'Raging' MLB owners sound ready for lockout after Dodgers, Kyle Tucker deal

As Matt Clapp shared for Awful Announcing, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred insisted during an appearance on New York sports radio station WFAN that there "has been a rush to negativity by a lot of the media that covers our sport" regarding what many fear is an inevitable work stoppage that could impact parts or all of the 2027 season.

That rush won't be slowing down anytime soon. 

It is "100 percent certainty" that MLB owners will do this after Dodgers, Kyle Tucker deal

MLB insider Evan Drellich of The Athletic revealed that unnamed league owners "are 'raging' in the wake of Kyle Tucker’s free agency agreement with the Los Angeles Dodgers." Drellich added that it is now "'a 100 percent certainty' that the owners will push for a salary cap" during negotiations with the MLB Players Association over the next collective bargaining agreement.

The current CBA between the sides expires on Dec. 1, 2026. 

Star closer Edwin Diaz previously signed a three-year, $69M deal to leave the New York Mets for the Dodgers in free agency. Shortly after that, the MLB community was stunned to learn that Tucker received a four-year, $240M contract with an opt-out after the second year from the World Series champions for 2024 and 2025. 

History shows that the MLBPA will fight against a salary cap through an expected lockout, even if doing so would result in the cancellation of games. It sounds like owners are ready to lock the players out if the union doesn't accept a cap following the events of this offseason. 

"Biggest question" about upcoming MLB, MLBPA fight revealed?

"What came in the wake of the Tucker news, a three-year, $126M deal between the New York Mets and Bo Bichette, also raised dander, the source said, adding that the Dodgers and Mets might be the only teams that will try to stand in the way of a cap," Drellich continued. "...The biggest question seems to be not whether a cap proposal will be made, but which side caves on the matter first: do owners hold steady on such a proposal into a work stoppage that costs regular-season games in 2027? Do players cave? And how long does the staredown last?"

In early 2022, Opening Day was pushed back because of a lockout. Eventually, the two sides came to an agreement for teams to play full 162-game schedules. History could repeat itself next year, but The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal is among MLB reporters who continue to say that a lockout "might force the cancellation of part or all of the 2027 season." 

"The lockout is coming," Rosenthal wrote. "Everyone in the sport knows it."