Kyle Tucker free agency profile, team fits

With the 2025 season behind us and the hot stove ready to burn, we’re taking a closer look at some of the most prominent players eligible for free agency.

Name: Kyle Tucker
Position: Right field
Team: Chicago Cubs
Age (as of Opening Day 2026): 29
2025 stats: 136 games, .266/.377/.464 (.841 OPS), 22 HR, 73 RBI, 91 R, 143 OPS+, 4.5 fWAR
Qualifying Offer: Yes

The four-time All-Star will be in the news again this winter, but this time, heâ€ll have far more control over his baseball fate. Tucker is a free agent for the first time and he’s the consensus No. 1 player in a market that has some attractive options to choose from.

Tucker got off to a great start in 2025, but a hairline fracture in his right hand impacted him at the plate throughout the summer and a calf strain cost him more than three weeks in September. His final numbers — 22 home runs, 73 RBIs, 25 stolen bases and an .841 OPS in 136 games — donâ€t exactly jump off the page, but even with his second-half issues, Tucker is the most well-rounded and consistent player available this offseason, posting an fWAR between 4.2 and 4.9 in each of the past five seasons.

“Heâ€s still the top free agent this year,†an NL executive recently said. “If heâ€s healthy, heâ€s one of the best players in the game and heâ€s in his prime. Heâ€s going to get paid.â€

Tucker may turn out to be one of those cases where the terms of his free-agent deal are just as fascinating as which team signs him. Prior to the season, there was plenty of talk about Tucker landing one of the biggest guaranteed deals in history; will his injuries and slight regression at the plate cost him a chance to join that elite group, or has his sustained excellence over the past five seasons been enough to spark a bidding war?

Letâ€s take a look at how Tuckerâ€s offseason might play out:

Cubs
The Cubs figure to take a shot at retaining Tucker, who accounted for a $16.5 million salary in 2025. Chicago will have more than $35 million in other salaries coming off the books, but it remains to be seen whether the Cubs — who have never signed a player for even $200 million — will be willing to pay Tucker what his market figures to command. This seems like it could be a one-and-done case for Tucker on the North Side.

Dodgers
Any conversation revolving around a free agent of this magnitude usually begins with the Dodgers, who rarely encounter a price tag they arenâ€t willing to consider. Michael Conforto didnâ€t pan out in left field for Los Angeles, leaving a corner-outfield vacancy for 2026 that could be filled by signing Tucker to play right field and shifting Teoscar Hernández over to left. The Dodgers have roughly $65 million coming off the books, so if theyâ€re comfortable with a payroll that looks like the 2025 version, thereâ€s ample room for a big signing.

Yankees
The Yankees could have some major turnover in the outfield in 2026, as Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham are both free agents. Grisham was extended a $22.025 million qualifying offer and could opt to take it, locking him in for next season, but Bellinger will be seeking the long-term deal that evaded him two years ago in free agency.

Tucker would be a natural — and more expensive — fit to replace Bellinger, who is 18 months older. New Yorkâ€s other internal alternatives are Jasson Domínguez and Spencer Jones, though itâ€s hard to see the Yankees relying on both youngsters to hold down starting spots.

Giants
Right field was a problem for the Giants in 2025, as their .209 average, .632 OPS and 52 RBIs from the position all ranked last in the National League. San Francisco added a big salary to its payroll with a midseason trade for Rafael Devers, but the Giants ranked 17th in the Majors in runs scored and need another impact bat to compete in the loaded NL West.

Phillies
The expectation is that the Phillies will do what they must to re-sign Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto, but if president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski believes his team needs a shakeup, why not sign the best player on the market? Nick Castellanos is likely to be traded or even released this offseason, which would open right field for Tucker if the Phillies choose to pursue him.

Mets
A year ago, the Mets signed Juan Soto to the biggest deal in baseball history, but it wasnâ€t enough to get New York back to the postseason. What will the Mets†response be this winter? A lot of their plans will hinge upon Pete Alonsoâ€s free agency, as the first baseman will command a big salary to return to Queens.

Tucker would be a solid addition to the lineup, though his arrival in New York would require a move to left field for either him or Soto. Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns was the Astros†assistant GM when Houston drafted Tucker with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2015 Draft.

EXECUTIVE TAKE
“Heâ€s young, hits righties and lefties and heâ€s a good defender. Thereâ€s an easy story to why he was a bit off in the second half, but nothing that should be a long-term concern.â€

BUYER BEWARE
There is no debate about the type of player Tucker is when heâ€s on the field, but his past two seasons have raised some red flags about his ability to stay healthy. In 2024, Tucker was limited to 78 games thanks to a fracture in his right shin, while he battled a right hand fracture and a left calf strain in 2025.

The hand injury didnâ€t send him to the injured list, but his performance suffered as a result of the issue, while the calf strain knocked him out for more than three weeks in September. Two of these injuries can be described as fluky, but given the old saying that the best ability is availability, Tuckerâ€s injury issues canâ€t be discounted entirely as he approaches his thirties.

FOR COMP’S SAKE
Prior to the season, there was talk about Tucker landing a deal worth north of $400 million in the offseason, perhaps even eclipsing the $500 million mark. Following a year in which he battled some injuries and had some slight regression at the plate, is he still looking at that type of payday?

Only four players have surpassed the $400 million mark — Juan Soto, Shohei Ohtani, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Mike Trout — while 13 others have signed deals worth at least $300 million. Since 2018, seven free agents have signed contracts of at least 10 years; six of them landed those deals prior to their 30th birthday. Tucker turns 29 in January, so a deal of at least 10 years seems well within reach.

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