The recent buzz isn’t just about the “cha-ching” echoing from Kyle Tucker’s bank account; it signals a growing resolve among team owners to brace for a possible lockout in 2027.

While Tucker himself isn’t to blame, nor are the Dodgers for signing the premier free agent hitter with a staggering four-year, $240 million contract on Thursday, the implications are significant.

This bold move by the reigning World Series champions is likely to amplify the clamor for a salary cap, a contentious issue expected to be at the heart of the labor negotiations as the current Collective Bargaining Agreement nears its expiration this December.

Even before Tucker inked his deal with the Dodgers, the consensus around the league was that a lockout was inevitable next year. The debate is expected to be fierce, with owners advocating for a salary cap and the players’ union staunchly opposing it, potentially leading to a drawn-out conflict that could disrupt the season.

By adding Tucker, who will receive $30 million in deferred payments but still boasts a record-setting present-day average annual salary of $57.1 million, the Dodgers’ projected luxury tax payroll for 2026 stands at $402.5 million, according to Cot’s Contracts. This figure surpasses the combined luxury tax payrolls of the Marlins ($79.3 million), Rays ($93.9 million), Guardians ($103.5 million), and White Sox ($105.1 million).

The Dodgers’ payroll is also nearly $100 million above the highest luxury tax threshold for 2026 ($304 million), with the financial penalties associated with it doing little to deter their spending – which is why many owners will fight for a salary cap, as MLB is currently the only major sport without out one. Even Hal Steinbrenner, whose Yankees currently have a projected luxury tax payroll of $287.8 million, has said he would be in favor of a cap as long as it came with a salary floor.

Ironically, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts – who joked that his team was ruining baseball on the way to a second straight title last October – is actually also among those who would be in favor of a salary cap and floor, despite the institution of one theoretically taking away one of his club’s biggest strengths over the rest of the league.

“Honestly, I think that we have an organization that whatever rules or regulations, constructs are put in front of us, we’re going to dominate,” Roberts said at the winter meetings. “And so just give us the rules, let us know the landscape and then I’ll bet on our organization. So that’s kind of the way I feel.”