Dodgers' payroll implications if they offload Tesocar Hernandez, Tyler Glasnow money

The Los Angeles Dodgers don’t rebuild. They reconfigure. They re-optimize. They rebalance the machine until the engine hums again. And if you squint, you can already see Andrew Friedman picking up the wrench with those two names Dodgers fans have been whispering about all winter: Teoscar Hernández and Tyler Glasnow.

Offloading both contracts in 2026 wouldn’t just be a reshuffling of talent — it would be a financial earthquake. A loud one. The kind that shakes loose tens of millions of dollars and reminds the rest of baseball that the Dodgers operate on a different tier, a different wavelength, and often, a different stratosphere altogether.

Dodgers fans know the luxury tax isn’t just a line on a spreadsheet (even if ownership spends like it is). It’s the gravitational force that shapes roster construction. And right now, the Dodgers are sitting above those tax thresholds like they’re reclining on a cloud.

Together, Hernández and Glasnow represent roughly $47.2 million in 2026 CBT savings if traded –– maybe even closer to $52 million, depending on the projection source. That’s the kind of instant relief even the richest team in baseball doesn’t shrug off.

Dodgers offloading Tyler Glasnow, Teoscar Hernández contracts would be a $47-52 million CBT reset button

Glasnow's 2026 CBT hit is $27.3 million. Hernández's is $19.9 million. That’s basically the tax equivalent of ejecting two marquee salaries at once — not one big splash, but a double cannonball.

Sure, the Dodgers print money. Yes, everyone jokes that Dodger Stadium is basically a blue-and-white mint. But even this front office cares about actual cash outlay. If both Hernández and Glasnow are moved, the cash savings in 2026 will be upwards of $42 million ... or an opportunity to reinvest $42 million into more pressing needs.

Glasnow makes $30 million in 2026, and Hernández makes $12 million plus minor deferred obligations that LA pays whether he's there or not. These aren’t small numbers. This is the kind of money that allows Friedman to say things like, “Oh, another superstar? Cool, put him on my tab.”

The 2026 CBT threshold is $244 million, and the Dodgers — unsurprisingly — are projected to sail past it like it’s the 405 at midnight. Dumping nearly $50 million of AAV isn't just a nice break. It’s a chance to get out of the “repeat offender, please hand over your wallet” tax tier. The Dodgers have paid luxury tax like it’s their water bill, but even they aren’t immune to the ballooning penalties.

For the Dodgers, this isn’t about escaping the tax entirely — they won’t, and they don’t need to. This is about creating room for the right additions while avoiding the highest punitive tiers. Imagine freeing up a massive chunk of payroll and still being the big, bad Dodgers who snap their fingers and summon elite talent.

The optics of trading Glasnow and Hernández might spook casual fans: “Are the Dodgers cutting costs?! Are they shrinking?!” No. Absolutely not. This is the kind of move the Dodgers make before landing someone else’s franchise cornerstone. It’s the pre-splash ripple. The inhale before the thunderclap.

The Dodgers remain a top-spending behemoth either way — but with these contracts gone, they become a flexible behemoth, which is even scarier.

Dodgers fans have watched this team win with brute payroll force, with development pipelines, with clever margins, with aggression at the deadline. There’s no one blueprint — they just keep bending the sport to their will.

If Hernández and Glasnow are off the books in 2026, it means massive CBT breathing room, meaningful cash savings, multiple seasons of future tax relief, roster clarity and/or space for superstar additions and potential prospect breakouts.

This isn’t about trimming fat; it's about chiseling the statue. The Dodgers aren’t done sculpting their next era of dominance, and clearing these contracts might be the first chip off the marble.