Tommy Edman doesn't sound thrilled about 'abrupt' Cardinals departure

The St. Louis Cardinals made one of the biggest trades we saw at this year's MLB trade deadline, acquiring both Erick Fedde and Tommy Pham in what turned out to be a three-team deal with the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The deal made a whole lot of sense for the Cardinals. Acquiring Erick Fedde gave them the No. 2 starter they desperately needed, and the fact that he has another year of club control at just $7.5 million is an added bonus. Tommy Pham gave them the right-handed hitting outfielder they needed who can hit left-handed pitching well.

What made the deal kind of questionable, though, was the fact that the Cardinals gave up Tommy Edman who is now a Dodger. The fact that it was only Edman who they had to give up made the deal a win for St. Louis, but losing Edman, a valuable utility player, is a tough pill to swallow regardless.

It's rare to see a team vying for the postseason to trade a player of Edman's caliber. That's something that didn't only catch Cardinals fans a bit off guard, but even Edman seems to be a bit upset by what he deemed an 'abrupt' departure.

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Tommy Edman is not a fan of his 'abrupt' departure from Cardinals

“It's been a very abrupt ending, which is strange after having been here for eight years,” said Edman, who stood in front of his emptied locker in the Cardinals clubhouse at Busch Stadium. “But I understand it's a business. I understand that you've got to win ballgames, and currently, as I am right now, I'm on the injured list. I'm not helping the team win games."

Edman had been in the Cardinals organization since being selected in the sixth round of the 2016 MLB Draft. He had played parts of five seasons in the majors for the Cardinals. He was nearing his return from a lengthy IL stint and then all of a sudden he was dealt to the Dodgers. To top it all off, he just signed a two-year extension in January.

With all of this in mind, it's hard to blame Edman for feeling a bit annoyed about how the situation played out. It's the only organization he's ever known, he was fully planning on returning for a playoff push, and was abruptly told he was traded.

“From that aspect, I mean, I certainly don't take anything personally at all. Everybody's treated me incredibly well here. But yeah, it is a little weird getting traded while on the injured list. But you know, it's happened before, so I'm not necessarily surprised by it.”

Fortunately, Edman does understand where St. Louis is coming from. At the end of the day, it's a business. It's unfortunate that this happened while Edman was on the IL and didn't get the chance to return, but this trade benefitted the Cardinals franchise, which is their goal.

It'll be interesting to see how this trade pans out. The Cardinals have already benefitted judging by what Pham was able to do in his first at-bat back in a Cardinals uniform, but Edman will eventually get a chance to prove himself for a Dodgers team that the Cardinals might even end up facing in October.