Cardinals: 3 untouchable players in a Juan Soto trade

2. Infielder Tommy Edman

Tommy Edman deserved to be an All-Star this year, and it’s a travesty that he was snubbed. Edman, 27, is a switch-hitting super-utilityman that is capable of playing virtually any position on the field (not including pitcher and catcher).

In 92 games this season, Edman has put up a league-leading 64 runs scored to go alongside seven home runs, 33 RBI, 20 stolen bases and an OPS+ of 102. Baseball-Reference has him being worth a total of 4.4 bWAR so far, one of the highest in the game. He has 2.5 oWAR and 2.3 dWAR as well, meaning he is highly valuable on both offense and defense.

Edman is another player that the Nationals are definitely going to ask for in a trade. Edman has been far too valuable for the Cardinals this season to let him go now. He has seemingly improved in every season in the big leagues and, like Helsley, is under team control until 2026 which only furthers his overall value to the club.

Someone like Edman, who is a switch-hitting leadoff batter that can player anywhere, gets on base all the time, steals bases, and is an uber-popular player amongst teammates and fans doesn’t come around often. The Cardinals have struck gold with him and should do everything they can to hold on to him and make him into a building block alongside Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and maybe even Juan Soto.