After a phenomenal season capped off by winning their third World Series victory in the last five seasons[1], the Los Angeles Dodgers picked up the offseason right where they left off by winning the bidding war over superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker.[2]
Tucker, 29, spent the last season with the Chicago Cubs before becoming one of MLB’s most coveted free agents at the end of the 2025 season. And while to many Tucker signing a four year, 240 million dollar contract with baseball’s biggest juggernaut might just signal continued dominance over the league, a closer examination of the Tucker signing reflects the fairness concerns between the haves and the have-nots of the league that is making it increasingly likely that the MLB will enter a lockout following the expiration of the CBA at the end of 2026.[3]
At the heart of the fairness concerns is the use of deferred payment contracts commonly employed by big market teams such as the Dodgers. In a nutshell, deferred payment contracts allow a team that can afford it to offer superstars massive, high-value contracts, while at the same time minimizing what the player receives in the near-term.[4] Thus, a big market team can offer superstar players massive sums that small market teams can’t while simultaneously not blowing through their budget via structuring. For example, Tucker, who is set to make 240 million in 4 years, is operating on a 1-million-dollar salary in his first year with the Dodgers, with the rest coming in at later dates.[5] This style of contract has become a signature of the Dodgers, as they used it to land superstar Shoei Ohtani with a 10 year, 700 million dollar contract in 2023.[6]
While deferred contracts are currently admissible under the CBA, small market teams have become increasingly frustrated with big market teams “abusing” their use to effectively make it impossible for small market teams to ever win over a superstar player in free agency. Further, with the lack of a salary cap in baseball, small market teams claim that deferred contracts are all the more evil, as they are further evidence of the need to implement cost controls to preserve competition in Major League Baseball.[7] With the CBA set to expire in December of 2026, it seems almost inevitable that a lockout is coming, where compromises will need to be made.
[1] Los Angeles Dodgers, Post Season Results, Dodgers.com (February 3, 2026).
[2] Sonja Chen, Tucker picks Dodgers, agrees to four-year contract, MLB (January 21, 2026).
[3] Alden Gonzalez, Jeff Passan, Jesse Rogers, what you need to know about MLB’s looming labor battle, ESPN (December 1, 2025).
[4] Patrick M. Judd, MLB’s Deferred Compensation Practice: How the Dodgers in 2025 Are Getting $241.44 Million Worth of Value by Paying Only $115.61 Million, Phelps (October 22, 2025).
[5] Alden Gonzalez, Sources: Kyle Tucker, Dodgers agree to 4-year, $240M deal, ESPN (January 15, 2026).
[6] MLB, Dodgers sign two-time MVP Shohei Ohtani, (December 11, 2023).
[7] Barry M. Bloom, Lockout Looms For 2027 Season If MLB, Union Can’t Come to Terms, Forbes (December 7, 2025).
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