MIAMI -- For years, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes tried to find a way to acquire Tommy Edman from the Cardinals.

With St. Louis open to moves last offseason, Los Angeles tried again. But it wasn’t until the Trade Deadline, as Edman rehabbed from offseason right wrist surgery, that the Dodgers and Cards finally found a match in a three-team deal that sent the utilityman to Los Angeles.

Since then, Edman has shown exactly why he was so coveted by the Dodgers, giving the club a different look and another spark in the middle of the lineup. That was on full display yet again on Wednesday night as Edman jump-started a five-run fourth inning with a two-run homer in an 8-4 series-evening win over the Marlins at loanDepot park.

Los Angeles (90-62) can secure a playoff spot with a win over the Marlins in Thursday's rubber game or losses by both the Mets (84-68) and Braves (82-70). The Dodgers, who hold a 3 1/2-game lead in the NL West race, own tiebreakers with both clubs.

“Really surprised with the power,” manager Dave Roberts said. “I know that he has an apt to put the barrel on the ball. Certainly versatile defensively. But in the batter’s box, he just really takes good at-bats and the homers, the backside homer tonight was huge for us.

“He’s hit six or seven homers for us already in a short period of time and they all seem like they were big. He’s gotten a lot of big hits for us.”

In a lineup that possesses plenty of power threats, Edman has given the Dodgers exactly the look they have been lacking over the last few seasons. Edman has been a contact-first player throughout his career and his switch-hitting ability has always been appealing to Los Angeles.

But since the trade, Edman has tapped into his power more than he has over his career.

With his two-run jack on Wednesday, Edman has six homers in just 27 games this season. Most of that damage has come from the right side, including the opposite-field shot against left-hander Ryan Weathers.

“Honestly, kind of a little surprised,” Edman said with a laugh, when asked about his power surge. “The [right] wrist [which required surgery in October 2023] didn’t feel good for a while. I was kind of expecting to be back for Spring Training and it kept lingering for a few months, and finally started to feel good in June, July. Then, I sprained the ankle [on June 25].

“I think, actually, spraining the ankle allowed my wrist to have some more time to recover and maybe that helped with being back to full strength once I started to play again.”

Edman has been better against left-handers over the course of his career and four of his homers have come against southpaws. Earlier this month, however, Edman hit a homer from each side of the plate in a single game for the first time in his career, and that came one day after he belted two homers in a game batting righty off Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga.

“First of all, he’s a 10 out of 10 person. Really good husband and father, and he’s a really good baseball player,” said Marlins manager Skip Schumaker, who was on the Cardinals’ staff when Edman played there. “They got a good one in that trade. … We knew he’s a little bit better from the right side. He’s a good hitter from the left side too, but from the right side, he’s got some power.

“Just a really good pickup, winning player, guy you want on your team. It was a really good pickup for them.”

Defensively, Edman has also given the Dodgers the versatility they’ve been looking for. Edman has handled shortstop, especially against right-handed pitching, and has played solid center field against left-handed pitchers. His ability to move all over the diamond and his switch-hitting ability has opened possibilities for Los Angeles to roll out its best lineups on a nightly basis.

As the Dodgers continue to work through some pitching struggles, they’re going to need more contributions from the rest of their lineup. Edman has given them a significant boost in the middle or near the bottom of the order, something that has lacked in previous seasons.

“He's a matchup nightmare,” Roberts said. “Whether I want to have him in the middle of some right-handers or protecting some left-handers, things like that, like I said, when you get the starter and also look at the bullpen, he creates some nightmares."