Kyle Tucker picked the one team in the division that didn’t need him. And that’s exactly why this feels so bleak from a San Diego Padres perspective.
Los Angeles landed Tucker on a four-year, $240 million contract with opt-outs after the second and third seasons. The $60 million average annual value is the second-highest in MLB history, trailing only Shohei Ohtani’s $70 million AAV. While many believed the list of options were narrowed down to the Mets and Blue Jays, the Dodgers swooped in doing what they do best — pay up.
Kyle Tucker to the Dodgers quietly turns the Padres’ NL West chase into a nerve-wracking grind
This is what “stacked roster” looks like in the modern NL West: not just having stars, but having so many layers of stars that you can add another superstar bat and barely have to rearrange the furniture.