Cardinals set to make an impressive deadline addition, but not via trade

The St. Louis Cardinals are playing good baseball and getting healthier by the day. Lars Nootbaar and Willson Contreras have already made their way back from the injured list and have given the lineup a significant boost as the All-Star break approaches. Still, they could use a little bit of help on the offensive side at the trade deadline.

Fortunately, the Cardinals are about to add a key piece to their mix and do so without even having to make a trade. Tuesday night, Tommy Edman, who has been recovering from wrist surgery since October, began his rehab assignment. Because his wrist has taken a while to heal, the rehab assignment may last a few weeks. But he got off to a good start, picking up an RBI single in his second at-bat and later scoring a run.

Tommy Edman starts rehab assignment, nearing return to Cardinals

Because Edman is a switch hitter, the Cardinals may be able to find that help from the right side of the plate internally when Edman comes back. He was projected to be their starting center fielder out of spring training but was shut down four times due to lingering wrist pain.

Still, this is an encouraging sign for the Cardinals, who have yet to have their full team healthy all season long. Edman's impending return will give them the opportunity to have that. He was bothered most of last season with the same wrist injury before having surgery in October. But he's off to a great start in his rehab assignment.

In his absence, Michael Siani has been the primary center fielder, and his work on the defensive end has not gone unnoticed, meaning he'll likely still get some reps. But having Edman's bat back should give the Cardinals the offensive boost they need and turn the lineup into one of the best in the league, which was widely expected at the beginning of the season.

As much as Cardinals fans don't like hearing it, getting Edman back from the injured list could be similar to making a trade, but without having to give up anything. Like Brendan Donovan, Edman is somebody who can play almost anywhere on the field, and he should be back not too long after the All-Star break. How he performs will determine if the Cardinals need to make a move to acquire a right-handed bat from outside the organization.