Kyle Tucker says Dodgers’ pursuit of three-peat made decision ‘easier’

LOS ANGELES — With several offers in free agency, Kyle Tucker was finally swayed by the championship pedigree of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“It’s a big decision, so you still have to weigh everything,” he said, “but this team and this city and the fan base makes it a little easier to make decisions. Ultimately, what we wanted to do is come here and be a part of it and try to win another World Series.”

Tucker signed a four-year, $240 million contract, choosing the Dodgers, the two-time defending World Series champions, over the New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays, the World Series runners-up. He can withdraw after years two and three.

“Obviously we started lower,” joked Andrew Friedman, Dodgers president of baseball operations. “That doesn’t mean it has to be two, three, four years here. It could be longer than that. The fact that he chose us when he had others that were longer term and others that were shorter term, I think, speaks to the growth and progress that we’ve made in creating a destination.”

Tucker receives a $64 million signing bonus, of which $54 million is payable on February 15 and $10 million on February 1, 2027. He receives a salary of $1 million this year and $55 million in 2027, and he has player options of $60 million for 2028 and 2029.

For each season from 2027 to 2029, $10 million is carried over. The deferred money from all years is payable in 10 equal installments each on December 1 from 2036 to 2045.

He also enjoys a hotel suite during road trips.

Tucker’s $60 million average annual value is the second highest in baseball history, excluding deferred money, behind Shohei Ohtani’s $70 million in his 10-year contract with the Dodgers through 2033. With the addition of Tucker’s $30 million in deferred money, Los Angeles owes $1.0945 billion in deferred compensation to 10 players from 2028 to 2047.

“No one has really moved our World Series odds for 2026 more than Kyle Tucker,” general manager Brandon Gomes said.

Tucker’s signing reignited talk that management would propose a salary cap in collective bargaining after the Dodgers added another star to one of the highest payrolls in sports.

“We don’t pay a lot of attention to it because we operate within the rules and we do everything we can to put ourselves in the best position, short term and long term, and we don’t think about more macro things outside of that,” Friedman said. “It’s about how can we win so many games and put ourselves in the best position to win a championship in 2026 without really compromising ourselves in the future and falling off the proverbial cliff.”

Tucker will play right field and likely bat second or third in the lineup, manager Dave Roberts said. Ohtani, who usually leads, was practicing on the field at Dodger Stadium before Tucker’s introductory news conference. Teoscar Hernández will move from right field to left.

“This top-down organization is first-class,” Tucker said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun to compete with these guys and compete for another hat-trick, hopefully, here.”

Tucker donned a No. 23 Dodgers jersey alongside Roberts and Gomes. He wore number 30 for most of his career with the Houston Astros and in his lone season with the Chicago Cubs last year. Roberts wears number 30 in honor of Dodgers star Maury Wills, his mentor.

Tucker said he chose 23 in honor of his former Astros teammate Michael Brantley, who wore the number before retiring in 2022. They won the World Series that year, although Brantley was sidelined during the postseason.

Tucker has been criticized for his perceived laid-back style of play. Last August, he was booed by Cubs fans for not missing ground balls and for lacking intensity. He acknowledged that he might be perceived that way because of “a little bit of my behavior.”

“I try to do my best, no matter how I feel or the situation,” he said.

The Dodgers sought out club personnel, training staff, teammates and coaches to learn more about Tucker’s competitive makeup and work ethic.

“His demeanor is such that he is not an outwardly exuberant personality, and so I think that can be misinterpreted,” Friedman said. “For us, it’s about how he competes, how he works? For that, we’re very confident that when he’s in the box, when he’s in the outfield, he competes as well as anyone.”

Roberts did his own check on Tucker along with other managers and coaches.

“I saw a fire inside,” he said.

Tucker, the National League starter in last summer’s All-Star Game, assured the Dodgers he wants to continue to improve.

“He talked about it a lot, about how much he cares about the details,” Friedman said. “Anything we have that can help him improve in any way — whether it’s on defense, on the bases, in the batter’s box — he says, ‘I’m all for it.’ So having a guy who has achieved what he has, but still has that kind of growth mindset, those are guys that make things easier. »

Roberts said he believes Tucker is a potential MVP candidate with the ability to win another Gold Glove.

“Having a lot of people around him, there are more points scored. I think he’s going to have the ability to produce points,” Roberts said. “He’s a five-tool player, he loves to compete, he loves to play, he’s involved in the community, he’s a smart player.”