Kyle Tucker’s first trip back to Wrigley Field in a Dodgers uniform came with a chorus he knew was coming, even if the volume still had to sting. The reaction was a mix of Cubs faithful and a sizable Dodgers crowd, but the message from the ballpark was unmistakable: the former Cubs outfielder was not getting a warm homecoming.
The boos hit almost immediately in the top of the first, right as the Dodgers were jumping out to a 3-0 lead and the SNLA broadcast was asking what kind of reception Tucker would receive. That question didn’t linger long. The answer came fast, loud and all around the park.
Chicago’s anger has been building since the way the 2025 season unraveled. Tucker looked like an MVP-level force in the first half, carrying the lineup before injuries and a drop in performance dragged everything off course.
The Cubs brought him in to be a centerpiece, a player who could set the tone and tilt games. Instead, the four-time All-Star faded when the team needed him most, and Jed Hoyer’s one-year gamble ended in a mess.
Even with that disappointment, the Cubs still made the postseason and finished just one win short of setting up an NLCS matchup with the Dodgers.
But Tucker’s problems didn’t stop when he left Chicago. His first season in Los Angeles has been rough enough to raise eyebrows on its own.
After signing a record-setting four-year, $240 million deal with the reigning back-to-back champs, he has looked out of sync and overmatched. He entered this week’s series against the Cubs with a 0.5 bWAR, leaving him with roughly the same value to the Dodgers as Michael Conforto has provided to Chicago.
Conforto, of course, is on a $2 million minor-league deal.
The Dodgers’ pursuit of a three-peat keeps rolling, but Tucker’s place in this story is getting harder to ignore. He may never be embraced in Chicago, and if his game doesn’t turn soon, Southern California could get just as cold toward him. Monday night at Wrigley might have been only the opening chapter.
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For Happ, the shift means fewer opportunities when the opponent sends a lefty to the mound, and the Cubs appear committed to that setup for the rest of the 2026 season. It is a notable turn for a regular who has long been part of the clubs everyday core, and it also leaves Chicago with some flexibility as it keeps sorting out how best to use the new pieces it has added. [Read more 🡒]