The Los Angeles Dodgers' blockbuster offseason moves heading into the 2026 season couldn't have panned out much worse... in the regular season, at least.
Outfielder Kyle Tucker, who signed a four-year, $240 million deal with the Dodgers
, was one of the game's most disappointing players in 2026.
Advertisement
Offensively, he was a below-average player, finishing with an OPS+ of 97, which is 3% less than league average. Defensively, he was one of the game's worst right fielders, finishing with a negative-8 Outs Above Average, which ranked in the sixth percentile of MLB.
Then there was closer Edwin Diaz, who signed a three-year, $69 million deal
with LA. He made just 21 appearances in the regular season as he dealt with elbow and neck injuries, finishing with an 8.68 ERA.
By the end of the year, Tucker and Diaz were arguably the two biggest disappointments in baseball
. However, in the postseason, they were anything but.
Across eight postseason games, Tucker was the Dodgers' best hitter, going 9-for-27 (.333) with one home run, two RBIs and an OPS of .938, which was the highest among all Dodgers.
Advertisement
As for Diaz, he made four relief appearances, allowing one run over six innings for a 1.50 ERA. He pitched five scoreless innings before allowing a solo home run in his final inning of work, which was his third inning of the night in the Dodgers' Game 4 loss in the National League Championship Series.
After the season, Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes assessed the season of his two high-paid offseason acquisitions.
"I think so much of that was betting on the true talent of those guys and while the regular season at times did not go the way anyone expected, their contributions in the postseason were massive," Gomes said at his end-of-season presser alongside president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman. "I think at the end of the day, if that is kind of where we're looking at where we end up winning the division with the bye and then those guys are performing at their peak in the postseason, that's a pretty good outcome for us."
Gomes also said he expects both players to have much better full seasons in 2027.
Advertisement
"Really looking forward to next year for those guys," Gomes said. "I think another year under their belt with Edwin being fully healthy and Kyle having a year to adjust and continue to build off what he did towards the end of the season - and same thing with Edwin."
Tucker technically has an opt out after the 2027 season which would allow him to forego the final two years and $100 million on his deal. If he has a year similar to the one in 2026, though, it's hard to imagine him giving up that money and testing the open market.
As for Diaz, he'll almost certainly be the team's starting closer coming out of spring training next year.
Sign up for our free newsletter
and follow us on X/Twitter
and Facebook
for the latest news.
Advertisement
Today's best reads
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/dodgers/onsi as Biggest Disappointments? Dodgers GM Addresses Kyle Tucker, Edwin Diaz Debut Seasons in LA
.
