LOS ANGELES — It looks like the Dodgers are ruining baseball again.
The two-time defending World Series champions went into this winter with two obvious needs at closer and in the outfield. In both cases, they filled the need by simply signing the best free agent available at each position, adding outfielder Kyle Tucker to last month’s signing of Edwin Diaz. Tucker and the Dodgers reached agreement on a contract Thursday that will bring the winter’s top target to Los Angeles.
The deal is not official yet – the Dodgers will have to clear a 40-man roster spot for Tucker. But Tucker posted on his Instagram account on Thursday night a career highlights video that ends with Dodger Stadium, a Dodgers jersey with his name on the back hanging in a locker (no number) and (Dodgers president of baseball operations) Andrew Friedman’s voice (pulled from a previous press conference) introducing “the newest member of the Los Angeles Dodgers.”
“It’s Time for Dodger Baseball,” the caption reads.
Tucker had originally sought a long-term deal and reportedly had an offer from the Toronto Blue Jays possibly for as long as seven years. But the New York Mets tried to lure Tucker with a short-term deal with a much higher average annual value, reportedly a four-year $220 million offer that was front-loaded ($60 million the first two seasons, $50 million for each of the next two) with no deferred money.
The Dodgers simply blew the competition out of the water, reportedly giving Tucker a four-year contract for $240 million. The $60 million AAV (average annual value) is topped only by the 10-year, $700 million deal that two-way star Shohei Ohtani signed with the Dodgers two winters ago.
Ohtani’s deal includes $680 million in deferred money. According to reports, Tucker’s contract includes just $30 million in deferred salary. It also includes opt-out clauses after the second and third years.
The contract agreement with the Dodgers is an early birthday present for Tucker, who will turn 29 on Saturday. A four-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger and one-time Gold Glove winner – and a member of the Houston Astros’ 2022 World Series championship team – Tucker spent just one season with the Chicago Cubs after being traded by the Astros in December 2024. He hit .266 with an .841 OPS and missed time with a hairline fracture in his right hand suffered in June.
Over his past five seasons, Tucker was a .277 hitter with an .878 OPS, 134 home runs and two 100-RBI seasons including an American League-leading 112 in 2023 when he finished fifth in the AL MVP voting.
Both Tucker and Diaz were extended the qualifying offer by their former teams in November, meaning the Dodgers will forfeit four picks in next year’s draft.
Along with chasing a third consecutive championship, the Dodgers are almost certain to repeat as the team with the highest payroll in MLB – and the highest competitive balance tax bill. The Dodgers’ 2025 payroll was $417.3 million for CBT purposes and they paid a record tax bill of $169.4 million. The signings of Tucker and Diaz drive the Dodgers’ projected payroll for 2026 to more than $330 million (over $400 million for CBT purposes).
The Dodgers have also led MLB in attendance while winning the past two World Series and are believed to be the first MLB franchise to top $1 billion in revenue.