The Dodgers insisted they didn’t need to make a major addition to their lineup ahead of their bid to three-peat as World Series champions next season.

But on Thursday, they went ahead and landed the top hitter on the free-agent market anyway.

In a blockbuster move that only further reinforces the club’s superteam status, the Dodgers agreed to a deal with Kyle Tucker, a source confirmed, adding a four-time All-Star and the consensus top player in free agency this winter to their already star-studded nucleus.

For weeks, the Dodgers had been linked to Tucker, a 28-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder with a career .273 batting average and .865 OPS. In recent days, however, they faced stiff competition, with the New York Mets submitting a four-year bid of $50 million in annual salary and the Toronto Blue Jays reportedly offering a longer-term alternative.

The Dodgers, however, countered with their own staggering proposal: A four-year, $240 million deal, according to The Post’s Jon Heyman, that comes with the second-highest annual average value in the sport at $60 million, trailing only Shohei Ohtani, and will include $30 million in deferred money.

ESPN first reported the signing, which will also reportedly include opt-outs after the second and third year of the contract.

A former first-round pick of the Houston Astros coming out of high school in Tampa, Fla., Tucker has been an impact hitter ever since establishing himself in the big leagues in 2020, thanks to his powerful swing (he has two 30-homer seasons), pristine plate discipline (he has never had a 100-strikeout season) and ability to get on base (he ranks top-15 in the majors in that category since 2020).

He has been an All-Star selection each of the past four seasons. He is an underrated threat on the base paths (three seasons of 25-plus steals). He has also been decent defensively as primarily a right fielder.

On this year’s free-agent market, no other player provided such a well-rounded skill set –– especially considering he’s still on the right side of 30.

That profile did not help Tucker land the 10-year, $400 million mega-contract he was widely projected to receive entering the winter. His market was seemingly hurt by injury concerns (he has missed more than 100 games over the past two seasons) and his relatively down performance following a trade to the Chicago Cubs last year (when he batted just .266, and scuffled over the second half of the season while dealing with a hand fracture and calf strain).

Those factors, however, made him a more realistic fit for the Dodgers, who preferred a shorter-term, higher-salary contract given their already aging and expensive core.

Over the last week, it was unclear which way Tucker was leaning in his free-agent decision, as he fielded strong interest from both the Mets and Blue Jays.

The Dodgers’ urgency in his sweepstakes was an equally big unknown.

After all, the team was already returning a strong roster core, one the front office had voiced confidence in throughout the winter.

It was coming off a 2025 season in which, despite some prolonged stretches of inconsistency, it still ranked second in the majors in scoring. 

And though there was room to fit another hefty salary into the payroll (which had previously been projected at $346 million by Cot’s Baseball Contracts, still almost $70 million less than last year’s record-breaking total of $415 million), a potential Tucker signing threatened to come with stiff luxury tax penalties for the Dodgers: A 110% tax surcharge on his salary, since the club is already over MLB’s highest luxury tax threshold; plus the loss of two more of their top-six draft selections next year, since Tucker declined a qualifying offer at the start of the offseason (the Dodgers had already surrendered two top draft picks for their signing of closer Edwin Díaz earlier this offseason).

In the past, such factors might’ve swayed the Dodgers down a more conservative path.

But, as president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman noted at last month’s Winter Meetings, the club is “in a really strong position right now, financially,” coming off its back-to-back titles as well as the massive revenue windfall that has accompanied Ohtani’s arrival. And, Friedman added, “if we do our jobs well and continue to be a successful team at the major league level, there’s no reason why that shouldn’t continue.”

Thus, to complete yet another winter spending spree that has rocked the rest of the sport, the Dodgers aimed high, spent big and brought Tucker to Los Angeles –– making him the team’s latest major free-agent splash, even at a time they didn’t necessarily feel they needed to make one.