Even Dodgers fans can't fathom what LA's payroll looks like after Kyle Tucker deal

It took only two players to reach this number, but by signing Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker, the Los Angeles Dodgers have effectively added more than $80 million in annual salary to their payroll this winter.

Tucker's deal is for a whopping $240 million over just four years; with slight deferrals, his AAV (for luxury tax purposes) comes out to about $57.1 million. That's a ludicrous amount, and further proof of the Dodgers' massive financial advantage over their MLB counterparts. Including all of their deferred payments, the team's total commitments now equal more than two billion dollars.

In fact, you'd need to multiply the Miami Marlins' total AAV commitments by seven just to approximate where the Dodgers are at in 2026 — and you'd still come up $9 million short! That disparity is equal parts ridiculous and unsustainable, but it's not Los Angeles' fault they have the money to spend and are willing to use it.

Dodgers' financial prowess reaching unthinkable levels after Kyle Tucker deal

By exceeding the final Competitive Balance Tax threshold of $304 million, the Dodgers have to pay a 110% tax on every dollar they spend over that threshold. That means that Tucker, whose $57.1 million AAV ranks first on the team, will cost Los Angeles about $120 million in 2026.

I'll repeat myself, just because that number is so large that it's hard to properly appreciate it in one go: The Dodgers will spend one hundred and twenty million dollars on Kyle Tucker in 2026.

If you didn't think there'd be a lockout before... oh boy. It's not a good time to be a fan of 29 other MLB franchises right now, especially if they happen to reside in the NL West.

Perhaps the best part of this whole saga is that the New York Mets — who seemed to be the favorite to land Tucker after offering him $220 million over four years with no deferrals — were forced to pivot radically in the wake of the Dodgers stealing the outfielder. They wound up spending $126 million on Bo Bichette, giving the star infielder opt-outs after both of the first two seasons of his deal.

That alone is worth the price of admission (figuratively), but it's also notable that, by taking Tucker off the market, the Dodgers also deprived their most recent World Series opponent of retaining their marquee free agent. Talk about an investment paying immediate dividends.

Most teams wouldn't win two championships in a row and then spend hundreds of millions of dollars on improving their on-field product, but complacency kills dynasties. It's nice to know the Dodgers have no plans to rest on their laurels while Shohei Ohtani is prying their competitive window wide open.