Enjoy it While You Can!
It was both surprising and not surprising to me that the Dodgers signed Kyle Tucker. That they can make it work is a tribute to the true genius of Mark Walter and Andrew Friedman. Enjoy it while you can, because it will end soon. In the upcoming CBA and talks among owners, MLB…
It was both surprising and not surprising to me that the Dodgers signed Kyle Tucker. That they can make it work is a tribute to the true genius of Mark Walter and Andrew Friedman. Enjoy it while you can, because it will end soon. In the upcoming CBA and talks among owners, MLB will implement what we may call “The Dodger Restriction.” I cannot tell you for certain how it will be structured, but it will include the following:
- A Salary Cap – While it may not be called that, it will effectively limit what the Dodgers can spend on players. This could result in a prolonged lockout.
- More Revenue Sharing – You can hate this all you want, but the Dodgers possess the greatest buying power in MLB, even higher than the Yankees. Yes, some owners are cheapskates and penny pinchers, but the Dodgers may have 10 times their resources. The Dodgers and other strong teams in MLB will have to share revenue. Not fair? You can’t play and win without having other teams. It smacks of Socialism, but it has to happen.
- Eliminate Deferred Payments – Shohei Ohtani’s payment deferral is the ultimate smart deal. I think MLB will insist that teams be fiscally responsible and require payouts in the season they are playing.
The baseball team owners are going to insist on an overhaul of the game’s economic system to include a salary cap. Signing Kyle Tucker is the icing on the cake. Player leadership has indicated it won’t even consider a capped system. Be prepared for a Lockout that could last the entire 2027 season and even longer.
It is somewhat embarrassing to me that the Dodgers can so flagrantly taunt other teams with their financial strength, but they are playing within the rules. However, the rules are about to be changed because of them. What’s done is done. As hard as it may be, I look for the Dodgers to win the 2026 World Series. Three in a row may be it, as I can see a scenario whereby there is no World Series in 2027.
Once the new CBA is implemented (by 2028), here is what the Dodgers will face:
- Freddie Freeman will be gone.
- Mookie Betts will be 35 and in decline at 2B.
- Kyle Tucker will have a couple more years on his deal and be playing 1B or LF.
- Will Smith will be 33 and will have to rest more.
- Shohei Ohtani may be a freak, but he will be 33 in 2028 and may decline from the 1.000+ OPS he has put up the past three seasons.
The good news is that the Dodger Farm System is strong and should be producing prospects. This could be the lineup in 2028:
C- Smith/Rushing
1B – Tucker
2B – Betts
SS – Morales
3B – Wagner
LF – Quintero/DePaula
CF – Sirota
RF – Pages
DH – Ohtani
The farm is loaded, so the Dodgers may continue to be the envy of MLB, however, there will be major changes after next season. Bet on it!
More from Dodger Talk
Dodgers Food Trailer
I did this interview a couple of weeks ago with Chef Mike, who runs the Dodgers Food Trailer for the Great Lakes Loons. They are there for every home and road regular season and playoff game. They prepare three meals a day for approximately 50 people (players and coaches). Since games end late most evenings, they do not prepare breakfast. Many of their hotels have a complimentary breakfast anyway. However,…
Meet LAD 2026 Draft Picks 1-12
3 picks were High School players (2 SS and 1 OF). There was a college OF, college catcher, college SS, and 10 college pitchers. Of all the talk for a need for a catcher, the only catcher the Dodgers selected was Luke Bard, son of LAD bullpen coach Josh Bard. Bard was a 4th year senior from Houston Christian University. He is not a prospect, so the Dodgers are still…
Interview with Paul Beachy – Team Bus Driver For The Great Lakes Loons (LA Dodgers Minor League Team)
It’s been a few days since I did this interview. We have evidently been working my son-in-law (the video guy) like a rented mule at US Water Systems. However, I am taking him to London with me in a few days, so maybe Watford will buy him a pint as a tip, but he’s a dang Red Sox fan, so there is that! I thought that it would be interesting…
Thanks for Your Service: Chris Taylor
I was going to do this post when Chris announced he was retiring, then he changed his mind, but since the chances of him ever playing for the Dodgers again are slim and non-existent, I will go ahead with this post. He unretired, went on the IL, then decided to call it quits on May 24th. Taylor was born in Virginia Beach VA on August 29th, 1990. He attended Great…
Discussion (68)
Disagree, not disagreeable
A couple of things guys, first, another forum for Dodger fans is shutting down. ThinkbluePC is signing off after10 years. I have become friends with Dennis, who has run the site for 10 years. We have exchanged baseball cards. He lives outside of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Good site, with some excellent articles. His co-writer is a young lady, Andy Chapman. I enjoyed both of their stories. Dennis began writing years ago for Bleacher Report. He is leaving due to work commitments. Second, according to MLB insider, Hector Gomez, the Dodgers are making a serious push to obtain Brewers Ace, Freddy Peralta. According to Gomez, the talks have become increasingly intense.
