Michael King
30-Year-Old
Free Agent
2025 Stats
W-L
5-3
ERA
3.44
WHIP
1.20
K
76
SV
0
2026 Projections
2025 Fantasy Outlook
It was not an ideal walk year for King. After posting a sub-3.00 ERA and topping 200 strikeouts in 2024 in his first full major-league season as a starter, King was limited to just 15 starts in 2025, mostly due to a thoracic nerve impingement in his right shoulder. He also dealt with a knee issue late in the year and held a 6.11 ERA and 12:9 K:BB over 17.2 frames covering his final five regular-season starts before being left out of the Padres' postseason rotation. King's velocity down the stretch was fine, and he entered the offseason with a clean bill of health. That said, given the nature of the shoulder issue, the 30-year-old will head into the 2026 campaign as a major injury risk. We also don't know where King will pitch yet, throwing another uncertainty log onto the fire. Read Past Outlooks
Signed a one-year, $7.75 million contract with the Padres in January of 2025. Declined $15 million player option for 2026 in November of 2025.
Receives qualifying offer
The Padres extended a one-year, $22.05 million qualifying offer to King on Thursday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
Analysis
King will presumably decline the offer and instead pursue a multi-year deal in free agency, and if he signs somewhere other than San Diego, the Padres will receive a compensatory draft pick. The 30-year-old righty is likely to have plenty of suitors this offseason after turning in a 3.44 ERA and 1.20 WHIP over 73.1 innings in 2025.
King will presumably decline the offer and instead pursue a multi-year deal in free agency, and if he signs somewhere other than San Diego, the Padres will receive a compensatory draft pick. The 30-year-old righty is likely to have plenty of suitors this offseason after turning in a 3.44 ERA and 1.20 WHIP over 73.1 innings in 2025.
Pitching Stats
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2025 MLB Game Log
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
77
Last 10 Games
68
Last 5 Games
52
How many pitches does Michael King generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Michael King generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2023
-7%
BAA vs LHP
2025
-13%
BAA vs RHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2023vs Left | .215 | 188 | 71 | 143 | 19 |
| Since 2023vs Right | .230 | 216 | 50 | 151 | 20 |
| 2025vs Left | .237 | 46 | 16 | 37 | 6 |
| 2025vs Right | .207 | 30 | 10 | 25 | 6 |
| 2024vs Left | .223 | 94 | 38 | 77 | 9 |
| 2024vs Right | .218 | 107 | 25 | 67 | 8 |
| 2023vs Left | .179 | 48 | 17 | 29 | 4 |
| 2023vs Right | .259 | 79 | 15 | 59 | 6 |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2023
-5%
ERA on Road
2025
-54%
ERA at Home
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2023Home | 3.07 | 1.18 | 173.0 | 12.0 | 3.1 |
| Since 2023Away | 2.92 | 1.18 | 178.2 | 8.7 | 3.1 |
| 2025Home | 2.44 | 1.02 | 48.0 | 11.1 | 3.0 |
| 2025Away | 5.33 | 1.54 | 25.1 | 6.0 | 3.6 |
| 2024Home | 3.32 | 1.22 | 78.2 | 12.5 | 3.3 |
| 2024Away | 2.65 | 1.17 | 95.0 | 8.7 | 3.2 |
| 2023Home | 3.30 | 1.27 | 46.1 | 12.2 | 2.9 |
| 2023Away | 2.31 | 1.05 | 58.1 | 9.9 | 2.6 |
Stat Review
How does Michael King compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
2.92K/9
9.3BB/9
3.2HR/9
1.5Fastball
95.5 mphERA
3.44WHIP
1.20BABIP
.277GB/FB
0.92Left On Base
80.1%Exit Velocity
81.5 mphBarrels/BBE
6.8%Spin Rate
2318 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
24.1%Swinging Strike
10.8%Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2024
2023
2021
2020
2019
King was the Yankees' duct tape in 2023 as he fixed issues as the pitching situation broke down in New York. Need a starter? King started nine contests in the second half peaking with a 13-strikeout performance against Toronto on September 20th. Need a closer? King saved six games before the break. Need a long reliever? King had 24 outings in which he faced 5-9 batters. Throughout it all, King struck out 29.5% of the batters he faced holding them to a .223 average with solid ratios with a handful of wins and saves. He has a four-pitch repertoire against lefties with his changeup leading the way and zigs and zags against righties with sinkers and sweepers. King was the big-league headliner in the Padres' return for one year of Juan Soto, and San Diego has such little rotation depth that his role won't be in question as long as he stays healthy. It's a modest upgrade in home parks, as Yankee Stadium was close to neutral while San Diego has the second-best pitcher's park in the game, per Baseball Savant's three-year rolling park factors.
More Fantasy News
Bound for free agency
King declined his side of a $15 million mutual option for the 2026 season Sunday, making him an unrestricted free agent, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Analysis
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Left out of wild-card rotation
Padres manager Mike Shildt said Monday that King will be available out of the bullpen for the National League Wild Card Series against the Cubs, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.
Analysis
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Abbreviated outing in no-decision
King did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks, allowing one hit and two walks with three strikeouts over 2.2 scoreless innings.
Analysis
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Walks four in win
King (5-3) allowed four hits and four walks over five-plus scoreless innings Sunday, striking out four and earning a win over the White Sox.
Analysis
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Crushed by Mets
King (4-3) yielded eight runs on 10 hits over three-plus innings Tuesday, striking out two and taking a loss against the Mets.
Analysis
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Yankees showing interest
Jim Bowden of The Athletic believes that a reunion between the Yankees and King is a "real possibility" this winter.
Analysis
It's not surprising to see the 30-year-old right-hander having a ton of suitors after posting a 3.10 ERA while working as a full-time starter for the Padres the past two seasons. The Cubs are also expected to be interested in signing King, who debuted with the Yankees in 2019 and operated as a swingman before being shipped to the Padres in the Juan Soto trade.
It's not surprising to see the 30-year-old right-hander having a ton of suitors after posting a 3.10 ERA while working as a full-time starter for the Padres the past two seasons. The Cubs are also expected to be interested in signing King, who debuted with the Yankees in 2019 and operated as a swingman before being shipped to the Padres in the Juan Soto trade.