.330/.386 across 315 plate appearances.

It looks to be nothing more than a routine day of rest for the 31-year-old infielder. Miguel Rojas will start in his place at second base and will bat fifth for the Dodgers against Giants’ left-hander Cesar Perdomo.

Edman has been a fixture atop the Dodgers’ lineup since Shohei Ohtani was shelved, so he’ll get a well-deserved day off in this one. Miguel Rojas will cover second base in his absence and will hit eighth against Marlins’ right-hander Eury Perez.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that Ohtani is available off the bench and is expected to return to the lineup on Wednesday. Tommy Edman moves up to the leadoff spot with Freddie Freeman getting off his feet at DH while Enrique Hernández covers first base. Ohtani went 0-for-3 with a walk and a pair of strikeouts in his return to Los Angeles’ lineup during Monday’s win over the Reds after missing four games with ongoing knee and biceps issues. The 32-year-old two-way superstar told reporters afterwards that he’s going to focus exclusively on hitting for the rest of the season. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Dodgers carefully manage his workload for the final three weeks of the season to keep his as healthy as possible heading into the playoffs.

Leading off in Shohei Ohtani’s place, Edman hit his sixth homer off Clayton Beeter, giving him 32 RBI in 65 games since he returned from ankle surgery. He’s batting a solid .273/.348/.414.

Thomas had been the Dodgers’ center fielder against righties since Andy Pages went down, but it seems the team will go with Tommy Edman and Kiké Hernádez out there now. Thomas went 4-for-19 with three RBI in 10 days with the club.

Edman drove in three runs for the fourth time in 56 games since returning from ankle surgery. He’s batting 271/.351/.420, and he’d seem to have a better case than Mookie Betts for hitting third for the Dodgers with Andy Pages absent.

Thomas isn’t the most exciting option from a pure fantasy perspective, but he makes the most sense as a short-term stopgap for the Dodgers with Andy Pages set to miss 4-5 weeks with a fractured hand. The 26-year-old defensive specialist is an excellent defender in center field and is already on the 40-man roster. He’ll split time with Tommy Edman and Enrique Hernández for the next couple weeks. There’s a chance that a top prospect like Josue De Paula, Mike Sirota or James Tibbs III get a look once rosters expand, but that seems unlikely at this juncture.