What do we talk about now?
Gentlemen, we have a deal.
I’d be happy if they could get one draft pick back and I’d even throw in Landon Knack.
Tucker = 3 or 0. Rushing could get 9.
I have heard that he will likely retire after his contract ends.
Combined, the Dodgers expect a return of $3.52 for both Ward and Miller.
According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal on Saturday, despite initial chatter around trading Teoscar Hernandez, who has two years left on his contract, the Dodgers are instead looking to move experienced minor leaguer Ryan Ward or starter Bobby Miller. “Fresh off their stunning signing of free-agent right fielder Kyle Tucker, the Dodgers are expected to keep Teoscar Hernández and move him to left field,” he wrote. “As reported previously, Hernández’s name has surfaced in trade conversations. “The Dodgers, however, are more likely to explore deals for outfielder Ryan Ward, a career minor leaguer who last season was MVP of the Pacific Coast League at 27, or right-hander Bobby Miller, who has been a disappointment.”
Yep. It’s been suggested that Tucker isn’t as passionate about baseball as some of his peers. If so, a ten-year commitment might be less appealing than what the Dodgers offered. The Big Fat Check style of roster building still bothers me, though. Trades are inherently more interesting and fun. So who should be in the package for Skubal?
Yep. Baseball has a way of evenin things out….. I fondly recall Bob Costas describing how historically weak the Dodgers lineup was in the ’88 WS. I think Franklin Stubbs was batting cleanup. Then Gibson hit the GOAT HR and the underDodgers beat the mighty Caneco-McGwire A’s in five games.
With fans like this, who needs fans?
Hell yes
$500 night out on the town for 4 is ridiculously stupid.
Tucker first wore number 3 with the Astros, and after a couple of years switched to 30 which he also wore with the Cubs. Since Doc has number 30 and Diaz has already claimed number 3, I say Tucker should wear number 33.
Hey if Miggy doesn’t make that throw in the bottom of the ninth we lose the game and every one else happy. ‘You can’t buy the World Series’. So with all that spending we won by ‘an inch’. Its not like we won 120 games and swept every game by score of 7-0!!! So let the haters hate.
I would think he will get a lower number. Barnes’ 15 is available. I predict they give Tucker 27. Kemp’s old number.
From MLBTR: The Dodgers’ plan is likely to move Hernandez over to left field, with Tucker taking his customary right field position. Andy Pages and Tommy Edman would be the primary center field options with Alex Call in a reserve outfield role, and Edman is also perhaps the top option within an unsettled second base mix that also includes Miguel Rojas, Hyeseong Kim, Alex Freeland, and new acquisition Andy Ibanez. A reunion with Enrique Hernandez at some point this offseason also can’t be ruled out.
“Teoscar Hernandez’s name surfaced in trade rumors earlier this winter, and now that Kyle Tucker is joining the Los Angeles outfield, it created some natural speculation that the Dodgers could clear room by moving Hernandez elsewhere. Even with Tucker in the fold, however, it is more likely than not that Hernandez will still be a Dodger on Opening Day, according to both The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez”.
He made a smart decision.
Can’t do this, for obvious reasons.
There are always, ALWAYS, going to be fans who cannot attend games. Due to distance, cost, schedules. The team has no obligation to act as a public utility.
I’m a uniform numbers guy. So what number will Tucker wear ? Doc wears his number 30. When will Rushing get a lower number than 68 ?
That is the point dude! If you want $4 hot dogs start cheering for the Guardians or Pirates.
Blue Jays Reportedly Offered 10-Year, $350MM Deal To Kyle Tucker “Kyle Tucker’s four-year, $240MM contract with the Dodgers ended an intriguing trip through free agency for the outfielder, as Tucker opted for a shorter-term deal with an extremely high average annual value and some built-in flexibility (opt-outs after the 2027 and 2028 seasons) over a longer-term pact. Multiple reports suggested that Tucker’s only true long-term offer on the table came from the Blue Jays, and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman writes that the terms of Toronto’s offer were $350MM over ten years”.
The Dodgers are the Evil Empire on the West Coast and I love it. You can hate us but try to beat us is another story.