Newly signed Tucker finds his place as Dodgers shuffle deck

The Dodgers made the signing of free-agent outfielder Kyle Tucker official Wednesday, capped off with an introductory news conference at Dodger Stadium.

- ED GUZMAN

Tucker's four-year, $240-million deal included a $64-million signing bonus, and the $60-million average annual value is the second-highest in baseball history, without factoring in deferred money, behind Shohei Ohtani's $70 million in his 10-year deal with the Dodgers.

Despite lucrative offers from the New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays, Tucker went with the two-time defending World Series champions, who made room on their 40-man roster by designating outfielder Michael Siani for assignment.

“It’s a big decision, so you still got to weigh out everything,” Tucker told reporters, “but this team and this city and the fan base kind of makes it a little bit easier to make some decisions. That is just ultimately what we wanted to do, is come here and be part of that and try to win another World Series.”

With Tucker firmly in place, here are three takeaways from Wednesday:

Where does Tucker slot in the lineup?

Manager Dave Roberts said Tucker will play right field, with Teoscar Hernandez sliding back to left field, the position he held down in his first season with the team in 2024.

It was not a surprising announcement, coming on the heels of Mookie Betts establishing himself as a Gold Glove finalist at shortstop and Hernandez struggling in right field last season.