The reported four-year, $240 million deal is another massive financial commitment by the free-spending Dodgers. While the Blue Jays remained involved in the Tucker sweepstakes throughout the process, they were widely viewed as the team best positioned to offer him a more traditional, long-term deal.
It feels like we’re watching the World Series play out over three months instead of 10 days, two behemoths exchanging haymakers. The Dodgers have added the best hitter on the market in Tucker after adding one of the league’s top closers, Edwin Diaz. The Blue Jays have countered with the market’s top pitcher, Dylan Cease, who was followed by starter Cody Ponce, reliever Tyler Rogers and infielder Kazuma Okamoto.
This isn’t quite as painful as that Instagram post from Shohei Ohtani just over two years ago, announcing he’d be joining the Dodgers after a long flirtation with the Blue Jays, but this is the first speed bump in an offseason that’s otherwise been all momentum. The Blue Jays burst out of the gates by signing Cease to that seven-year, $210 million deal in late November and have kept beating the drum since, but Tucker represented a grand finale.
While there would have been financial challenges to adding Tucker — significant ones when the Collective Bargaining Tax is considered — Blue Jays ownership has shown an incredible commitment to spending, understanding the rarity of the opportunity the 2025 squad captured. Even without another move made, the Blue Jays would open ‘26 with a record payroll ranking near the top of the league, but everyone is still left staring up at the Dodgers.
It’s still the landing spot that makes this sting. A year ago, the Blue Jays were just chasing the postseason, comparing themselves to other Wild Card teams. After the 2025 run, though, every expectation has changed. This organization measures itself up against the Dodgers now, and the Dodgers just grew another foot.
Everything about the Blue Jays feels like it exists in a new realm now. Missing out on Tucker doesn’t compare in any way to the Ohtani or Juan Soto pursuits because those represented a ticket to World Series contention, which is something the Blue Jays have already figured out on their own. While Tucker would have been an incredible addition and seamless fit on this roster — this can’t be downplayed in hindsight — the world will continue to spin and the offseason rolls on.
The question now becomes how aggressive the Blue Jays are in re-engaging at the top of the market. It feels like every single spotlight has been pointed at Tucker since the calendar flipped to 2026, but what about Bo Bichette?
Bichette still makes great baseball sense for the Blue Jays, who now have Okamoto as part of their infield mix as a likely third baseman with Ernie Clement pencilled in at second. Clement deserves everyday reps and can find those at all four infield positions, but Bichette’s name still sits near the top of the market for a reason and no one understands those reasons better than the Blue Jays, who drafted and developed Bichette into a star alongside his longtime copilot and friend, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
While Bichette has long stated his desire to play for the Blue Jays long-term, continuing the ride alongside Guerrero that they began together in the Minor Leagues, money talks and it’s usually the loudest voice at the table. Bichette has met with the Phillies recently, and there remains an even more daunting threat of Bichette ending up in the American League East with a team like the Red Sox or Yankees.
Even beyond Bichette and Cody Bellinger, there are still plenty of bats available in a market that should quickly begin to move, but the Blue Jays need to keep a high bar here. Any infielder signed would be taking at-bats away from someone like Addison Barger or even Clement. Any outfielder signed would be taking away reps from someone like Nathan Lukes. There are no black holes to be filled and no floor to be raised here, which is why the Blue Jays have focused their efforts on the top end of the hitting market.
Tucker is gone now, and the Blue Jays, still fully capable of making another major move as the clock ticks, will have to shift their focus to beating him.
