The Los Angeles Dodgers made the two biggest splashes of the offseason with the signings of Kyle Tucker and Edwin Díaz. Not only were they two of the best players available on the market, but they also signed the two biggest contracts of free agency.
Tucker became the highest-paid player in terms of average annual value, and Díaz set the record for relievers.
However, there was a point in the negotiation process with both players when the Dodgers didn’t think they could sign either of them.
During an appearance on “Dodgers Territory,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman described the moment where that feeling began to shift inside the organization:
“In my head, Edwin was going to go back to the Mets, so we were more focused on other, more realistic targets. But near the end, before we closed the deal, we started to sense that opening, that we had a real chance, and we struck. We talked about Tucker more recently, but obviously, for us, it was about maintaining a shorter-term deal, and any time you’re doing that, you’re introducing risk in being able to get that done. So I wouldn’t say we were confident about it, but 5-7 days before we signed him, we started to get a sense we had a real chance.”
Before signing Díaz, the other targets the Dodgers were connected to included Robert Suárez and Pete Fairbanks.
Suárez made a lot of sense as an alternative to Díaz, who was projected to command around five years, because he was more likely to agree to a short-term deal.
However, the reigning National League reliever of the year surprisingly agreed to a three-year contract with the Dodgers. This was thanks, in part, to people close to him speaking very highly of the organization.
Díaz specifically pointed to the Dodgers’ winning culture and the way the team treats all players as factors that swayed his opinion to choose L.A.
Meanwhile, Friedman said the signing of Tucker was the result of the organization becoming a destination spot for free agents.
Among other factors, Tucker said getting to complement a star-studded lineup that features Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, among others, was too good to pass up.
Dodgers still talking with free agents
The Dodgers signed Evan Phillips back on a one-year deal on Wednesday, and they remain in contact with other players who could upgrade their roster. That likely includes Kiké Hernández, who is expected to return once Spring Training begins.
Hernández suggested in December that he expects to re-sign with the Dodgers, even if it happens later down the road, such as last season when he finalized a new contract just as Spring Training began.
Hernández underwent left elbow surgery at the start of the offseason and will be sidelined to begin the 2026 campaign, so there is no rush for either side to get a deal done.
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